Twins have a prop keeping head strait

since day one the girls have keep there head to the left. doc says it was how they where in the womb. So Micayla was born first and she cant keep it strait. i think since she was at the bottom sissy was putting pressure on her and she had her head to the left. i asked doc at 2 week check up and said to hold it strait and we do all the time i asked again at 1 month and same answer. well at their 2 month the nurse siad she might send her for therphy and it was a common thing. Well i asked and doc said to make her look the oppisite way and nothing else, no help. well i have been working really hard with her and its getting a little better but i am scared it its not fix while she is small it will stay permante. anyone have this prop with a little one? oh her sissy can hold her head strait when awake but when sleeping she keeps it to the left side.

 

It's called torticollis, it is a common problem, and with therapy you can make it better. Just be really diligent about doing those exercises.

 

thanks i forgot the name, i am looking online and wonder how i her into theraphy? like i said my doc is no help and never even showed me any exercises i think she thinks its just going to go away.

 

Hey there, you need to go to your doctor and tell him/her that you want to do physical therapy to correct the torticollis. My first daughter had torticollis from her in utero positioning and it did NOT get better with time. Our pediatricians were very laid back about it and the result was a major flat spot that happened deforming her skull.

The physiology of it is that the muscles in her neck kept her head in one position, as the brain grows there are plates in a newborns head that need to shift to accomodate the growing skull and brain. The neck muscles are tight and keep those plates/the newborns head in one favored position, so as the brain grows and the skull grows it is restricted and those plates in the head cannot move freely and the flat spot occurs.

Sounds scary, but if you get early treatment it WILL correct. You just dont want to wait, AT ALL. Early intervention is the key. The physical therapist will show you exercises to do at home, and if you are very diligent about it, it will correct early. You just dont want to wind up with a flat spot, that creates another set of issues, needing a corrective skull helmet called a DOC band....which we had to do with my daughter as she was diagnosed at 5 1/2 months and quick correction was not possible. It took 2 years of physical therapy, the DOC band worn 23 hours a day, stretching exercises that were tough to do, etc.

Now fast forward to delivering our twins 3 weeks ago....our little boy was baby A and head down for months. He definitely has torticollis and having gone through it with my first daughter I knew what to look for. We have Will's first appointment with our physical therapist today to evaluate the level of torticollis he has and what exercises I need to do at home. I have already noticed a slight slant in the back of his head, but I know if I nip it in the bud now, we wont have to go down the road we did with our first child.

FYI, advocate for your child, if YOU feel something is not right, you need to TELL your pediatrician what you want. That you would rather have your baby girl go to a physical therapy evaluation and be told everything is fine, rather than sit back and worry and wonder or if she needs pt, you can start now as early intervention is key. The 4 doctors in our practice with my daughter did not listen, we wound up changing to another doctor who would listen to us.

It is sad in this day and age that pediatrician's are STILL TOO relaxed about this condition. Early intervention is key and you are a great mom for posting your question and researching torticollis and plagiocephaly online to get your answers. Now go tell your pediatrician you need a prescription faxed over to a physical therapist who specializes in infants and that you want to have an evaluation now, not later. OH and it is very common in multiples FYI.

I promise you, everything will be okay, just get her looked at now rather than later PM me if you have any questions or if I can help you. ~jillian

www.torticollisorg.com
www.torticolliskids.com
www.cranialtech.com

 

My DD had a medium case of torticollis. We noticed it early and with home stretching, it has been corrected. To this day we still stretch her with every diaper change and I re position her head during the night if I check on them.

Thankfully we did not need PT as I would have no way to get there and insurance doesnt cover it.

I would ask to see a PT though if your PED is not interested in helping you~!

 

QUOTE(Jillianstwins @ Jan 22 2008, 08:26 AM) [snapback]583632[/snapback]
Hey there, you need to go to your doctor and tell him/her that you want to do physical therapy to correct the torticollis. My first daughter had torticollis from her in utero positioning and it did NOT get better with time. Our pediatricians were very laid back about it and the result was a major flat spot that happened deforming her skull.

The physiology of it is that the muscles in her neck kept her head in one position, as the brain grows there are plates in a newborns head that need to shift to accomodate the growing skull and brain. The neck muscles are tight and keep those plates/the newborns head in one favored position, so as the brain grows and the skull grows it is restricted and those plates in the head cannot move freely and the flat spot occurs.

Sounds scary, but if you get early treatment it WILL correct. You just dont want to wait, AT ALL. Early intervention is the key. The physical therapist will show you exercises to do at home, and if you are very diligent about it, it will correct early. You just dont want to wind up with a flat spot, that creates another set of issues, needing a corrective skull helmet called a DOC band....which we had to do with my daughter as she was diagnosed at 5 1/2 months and quick correction was not possible. It took 2 years of physical therapy, the DOC band worn 23 hours a day, stretching exercises that were tough to do, etc.

Now fast forward to delivering our twins 3 weeks ago....our little boy was baby A and head down for months. He definitely has torticollis and having gone through it with my first daughter I knew what to look for. We have Will's first appointment with our physical therapist today to evaluate the level of torticollis he has and what exercises I need to do at home. I have already noticed a slight slant in the back of his head, but I know if I nip it in the bud now, we wont have to go down the road we did with our first child.

FYI, advocate for your child, if YOU feel something is not right, you need to TELL your pediatrician what you want. That you would rather have your baby girl go to a physical therapy evaluation and be told everything is fine, rather than sit back and worry and wonder or if she needs pt, you can start now as early intervention is key. The 4 doctors in our practice with my daughter did not listen, we wound up changing to another doctor who would listen to us.

It is sad in this day and age that pediatrician's are STILL TOO relaxed about this condition. Early intervention is key and you are a great mom for posting your question and researching torticollis and plagiocephaly online to get your answers. Now go tell your pediatrician you need a prescription faxed over to a physical therapist who specializes in infants and that you want to have an evaluation now, not later. OH and it is very common in multiples FYI.

I promise you, everything will be okay, just get her looked at now rather than later PM me if you have any questions or if I can help you. ~jillian

www.torticollisorg.com
www.torticolliskids.com
www.cranialtech.com


Thanks for all the info-Ashley who was Baby A has torticolis and every dr visit I ask about her neck and head shape which is getting a flat spot and a bump on one side-they keep telling me to do the exercises, but when I go back in 2 days I am going to ask about the pt referral...I also need to be more diligent about the exercises-the day goes by and I don't know where my time went-well I do-bottles, diapers and playtime! Thanks again-you made me realize I need to be more agressive!

 

wow thanks!! i am calling now!

 

Great job! Let me know how you make out just remember, YOU are her Mom, dont let your dr. downplay your concerns. Tell them you want to be proactive about it now,rather than run into problems later.

~jillian

 

well after talking to her doc she told me it will not get better over night!! DUH!!!! its been 3 months!!! i told her i wanted a theraphist to see her, period!! so she is working on getting me an appt. i am a young mom but this is not my first and i am not dumb, she talked down to me about it and was passing it off. what if i where to wait? she said all they will do is show me how to do excerises, ok, i need someone to show me!! anyways cant wait to see a doc for her, thanks for advice because if i did not push it would have gotten worse and well who knows!!!

 

you could also contact Early Intervention. they can come to your house to do an evaluation and if you qualify, will come to your house to do the therapy and show you what you should be doing. the charge is based on your income...at least that is how it works in Mass.

definitely get therapy. both my kids had it and we went through massage therapy to fix it...and it worked, but it was after a few months of therapy and me doing exercises daily.

Lois

 

My dd has torticollis and I, as well, had to continually hound the pediatrician that something was wrong. He said it was just a tight muscle (which, technically it is, but not the way he meant.) and it would work out on it's own. I was researching on my own and found an article on torticollis. I called that day and set up an apt. I told him about the article and he said, "oh, yeah, it does look like torticollis." Wow. Really sad. My dd therapist said that Dr's all over aren't educated enough about this issue, and that it's fairly common, especially among twins. She said she didn't even learn about it until the very end of her therapy education. It needs to be made more public.

Your child's therapist will show you different positions and activities to try (we go once a week) and each week she gives us something to focus on. I don't think we would have been nearly as successful if I was going off some pictures and written instructions. Your child is unique and their therapy should be customized for their needs. The first apt with the therapist will be an evaluation to tell you the best course of action for your child; home stretching or more agressive therapy. Don't let your pediatrician make that call for you.

But, do be diligent. I would recommend getting your family involved; show everyone how to do stretches and positioning. In addition to the stretching that I do, I have friends and family that will come over, scoop her up, and play with her in ways that will promote strengthening. I think it's very helpful to have all the people around us know "how" to play with Addie. Little things make a big difference!

Good luck and keep us posted!