Torti-what?!?!

When Hudson was about 2 months old, we started to notice that he was developing a bit of a flat spot on the left side of his head due to him laying on that side all the time. We talked to the pediatrician about it, and she said to just continue watching it and to try to get Hudson to turn his head to the right whenever possible to round out his head. We tried our best to put toys to the right side to catch his attention and to get him to sleep that way, but he kept turning back to the left. The spot was becoming more and more noticeable, so when we took Hudson to the doctor for an ear infection about 3 weeks ago, I had the pediatrician look at it again (this was a different doctor). He agreed that Hudson definitely had a flat spot (plagiocephaly) and that he may also have something called torticollis, which is where they have a tight muscle in the neck that causes them to look more to one side. He recommended that we go see a physical therapist to see if they agreed and to hopefully help correct it before it started to negatively affect Hudson's development.

We took Hudson to a physical therapist that specializes in torticollis in babies 2 weeks ago, and she recognized pretty quickly that Hudson definitely was favoring his left side. He would still look to the right for a second, but then would immediately snap his head back to the left. She called this a "rubberband" effect from the tight muscle on the right side of his neck. Also, because of the tight muscle, his right ear was being pulled down to his right shoulder, causing his head to stay tilted. She said this could cause visual problems and possibly some developmental delays if not corrected. Because so much movement in the body starts with the neck, it is extremely important that the neck be as strong as possible for rolling, crawling, walking, etc. Since we noticed it pretty early, she was very encouraging, and said that she felt like doing some simple stretches multiple times throughout the day would hopefully help to correct the torticollis.

So, starting 2 weeks ago, we have been diligently doing the stretches at each diaper change, or about 8-10 times a day. Luckily, Hudson's daycare teachers and our parents have been very good about stretching him throughout the day when we aren't around as well. He has definitely fought back a little bit when we stretch him, probably because it's a little uncomfortable, but I think it's mostly because he's stubborn and doesn't want to be held down. :) We have placed toys to the right during play time, alternated how we held him and have also been going in after he's asleep to turn his head to the right. Slowly but surely, we started to notice that he was turning to the right more frequently.

Today, I took him in for a check-up with the physical therapist. She said over and over throughout the appointment how impressed and pleased she was with his progress - thank goodness! She said she was so surprised at how much better he looked, and that he has improved much quicker than many cases she sees. He now holds his head straight and he can hold his gaze to the right for long periods of time...no more rubberbanding! She wants us to continue doing the stretches daily, but thinks that we can probably be finished with physical therapy in about a month. This is wonderful news, as originally she said she was thinking it could take 2-4 months to break his habits due to the torticollis. We are just so thankful that he doesn't seem to be showing any signs of the torticollis affecting his development - he is right on track!

Unfortunately, he still has a flat spot on the left side of his head. It has gotten a little better, but it's still pretty noticeable. There's still time for it to round out, especially if he continues to sleep on his right side sometimes, and as he is on his back less and less during his awake time. However, she still wants us to take Hudson to see a pediatric plastic surgeon for a consultation to see if Hudson may need to wear a helmet to round out his head. If he does need to wear a helmet, the ideal time to start is at 6 months, so we will have to make a decision in the next few months. Of course we are scared/nervous, but the helmet is becoming more and more common since babies are put to sleep on their back. Some good friends of ours got the helmet for their daughter, and have only positive things to say about their whole experience. So, while it's not an ideal situation, we will do whatever is best for Hudson! I will update once we know more!