I facebooked and called a few other moms whose kids have had the same surgery in the last few months and asked them about the neck stiffness that B is experiencing. All 4 mom's kids didn't have an issue with it. So that freaked me out just a little more. I called the surgeons office and they told us we really need to work on B's neck movements, which we have already been doing. We just hadn't done it to the point of crying or pain, which I learned was the next step. I called a physical therapist friend and she offered tips on helping out B. Of course, it isn't pain free at all. All day we have been using a heating pad on his shoulders/neck, massaging, stretching and icing. Poor B cries through the massaging part. It's horrible but I know it needs to be done. When B woke up this morning, Joel and I noticed that his shoulders seemed level, good thing! His neck is still kinked to the left. So, we are working on that now. He seems looser tonight so hopefully we can help him out more tomorrow. I think it will take another week or 2 to go back to normal. We see the surgeon in 2 days so if she is concerned we will ask for a physical therapist referral.
Funny thing is, if it wasn't for the neck issue, everything would be great! B hasn't complained of head pain today at all. He is so careful with his head and ears. He really has been such a trooper through all of it!
In between massaging and stretching out our little guy, here are some picts...
I took Pnut out to a baby/kid's items sale yesterday and she loved the rocking horse
Pnut time at the mall play yard
Today was B's first real trip outside! We fed ducks and watched turtles swim.
Can't go out without stopping for a smoothie!
B using his heating pad
Of course Monkey gets heating pad time too!
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1 comment:
Hi I've been following your blog lately. My 2.5 year old girl has Microtia and canal stenosis. We're considering medpor repair in the future.
I'm thankful that you're sharing your families journey. It helps to know others have walked the path before you.
Anyway I wanted to comment regarding B's neck stiffness. I'm not sure if Microtia/Atresia was/is his only diagnosis or if he happens to have something else? But my daughter has Goldenhar syndrome and has several fused vertebrae in her neck and spine. She's has a very tight neck with limited range of motion and it does get worse when she's had an illness or hospital stay and she's not as active.
PT will help a lot, but I really caution you to do anything that causes him to cry in pain until/unless you have a neck xray to rule out any congenital abnormalities. My daughter would have never had a neck xray if she didn't happen to have a fusion in her lumbar spine. At birth they did an xray and kidney ultrasound because I guess ear deformities and kidney issues go hand in hand. Because they saw a fusion in her lumbar area they decided to xray her whole spine and head and found a ton of abnormalities. Before that xray they labeled her as having torticolois (neck muscle tightness) and wanted a PT and chiropractor to do adjustments. I'm thankful we never went forward with those treatments because we now now her neck is very unstable.
Anyway I seriously hope you guys don't have to deal with the same issues, but please take things slow and use more caution then necessary when dealing with a neck. I'm sure once the cup is gone and he's feeling back to normal he'll be more inclined to move around.
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