Bye Bye Hanger Helmet

I can't even believe it's been almost 5 months since we swallowed our pride and decided to pursue helmet therapy for Landon's misshapen head. What we thought would be a long, annoyingly painful journey was actually easy and went by in the blink of an eye. And if I'm being completely honest, a tiny little piece of me is sad about not being able to see my little man sport his blue head gear anymore.

Landon when he first got his helmet at the start of May...


So, ya wanna see the progression of Landon's head shape? Here it is based on a few pics I snapped over the last few months. However, the real 3 dimensional result in person is even greater.

Profile view...


From above...


What I learned throughout our helmet journey...

• As a parent, you HAVE TO trust your gut. Even if your doctor doesn't agree. Even if family doesn't agree. Do your research and make the decision that feels right for your family.
• Helmet therapy is stinky business. The smell of a sweaty helmet is like wet dog x1000. However, it does get better over time as baby adjusts to it.
• The cure for a stinky helmet is soap and water with a scrubby brush every day and laying it face out in the sun. Seriously, the sun is amazing! It bleaches out the inside of the helmet and eliminates the odor. Our orthotist said we won the award for the cleanest post-treatment helmet he's ever seen. :-)
• There are more good people in world than bad. I expected the worst when we first got Landon's helmet. I expected lots of stares and whispers. Instead, we got lots of smiles and people telling us he looked cute and people approaching us to let us know that their child/niece/cousin also had a helmet once. Not nearly as bad as I expected.
• When it comes to your children, time disappears. I dreaded the months that Landon would have to wear his helmet, but in the blink of an eye it's over. Before I know it, he'll be walking down the aisle in his cap and gown. Cherish every second.

In a nut shell, how would I put our experience with Landon's Hanger helmet? Totally doable and worth every penny. Is Landon's head perfect now? No, but whose head is? Will we ever know if the rounding out of Landon's head was due to the helmet or a natural growth pattern? Nope. But ya know what? I don't ever have to wonder "what if"...



If any of you out there have ANY questions about plagiocephaly/brachycephaly or helmet therapy, please let me know! You can email me at: ariel {at} dreamstodo {dot} com