Take a deep breath, don't worry.
I'm sure most people who read this are just like I was, you heard something might be "wrong" with your baby. Your nurse or doctor delivered your baby and said "There is a slight hip click" or maybe something happened during delivery to cause your baby's hip(s) to shift.
Whatever your case may be, calm down, STOP GOOGLING and breathe.
This is GOOD news.
Good news?! Alright, you must think I'm crazy, but think about it. Only a few years ago they wouldn't have caught this and your baby would probably have to undergo surgery at a later age.
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| Just look at that happy little girl up there, wearing her fashionable owl cloth diaper and workin' it!! Man she's cute. |
The good news is you have a happy, healthy baby, and you're a good mom for taking great care of your baby. Your little bundle isn't going to remember wearing a hip brace when they are 11 years old and running around on a playground, they will be 11 years old and getting to run around on a playground!!! :)
I'll admit, when I first heard about my baby's hip click these were not my thoughts. I googled high and low and did not find a single comforting thing. That is why I am writing this now. Not only to comfort you, but to acknowledge for myself that everything is okay.
I'll share my story with you, please feel free to share your "hip baby's" story with me on here for future googling mom's who are looking for comforting answers.
I LOVE pinterest, and I love blogs and bloggers. I follow a few religiously, and feel like I know all about their life. The one thing I don't like about blogs is that a lot of times the picture they put up will be all knowing and tips that you "MUST know" or that "ALL mom" need to read. No. I will be the first to admit to you that I don't know everything, especially not everything about hip dysplasia. I'm not a doctor, and I am only a first time mother myself. That being said, this is my disclaimer. I am merely here to comfort you, and share our story with you.
Our story:
Throughout my pregnancy I was told I'd be having a big baby. I took 3 glucose tests, and passed them all. We just have big genes! In fact, it took me bringing in my 6'4" husband to my appointment at 9 months for my doctor to realize that this baby was doomed to be huge, rather this momma was doomed to carry huge babies.
(side bar: don't let people make you feel bad if your husband can't go to all or any of the appointments with you, there are a TON and in the words of Sweet Brown, "AIN'T NOBODY GOT TIME FO DAT!")
moving on...
The appointment that my husband joined me at was quite eventful, but let's just keep it at this: There is a reason why women carry and birth babies and not men. My husband got a little queasy over all the medical talk to come.
My awesome doctor, I seriously love her so much, let us know that Joyanna would most likely need to be born via C-section because of her position and size. I cried. I wanted to be all natural just like my mom and have no drugs. I got over it quickly though. I mean, it was pretty exciting to get to pick her birthday and time, looking at the brighter side of things.
Baby birthday:
We got to the hospital, and Joyanna was born!!! 9 pounds 9 ounces and 20 inches! I dare anyone to tell me that's not a "big" baby and say we should have tried to birth her vaginally especially in the position she was. I'll give you virtual glares. I was doped up, and feeling good for having just had a baby. I had no idea that they were telling me something or other about a "hip click."We stay at the hospital and try to figure out this whole parenting thing. Right when we get the hang of nurses helping us do everything, they send us home! Um, can I get a nurse to go please?!
We get home, we try to figure things out, it is hard. We are tired. The usual stuff. The one thing that was GREAT about Joyanna was that she would sleep anywhere! We would just set her down in her bassinet, she'd somehow be on her side every time we woke up, and be sleeping contently.
First Pediatrician appointment:
"We are setting you up with an orthopedist for her 'hip click'.""Uh, her what?!"
No, just kidding, I'd already been googling at this point and seen and read my fair share of medical articles.
First Orthopedic appointment:
"Her hips are pretty loose, but there isn't anything to worry about yet. Let's get an ultrasound on her hip at 5 weeks, once she's not 'so new' and flexible."Ultrasound appointment number one:
"She's just barely in need of a brace, to err on the side of caution. She'll be in it a few months and won't even remember."The orthopedic doctor also said that she wouldn't even "realize" that she disliked the brace at first. But she did.
So many times as new first time mothers we hear things about spoiling our babies. ENOUGH! My baby is a part of me, and I know me. If I'm upset about something I want comfort, I want to be held.
The first week she had the brace she slept on us. GASP! *Que all the meanies from my birth board on BBC who know everything about motherhood.* The cool thing about the brace is that her legs were in a position that "hugged" my body just perfectly so she was really secure on me once we tucked a blanket around her and my bodies and I slept with my hand on top of her back just in case.
After that first week we have been able to put her back in her bassinet and lay her down to sleep. Mainly thanks to my husband being so skinny and Joyanna's inability to get comfortable laying on him through the night on my "nights off." You go Dad!
The great thing is, she's been in it for 3 almost 4 weeks and time has FLOWN. The only issues it has given us are on our part, and I would much rather bare the burden of the brace than her having to have surgery later on in life. If I can prevent my baby from surgery, you better believe I'm going to!
Here are some helpful tips for "hip babies":
Lysol is your friend.
We aren't supposed to have her out of her brace unless she is bathing, so when she threw up all over it, we had to think fast and clean it. We also had to get rid of the awful smell.
Request a second brace as soon as they will give you one.
We didn't get a second brace until her second appointment two weeks later, but needed it much sooner than that! How else do you think we found out we needed Lysol disinfectant spray?!
Quilts and afghans.
When Joyanna would get laid down in the living room to sleep during the day her little limbs where flying free. Her heavier blankets help to press them down a little bit and keep them from flying around and waking her up, but also don't hyper extend her hips in the process.
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| She's saying "Go Cowboys!!!" |
Dresses!
This one I would say is just for the girls, but if you want to put your boy in a dress do what pleases you. I put a white or mostly white with the exception of a graphic on the chest onesie on her under the straps and a dress over the straps! It is cute and helps people to stop bothering you for a little while with the questions.
Speak up.
If you don't want to talk about it, for the most part, people will stop if you ask them...or in my case tell them. If people won't stop talking about it, now is a good time to reconsider that friendship. :p
Also, when people ask to hold the baby, let them know that he/she has to be held differently than a baby without a brace, keeping their legs apart. I know I didn't want to waste all my time I'd put in by holding her special ways to be polite. Here are Joyanna's grandma's holding her.
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| Oma (my mom) in the first picture is holding her against her chest with her legs hugging her. |
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| Grandma (my mother in law) in this picture is holding her in her lap with her lets still being spread. This is especially a good position for when she is awake and wants to "talk" and interact. If you're like me though and don't have much of a lap, I try putting her against a pillow sitting up and I face her that way. |
and lastly
Mother's intuition and common sense.
"The rules" are still rules for a reason, "back is best" and all that jazz. Sometimes though it is healthy to take a step back from the books and internet and think for ourselves! I know I personally got very stressed out trying to follow all sorts of advice. It was like I forgot that my brain existed and I was allowed to us it to figure things out!
I hope that you're a little more at ease. Good luck, and know that you're a good mom for taking great care of your baby!
