Jack's Head Appointment

I'm writing it all down quickly so I don't forget (and have to explain it 100 times to everyone on the phone). ;o)

We went to Lansing today to get Jack's head squeezed. He was a TOTAL. ROCKSTAR. in the car...only cried for the last 10 minutes or so of the trip. Whew! We got to the doctor's office right on time, walked in and secretly started cracking up.

It was kind of like a spa/doctor's office/chiropractor's office. There was some kind of aromatherapy going on (it smelled heavenly) and it was very chill. The receptionist was so nice and seemed excited to see us even though I've canceled and rescheduled this appointment 10,000 times.

We were sent back to our room and Bryan and I started busting out laughing. There were some weird things going on...more aromatherapy, a massage table instead of the exam table I was picturing, a sink with bath toys and some kind of hieroglyphics on the walls. Bryan's exact words: "If this guy draws a triangle with a star on my son's head we are OUT. OF. HERE.". LOL!

The doctor walked in and was very nice. Answered all of our questions (Will this hurt? How many times do we have to do this? Yada Yada...) and got started.

I honestly think this is some kind of voodoo. He started by pointing out a "flat" spot in Jack's spine and a spot at the base of his skull that is lopsided and causing his head to grow funny. He explained that helmets work for some kids but for Jack, wouldn't fix the main problem (spine/neck) and would only make a cosmetic change.

He did a quick exam noting not only this spine/neck but also the obvious flat spot. He also pointed out to us that his ears are not centered (one is farther towards his face than the other) and that his head is pointier than it should be. Things that aren't obvious unless you knew what to look for, but we totally saw it once he started pointing it out. He also felt the roof of Jack's mouth...this is where it gets interesting folks-

He said that the roof is flat instead of raised. Something that Jack could grow out of but the molding and reshaping of his skull will surely fix. This could be the reason #1- Jack doesn't take a bottle. #2- Jack doesn't take a pacifier. #3- He wants to nurse ALL THE TIME (every 2 hours still during the day). Nursing helps relieve some of the pressure he's feeling from his head AND works better with his mouth.

I thought were we just going in for a little head squeezing but I came out feeling better about the fact that I'm not doing something wrong when it comes to this bottle thing. Ahhhhh...$380 worth of relief for both Mommy and baby. ;o) I know I should probably just enjoy nursing but let's face it, I'm tired.

After some vibrating, molding and massaging...we were done! The doctor confidently said we should see a change in a few weeks. Whaaaaaat?! We shall see. He also gave us a few things to do at home- lots of tummy time of course but also a relaxing technique to help take some of the pressure off his neck.

I was pretty pumped after leaving. I think this is really going to work for Jack and maybe even "fix" a few things (bottle!!!) that we haven't been able to work out. We will go back at the end of May for a quicker session and to check his progress. We hope to only have to go 2-3 more times...but it all depends on how Jack's head decides to grow. ;o)