Flat head...

[roxanne]

I know loads of people have probably mentioned this on here before, but does flathead really go away on it's own after baby starts sitting up and stuff?!

I'm starting to become obsessed with the shape Dylan's head coz it's flat on one side at the back.. my OH said he can't see it but i can.. not that it matters, obviously i love him no matter what shape his head is!

I asked my HV, she said its fine and will fix itself but when i looked online about it all these sites kept on about helmets... Why are there helmets if it corrects itself?!

Sorry about all that, i'm always worrying about silly things and my OH is sick of me asking every day if he thinks his head is getting flatter so i thought i'd bother you lot instead

 

[Urchin]

I know someone who knows a lot about this will pm them for you

 

[Bagpuss17]

My son had this too.

He was born a few weeks early, their skulls are a lot softer and often they can get flat head syndrome (plagiocephaly). Other babies are born with it or a long/traumatic birth can be a factor too.

Please, please don't listen to the HV's advice that it will go away. We made that mistake and it got heaps worse.

The good news is you can do something about it yourself with repositioning, your LO is so young you should see great improvements by using repo techniques.

We ended up having helmet treatment and I'm so glad we did. Our son was fine in his helmet and the results were worth the expense. I just wish we'd gone down that route sooner as we'd have had even better results.

I will pm you with my email address, you're more than welcome to contact me if you want more info.

I would highly recommend that you search on google for plagiocephaly. There are 2 fantastic support forums in the UK on this subject. You'll also find repositioning techniques on there, follow them as much as possible. We saw a big improvement by following them. The younger you start the more likely you can resolve this yourselves.

Good luck!

 

[swan1]

No it doesn't go away on his own, my son completed helmet treatment in september. I was told by gp's, health visitors etc that it would get better when he got older but it didnt, it just got worse.

You need to get his neck checked for tightening of the muscles which can cause him to rest his head in the same position, if this is the case repositioning will be impossible.

I really thought i was going mad as everyone including my hubby said Charlie's head looked fine to them. I eventually emailed pictures to the helmet suplier who was great and we took him for a consultation. Charlie wore his helmet for 26 weeks, that is longer than most but his was really quite severe. The helmet suppliers like them to be 5 months before they will start helmet treatment but can give great advice so may be worth sending them some pictures of your little one's head from side on and above so they can help.

Feel free to pm me if you want t ask anything else.

I dont regret going down the helmet route for a second, Charlie took to it really well and it made a huge difference to his head shape.

Alison

 

[OopsyDaisy]

My DD has a flathead too. I've been told by some parents that their kids' flatheads sorted itself out, but I've also heard about some kids where it didn't. So, just to be on the safe side, I've bought a SleepCurve mattress to relieve the constant pressure on the flat side of her head, and giving her plenty of tummy time.

 

[Rosieroo]

You need to get his neck checked for tightening of the muscles which can cause him to rest his head in the same position, if this is the case repositioning will be impossible.

DD had this (torticollis) which we rectified with physio. However her head is still flat on one side and my DH and I have actually found it is getting more noticeable lately. Trying to tie her hair up straight is a bitch!