Halfway We Hope

We have had Janie's helmet on for three weeks as of today. After just one week, her doctors were very happy with her progress that they were hoping that she might only have to be in it for 5-6 weeks, which would mean that today marks the half way point! We can hope...

Sweet baby Janie, first week in the helmet

Whenever I do get to take off her helmet, it actually looks strange in a way since I am used to seeing her with it on now. But her little peach fuzz covered head does look a lot more round than it did a few weeks ago. We are thrilled!

The first few days were definitely the biggest adjustment for all of us. Janie didn't mind wearing the helmet as much as she minded not being swaddled. But after a few nights and a few tears, she has been sleeping soundly in her crib, with no swaddle and most of the time, no pajamas either! Poor baby.

Sleeping on mommy, first weekend in the helmet

We had some issues with redness, but only because her skin is pretty fair. We have no issues now. Also, one morning she woke up with one eye so swollen it TOTALLY freaked me out... Apparently that is normal and it never happened again.

Since that first weekend and after talking with the doctors a couple of times for those issues, we have been wearing the helmet 23 hours a day, give or take. We only take it off of her to clean it each night, to give her a bath, for physical therapy, and sometimes for stretches at home, if she hasn't gotten her time in yet.

It took me about 2 days of the standard white helmet before I had to do something to it. It was just too industrial looking. So, I got some paint, brushes, & sealant and went to work. There was one night we didn't have her wear her helmet that first weekend because we were watching her redness closely and took the opportunity that night to paint it so that it could have time to dry.

Helmet before...

Helmet before...

Helmet after!

Helmet after!

Helmet after!

I decided on gold dots with some colorful accents & put a Bible verse on the side for something extra. I was happy with how it turned out - simple but still something cute.

Janie has also been attending physical therapy sessions to help with her muscle tightness and strength. We have seen lots of improvements but she has been a little stubborn about using her neck muscles the same on both sides. We have tried some new things the last couple of weeks and it seems to have helped quite a bit. We'll see how it continues to progress with those adjustments. We are happy that she is improving and will keep you updated throughout the summer!