Head Forming Incorrectly

My son has a flat spot on his head, too, because he always slept on that same side (facing my bed). My pediatrician suggested encouraging him to lay facing the other side when feeding, sleeping, or being held. My son is now 9mos old and it's too late for it to go away. I think you have time to even things out...

Hello S.,
if you talk to your ped, they will tell you to make sure that she is getting enough belly time, well my son hates belly time, so i try to pick him up as much as i can during the day plus i also bought one of those new bumbo chairs that they have out now, and i love it ans so does my son, he is only 3 and a half months old right now, and he is already trying to sit up on his own becasue the chair helps them develope the back a little bit faster, plus there is also this thing called a "halo" it is like a head rest thing that you use for when your baby is sleeping, i had looked it up on line, you could do the same i'm not sure what the web site is called, i just typed in flate head prevention, or flate head babies, I hope that this helps.
Good Luck
S.

We rubbed our son's head everyday. Not to sound crass, but he had a bicycle helmet head! We just softly rubbed his head every single day. I would consult the doc just in case it's a bigger issue than just the way the baby is laying.

N.

your baby is fine. she probably always sleeps on that side, thats all. Their head is still so soft at that age. My sons did the same too:-)

Do you have a mobile attached to the crib? I had to get a mobile to correct that problem with one of my twins and now she's fine. She just favored sleeping on one side.

hi S.,
my daughter was born at 7 months and did get a "major" flat head on her left side. she is now 9 months old and we are starting to see her head more round and less flat.i would recommend that you put your daughter as much on her back as possible. As she starts seating up, her head shape will improve. We went to see Dr Sutton a neurosurgeon at Chop to make sure her head would grow fine. He said that nowadays at least 50% of babies do get a flat head, from being on their back sleeping and from being in carseats too long. But it all resolves with time so don't worry.

i week ago or so i responded to someone else about this,

my baby girl had torticollis (tight neck muscles) and was facing/keeping her head in one side only. that caused her to develop a flat spot on the side of her head. first we corrected the torticollis with physical therapy and then dealt with the flat spot.
the thing is, it could go away. but if it doens't by one year of age then it is too late to do anything about it

we decided to go for the headband (helmet). it ended being covered by our insurance (80 per cent) and it did wonders for the shape of the head. now it looks awesome.
what i was told is the flat spot on the head (side) might/could possibly cause other mispropotions as the head is made of several discs (so eyes, nose, chin, cheeks and forehead might end up being assymetrical to the rest of the face)
like i said i went for the headband and it is the best decision i have made to date :)
good luck and feel free to email me privately if you have any questions
vlora

My son is 9 months old today and he did have the flat part pn his face it does go away it happens from your dauther always sleeping on the same side. As she gets older it does go away!

Most babies will go through something like this, try laying her on her left side. Normally it's a compression thing.

Talk to your peds doc and get his/her opinion. You may need a plastics consult if a helmet is needed. Helmets are actually pretty common now since the "back to sleep" campaign. They can sleep with their helmets and they do work if you get the consult in sooner than later.

We had the same problem with our son. We even went to a neurologist. There are things that you can do. If you put her in a swing change the direction the swing is facing. This will get her to turn her head the other way. Especially if the T.V. is on the opposite side.
If you have a sleeping wedge. Try propping her up on her side while she is sleeping. And use the wedges so she can not move. I only did this during naps not during night time sleeping. When she is in a bouncy chair take a rolled up blanket and put it on the side of her body where her head is flat. This will twist her body forcing her of the flat side of her head.
These things helped, but nothing worked better than when he started to roll over and sleep on his stomach.

Do you have a sling? Babywearing is a good way to correct or prevent this. :)

My daughter did not have that but a friends son did and it did go away when he was about a year old.

Yes, my little girl had this also. What you need to do is when she is napping or when you put her to bed tilt her head to the left. This takes some effort because her natural reaction will be to turn her head back to the right. Keep at it and she will "recondition" herself and turn her head to left naturally. You can also put some kind of support, like a rolled up towel that will keep her head in position. Yes, it does go away and even itself out.

Hi S., this condition, plagiocephaly, has become quite common in the last 10 years or so due to the "back to sleep" method. Easily treated though. My biggest suggestion for a passive approach would be "tummy time tummy time tummy time!"
Also reposition baby as much as possible. Here are two good websites that can give you much more info and support. Ask your ped if he/she feels a need for baby to see an orthopod for a helmet as well. I have found with my 2 grandchildren that the internet has TONS of info out there. My first grandaughter had the plagio which I did not realize at the time. I only figured it out after my second grandchild was born with torticollis and started researching that!! Alot of times tort babies wind up developing the plagio as well. Don't stress too much there are a ton of resources out there just start educating yourself and you will be amazed at how much better you will feel becuase at that point you will be well informed and can work with babies doctors so much better!! Take care and good luck. R.

www.plagiocephaly.org/support/
www.kidshealth.org/parent/general/sleep/positional_plagio...

Hello,I am first time mom of 14moth old son. We had exactly the same "problem".Right side as well since my son was all the time sleeping with his head turned to me. I was told few times by the nurses/docs that I have to start to turn him on the otherside. We tried that it did not really work he was alwayes turning back...over the time though it dissappeared on its own...I guess when he started to move around more ...he is now 14month and you can not tell that he had the flat spot.

try laying her on her back or on the left side. I always flipped my kids. I know the dr.s perfer you not to put babies on their backs but I did for all of mine and they all slept better that way.

Is this something that your ped has noticed or that have? Since babies sleep on their backs, they are often happier there and so parents lay them on their backs to play on the floor, in a swing, bouncy, or carseat. Sometimes one side of the head rests on the surface more than the other. Ideally, babies need to be repositioned frequently and spend LOTS of time on their bellies - when they are awake. They may not like it at first, but it's important for developing motor skills and strength. It also allows time without pressure on the skull so that it doesn't become flat. If it becomes too pronouced/severe, it can affect brain development because of the space available for it to grow. There are special helmets that are sometimes used to help reshape if it becomes a problem. Usually it will self-correct as the baby grows and spends more time in different positions. If you have concerns, talk with your ped.

My son's head was very flat in the back. He wore a DOC band. I looks like a helmet. We waited too long to correct the issue so he wore it for over a year!!! If caught early enough, the child only wears it for about 3 months. Check it out on line. It worked wonders and he was used to it within 24 hours.

To reshape the head she needs to lay on her other side. Make sure she stays off the flat part. If you have questions talk with your doctor about it and possibly seek pediatric physical therapy to be educated on positioning and handling to promote symmetrical head shape. Don't freak out.....it happens to alot of infants and it's becoming more prevalent.