We went to Cranial Technologies this morning to get an assessment on just how badly misshapen Ethan's head is. To do this, the baby is undressed to the diaper, dons a stocking cap and sits in the center of a circle with cameras mounted overhead and at equal intervals on the perimeter. A photo is taken, and a 3-D model is rendered from it for measurements.
Before we even saw the digital imagery, our consult with the occupational therapist was enough to know that we were in trouble. Our gut instinct was right. The head shape and facial asymmetry wasn't going to correct itself.
The soonest we can address it is in two weeks. They are working with our insurance company and will call us on Friday to tell us what the cost will be. Depending on how old the child is when treated determines the frequency of visits for adjustments. Think: braces. The sooner the better though since the skull hardens as the child ages. Now, Ethan's is still fairly pliable.
I had terrible mother's guilt over all of this, but now I am starting to realize that this isn't (entirely) my fault. The fact that Ethan was breech for so long and delivered via c-section doesn't help any. Not to say that he was predisposed to this condition, but babies with these factors are more prone to cranial shaping issues.
The good news is that the babies don't seem to care that they are wearing the helmet after a short while, and a couple of parents in the waiting room vouched for that.
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