Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Physical Therapy

Well, Moon the Magical Fairy was here today. Finn pretty much fusses and cries through all his P/T sessions these days. I think at some point he's just going to start hating her. As for me, I think I'm developing a thicker skin about it; I can watch him fuss and cry sort of objectively because I know that even though she's making him work hard, he's benefitting from it.


She said today that she expects that he will be sitting on his own in a tripod position within the next week or two (!!). Hmmm. I'm trying not to put too much stock into that prediction, as I don't want to feel deflated if it takes longer. That said, however, he actually can sit on his own for a few seconds at a time, although Moon seems to be able to get him to do it better than I can. He doesn't like supporting his own weight in that position, though, and after a couple seconds he tends to arch his back and throw himself backwards.



She has a 5 year old daughter (a "typical" child), and I asked her today if she did P/T on her daughter when she was a baby just because she can't help herself. She said, "Of course." I asked her if her daughter achieved any of her milestones early because of it. She said - get this - that her daugher walked at 8 1/2 months! Now, I ask you: what the hell is the point of an 8 1/2 month old baby walking?!

14 comments:

JaybirdNWA said...

Finn will indeed probably get to the place where he hates to see her come. Not being able to tell you that themselves is the beauty of working with children that can't talk as opposed to adults that will outright tell you to your face that they hate to see you come and you can get the hell out of their room. As a therapist though, I have come to accept the fact that my job is not a very popular one to have. It does look as though Finn is doing well with his PT sessions. When I went through school, we had just had our first child (typical) and I had him on the ball just about every day. It just gets in your blood.

Cheryl said...

It looks like he's doing so well,and he's just soooo handsome!!!

Jeanette said...

It's hard to see your child upset about something. It tears at your mom strings. As for having a child that walks early... My "typical" son was walking at nine months. BELIEVE me, I NEVER sat down! I chased him for a few years. I am SO glad that my Sydney has had the chance to enjoy her toys, play with me on the floor, etc, My son was off to the races and hasn't stopped since. Syd is 17 months old and we are cruising, which is just fine with me! =0)

The Sanchez Family said...

My typical kids (both of them) didn't walk until 14 or 15 months and we had them on the floor on their bellies all the time and did lots of developmental things with them. What we learned from the Institutes is that crawling and creeping is so important so it's kind of a blessing if the kids crawl for a long time. Better for their brains and they all eventually walk with time so there really isn't a rush to have a baby (under 10 months old) walk....crawling yes, walking not so much.
Finn is GORGEOUS!!!

Carla said...

LOL! I agree, who wants a walking 8 1/2 month old. That's a baby, not a toddler. I know with my younger kids, the longer they took, the better. I wasn't ready to be chasing a toddler around while dealing with the older kids. I think my first walked at ten months, the rest were all around a year.

Lisa, I thought of you the other day. We had a patient, 43 years old, with a late in life surprise. It was baby #7, a surpise boy. And at first sight, obviously a DS baby. The parents had no idea before hand. She declined genetic testing. Since I only attended the birth, I didn't know if they knew instantly like the nurses did. I wondered how they would react, and remembered all the emotions that you went through upon learning of Finn's diagnosis. I still wonder how they are handling it. I was told that the Mom said "the testing isn't back yet, we'll just wait and see." I don't know if that was optimism or denial. I hope they will have support to get through the early days of dealing with the diagnosis and the emotions that come with it.

Tricia said...

ha! I agree...what IS the point?! :)

Finn looks so great! Georgia didn't sit until 9 months (heart stuff caused delay beyond the norm even though she had good tone), so I would say F is a star!

Honestly, I was just thinking how I kind if wisf Rainer would slow down a little so we could savor things the way we did with G!!!

Elyse said...

He is such a cutie! 8.5 months and walking? That is not even when a typical child walks! Hang in there!!
~Elyse~

Laurie said...

Yeah Finn!! He's a little hero, isn't he?!

I think D will be similar to Georgia. Having low tone to begin with and then open heart surgery...that'll set you back eh?!
Ah, they'll get there tho, won't they?

Crittle said...

Awww, he is doing fantastic! What a cutie.

I can't even tell you when M first sat up. It was such a process. There was tripod, assisted, unassisted, short-duration, long-duration, etc. I think that when we felt 100% comfortable with her sitting was a good few months from when the whole journey started.

I saw a little girl once who walked SUPER early. Like even earlier than Moon's daughter. It was bizarre to see and I wouldn't have believed it otherwise.

Anonymous said...

Audrey's UK friend here. I'm still following your blog (and now your other one too!)

I just wanted to say Finn looks like he's doing really well here, and to wish you and yours a very Happy New Year 2009.

Anonymous said...

Whew- hard work! Have a happy New year !

Brandie said...

He looks so strong! Goldie's OT had a baby last year and it drove her crazy that her daughter wouldn't crawl. He may not always hate PT, Goldie's PT is her fave! She lights up when she walks thru the door.

Anonymous said...

Look at Finn! ADORABLE!!!

SunflowerStories said...

Finn looks wonderful! He is rocking the sit up! I also savored the slow process to milestones this first year, it really taught me how amazing it is to develop.

No way would I be eager to ahve a baby under 11 mos walking! I am already hoping that Ella gives Sean enough time to mature more before she starts walking. One thing I learned is that once a child starts walking, they always want DOWN and are tough to carry. Of course, they also want to follow their own path.