When a baby is born and you hold them under their arms, their natural instinct is to keep their legs curled up underneath them. As they grow, those legs start to stretch out. As a parent you start to tap their feet on the floor, putting them in jumpers and walkers, so they get the idea that that is where their feet belong. Eventually, they learn to bear weight on there own, stand and then of course, walk. At least that is the natural course for your typical developing child.
Typical is not anywhere near Sadie's vocabulary as you all know. Up until the age of 2 1/2 yrs, Sadie still pulled those little legs up underneath her. However, in the last 6 months or so she finally is keeping her legs down when you hold her up. When you touch her feet to the floor she still will pull them up, but will put them back down and repeat that action over and over and over. However, she is still not bearing weight.
With her ABM therapy we have been simulating weight bearing for a long time. How? By doing joint compressions between ankle and shins and then between shin and femurs and then between femur and hips. We do them all separately and then we do them all together. I also hold a hard surface against the bottom of her foot as she moves it around so she can feel how it feels to have a hard surface against her entire foot at the same time. That is more difficult to do then the compressions so it doesn't get done as often, but I try.
Her PT that had been coming to our house (through early intervention) had really, REALLY wanted me to put her in a stander (which is the typical equipment that they use for special kiddos). However, I really, REALLY didn't want to. Why? Because I felt that her head wasn't ready for it yet. And as much as the PT wanted it, she also excepted my wishes. But let me tell you, she was thrilled when I finally agreed that I thought Sadie was finally ready. Sadie will still drop her head down to the side, but it's more controlled and she has complete ease with picking it back up. We (my husband and I) don't think that she is dropping it because of being weak, we think it is because of her eyes/vision. And that subject is for an entirely different post at another time.
So we ordered the AFO's for more support for her ankles and as you know we picked them up a week ago or so. Now little Miss Sadie is standing up in a stander. The first stander her teacher tried didn't go so hot and Sadie hated every minute of it and she told her exactly that. The next day I gave her teacher some little hints about Sadie and she found her a different stander that would fit her little body and that suited her needs a little better. What do you know? She liked it! No complaints that day and she stood for 30 minutes that first day. I was so proud of her. She got her very first star at school. Luckily, her teacher already knows me well and took pics for me and emailed them to me. Love it!!
Typical is not anywhere near Sadie's vocabulary as you all know. Up until the age of 2 1/2 yrs, Sadie still pulled those little legs up underneath her. However, in the last 6 months or so she finally is keeping her legs down when you hold her up. When you touch her feet to the floor she still will pull them up, but will put them back down and repeat that action over and over and over. However, she is still not bearing weight.
With her ABM therapy we have been simulating weight bearing for a long time. How? By doing joint compressions between ankle and shins and then between shin and femurs and then between femur and hips. We do them all separately and then we do them all together. I also hold a hard surface against the bottom of her foot as she moves it around so she can feel how it feels to have a hard surface against her entire foot at the same time. That is more difficult to do then the compressions so it doesn't get done as often, but I try.
Her PT that had been coming to our house (through early intervention) had really, REALLY wanted me to put her in a stander (which is the typical equipment that they use for special kiddos). However, I really, REALLY didn't want to. Why? Because I felt that her head wasn't ready for it yet. And as much as the PT wanted it, she also excepted my wishes. But let me tell you, she was thrilled when I finally agreed that I thought Sadie was finally ready. Sadie will still drop her head down to the side, but it's more controlled and she has complete ease with picking it back up. We (my husband and I) don't think that she is dropping it because of being weak, we think it is because of her eyes/vision. And that subject is for an entirely different post at another time.
So we ordered the AFO's for more support for her ankles and as you know we picked them up a week ago or so. Now little Miss Sadie is standing up in a stander. The first stander her teacher tried didn't go so hot and Sadie hated every minute of it and she told her exactly that. The next day I gave her teacher some little hints about Sadie and she found her a different stander that would fit her little body and that suited her needs a little better. What do you know? She liked it! No complaints that day and she stood for 30 minutes that first day. I was so proud of her. She got her very first star at school. Luckily, her teacher already knows me well and took pics for me and emailed them to me. Love it!!
I can just hear what she is thinking in this picture with her hand up to her head, "I yi yi, what are these people doing to me?" Lol
Even though it's a different way of meeting a milestone, she still met it (just with a little more assistance then most). That's two milestones (going to school and standing) met in one month. She's on a roll! ;)
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