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Dental Appt Update
Our little guy had his 6 month dental check up with our favorite dentist, Dr. Frank Enriquez! He got to put the purple tablet in his mouth that dauntingly showed where it is that he needs to be brushing better…shudder… As his mom, I know the purple tablet is “judging” me and letting everyone in the dental office know that we are not enforcing the flossing like we should be and we are not being as diligent about making him…
Smile Milestone
As a mom it can sometimes be difficult to watch your cleft kiddo realize that he is different. Entering the second grade his friends, classmates and teammates are all sporting toothless grins reminiscent of a jack o’lantern and yet, he is not. At this point he realizes that he is not going to meet this typical milestone. I can’t help but feel a pang in my own heart as I, too, will not get to be a witness sharing in…
Your Child’s Hearing
As with any child you are going to worry about their development, but especially so when your child is already facing challenges due to their being cleft affected. Your child’s hearing is going to be another ongoing aspect of care you are going to need to be diligent about, which is why an ENT is an integral part of your Cleft Palate Team. Our son showed signs of hearing loss as early as 2 mos. of age when we first…
Feeding and cleft palate nursers
It’s important to know in advance that there are bottles and nipples specifically designed for your cleft palate baby. There are many resources available to you and I will outline them below so that you can continue to research and read at your leisure. Contact the hospital you plan on having your baby at and ask to speak with the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). A nurse should be able to inform you whether or not they have cleft palate…
Cleft Palate Repair Surgery
At this point we have been making great strides in our development. Gavin recovered from his lip repair surgery fairly quickly and we continued on as any other family. There was tummy time, he began rolling over, pulling himself up and before we knew it he was coming up on 10 months of age. His cleft palate repair surgery had already been scheduled and we knew of our countdown date. This surgery (cleft palate repair) was going to be…
Early Speech Intervention
Early speech intervention will make a difference in your child’s development and progress with regards to his ability to communicate effectively. Having a multi-disciplinary approach to our son’s care through the Cleft Palate Center has been a crucial part of his development over the years and especially in the beginning stages for his speech development because we had all of our resources in one place. I remember thinking that the suggestion for him to begin speech therapy as soon as…
Probiotics for Cleft Affected Children
Probiotics have been incorporated into my family’s daily regimen and defense of our immune systems. I first became seriously interested in probiotics after my cleft affected son suffered from chronic ear infections and was on antibiotics more than he was off of them in the first few years of his life. His pediatrician brought to our attention that our son might begin experiencing GI (gastrointestinal) issues due to his gut flora being wiped out time and time again. Again, I…
Arm Splints Post Surgery
One of the not so fun highlights of post surgery care for your cleft affected child will be to have them wear the dreaded arm splints.They slip on the arms over their sleeves and are adjusted with Velcro closures. At 3 months after his lip repair surgery it wasn’t so bad having the arm splints on because it kept him from being able to reach up to his face and suck on his fingers or hit himself in the face….
What Is Wrong With Your Lip?
Well, it finally happened. My cleft affected son came home from school and after asking him how his day was he told me it was a good day but…he was playing in the big play yard with the upper grades and an older boy came up to him and asked him “what is wrong with your lip?” My heart stopped. I quite literally was not expecting this today and even though it has been something in the back of all…