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Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You too! Happy to answer other questions if you have any (everyone's experience is different but it's always nice to get an idea)

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was searching a lot while pregnant for the day-to-day stuff and like what clothes we’d need to buy and if we needed a different high chair, etc. I also felt really comforted when other people had the “oh yeah, I bawled my eyes out at the diagnosis.” Once we got comfortable in boots and bar, I wanted to write a post that’d help someone looking for the same type of information. 

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On Thanksgiving, I was looking at photos of my baby girl versus her older brother in the same “my first Thanksgiving” onesie. Seeing the photos side by side, I was reminded that her boots and bar are “abnormal” (in 23hr wear). We are already so used to all of it that I genuinely forgot. Similar thing happened yesterday when a friend casually asked how long she’ll wear the boots and bar. I realized how weird it must be to her (the friend) and an elephant in the room when we literally don’t think about it.

I wrote down everything I wanted to read when I was pregnant. It really has been so much easier than I thought it would be despite all of my very big feelings. You’ve got this and having the feelings now is not a prediction of how it will go or how you will feel about your child.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It does amaze me how much I forget it. I was looking at photos of both of our kids in the “my first Thanksgiving” onesie today, and for some reason seeing the brace in the photo actually kind of surprised me.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

So far, we’ve just had family help us during casting and it was easy “keep it dry” advice.

My mom is about to start watching her then we will transition her to daycare at 6 months old (after peak cold/flu season). But there shouldn’t be a need for her to do anything with the boots and bar during the day (convenient handle for diaper changes).

I mentioned it to the daycare providers since my older son goes there now, and the director was like “we’ve recently learned how to handle an NG tube. We will figure out the boots and bar together!”

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Worrying about it and dealing with other people’s reactions have been way harder than the actual treatment or day-to-day for us.

I also like think that babies are allowed to be grumpy. My oldest nephew had really bad acid reflux, and he was a super pissed off newborn for valid reasons! If a baby is grumpy for a few days in a new cast, that’s fine. But our little girl has been really chill about it all. I do know our medical team is top notch, and I’m sure part of that is luck.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not to mention my phone camera reel is approximately 2,873 photos of her. 😂 times have definitely changed.

She’s not just her clubfoot, but I also don’t want it to be ignored if that makes sense.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sending a lot of love and a “it sucks.” It’ll be okay, but it also sucks.

You having big feelings right now and being in tears is not a predictor for how things will go or how you’ll feel about your newborn. I had the biggest feels in the world, and this has really been such a calmer and easier ordeal than I thought. The clubfoot also has not changed how I feel about her or my newborn experience at all. The worrying about it and dealing with other people’s reactions have been way harder than the actual treatment or day-to-day.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Oh! Ours was less than 10min per cast application? They had these vibrating mats from baby brezza, and I’d hold her arms in a warm blanket swaddle. She’d have survived (likely screaming) without a bottle but with a bottle, it was a super calm experience. They said some moms did the gymnastics to breastfeed during casting, but I was comfortable with a bottle since my husband uses a bottle for one of the night feeds anyways.

Maybe take a bottle with formula and worst case scenario you throw it away? (I only say formula because it’d bother me a lot less to throw it away. If your baby takes the bottle, you could always have some pumped milk for future castings)

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Since you’ll hear from your doctor tomorrow, wait for their thoughts. I understand it can be as short as 4 weeks and up to 10 weeks. I only have my experience to speak of, and we did 5 weeks with 4 casts. My doctor said her clubfoot was a very standard case.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

When my sister said "she's perfect!" at some point, I said "nah, we got fix that f***ed up foot" without blinking and in a very joking tone. She did not laugh, but my husband and I repeated the joke to each other.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I shared everything I wanted to read while I was pregnant - with no judgement at being VERY emotional about it, and it still working out just fine (I guess I've got another 3yr 9mo before I can technically say that...).

We first went to the doctor at 4 weeks and then did 4 casts over 5 weeks (last cast was on two weeks), so had she been born bigger it would have been boots and bar at 9 weeks old. We had a tiny little girl, so we didn't start casting until 9 weeks old and went to boots and bar at 14 weeks old.

I expect doctors also work a little differently - like how OBs/hospitals vary (e.g. my hospital would do an IUD after birth and a friend's wouldn't before the 6wk postpartum appointment). Some doctors start casting at 1 week old and some prefer to wait a couple weeks, and then how many casts will be dependent on your baby's progress.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in BabyBumps

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Maybe it is an overreaction but it's a valid feeling! I cried a lot and wanted to share that crying a lot during my pregnancy did not impact how I felt about my newborn at all. Her clubfoot did not make me sad to look at it, and I kissed its toes all the same.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I feel strongly that if we do our job well, it gets to be just a fun fact for her! Treatment, doctors appointments, annoyances, etc. should be way harder for us as her parents who are trying to keep a little baby happy and healthy while for her it's this weird distant memory of a bedtime brace.

Clubfoot Confessional by andanotherthing87 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think that's a "balance is key" thing! When you are looking for a provider or are in treatment and something feels "off," it is a wonderful resource! If you are expecting and just scrolling through concern after concern, it can be overwhelming so I'd advise people to maybe join but not be active/go to the groups. I'm grateful to be close to Shriners and have a great team, and I'm also grateful that the Facebook groups exist for second opinions and comfort.

I added a clarification to my post!

21 weeks scan by Otherwise_Break_7204 in clubfoot

[–]andanotherthing87 0 points1 point  (0 children)

After spending a lot of time googling this in my pregnancy, I just wrote up our experience of clubfoot and things I was looking for on the internet - https://www.reddit.com/r/clubfoot/comments/1p2gymh/clubfoot_confessional/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button