I've been thinking about Leah's Constraint Induced Movement Therapy and while I'm very excited to be doing it, I'm feeling even more apprehensive about it.
The casting date our OT has set, is right around the time of all the Jewish holidays. We take these holidays very seriously. I'm nervous about doing the casting and having the holidays at the same time. Leah's OT, said she would rather not see us put off casting by three weeks. I tend to agree with her, I think Leah is more then ready to be casted now. But at the same time, will three weeks really make that much difference? I need to know that I am going to be able to give Leah 100% of my time. We are not uping her therapies at all, so the CIMT is going to be done the majority at home. That means that I need to be focused on Leah all the time. I'm nervous that I'm not going to be able to handle the stress of preparing for the holidays and taking care of Leah. Our OT is out of town, otherwise I would be discussing with her and I will when she gets back on Thursday. I'm just feeling a bit overwhelmed by it all.
Get used to these posts for the next couple of weeks, until that cast is on--I'm going to continue to feel nervous. :)
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Casting Nerves
Posted by Amanda at 9:31 PM
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4 comments:
Our doctor casts for a month with the regular cast and then bivalves it after that. I told my OT that I didn't want to cast in December for sure. I can't have pictures and his Christmas ruined because of the cast.
Everything I have read suggests that casting before age three is optimal. Not that kids older then three don't get any benefits but maybe not as many. So waiting a month or two is not going matter in the large skeme of things. For us because it is a whole month and he will be in therapy for at least an hour a day during this time as well as a home based program. We have to plan a month that is not hectic or what benefits will he get if we don't follow the program. I think that you are so right, you have to be able to give her your attention and focus on the CIMT. I would say wait a few more weeks, it won't hurt anything. Keep us posted!!!
Hi Amanda
Speaking from experience this is all normal feelings. First of all, do not get too wrapped into feeling that you need to spend ALL of your time with her. We had AMAZING results with Reichen and it did not become all consuming for us. Yes, we spent a lot of time playing with him, but we still sent him to day-care 4 days a week and did our other activities.
The things that had the most value for us were the things he was doing anyway, like eating meals.
When Ike was first diagnosed,we told our therapists we wanted them to teach us how to play with him so that we would be getting activities in even when he did not realize it. Do the same for constraint. You have the great gumball toy -- that will be therapy when she plays with it with one hand.
Was it tiring - at times, yes! Did it suck when he got the cast on? yes - I cried on the way to the casting appointment and on the way home. Did it have amazing results? YES!!
As for waiting, that is up to you. In all honesty, we found that there was always a reason to postpone and we finally just decided to go for ir.
Feel free to call me anytime with questions. I would be glad to answer based on our experiences
"In all honesty, we found that there was always a reason to postpone and we finally just decided to go for it."
I posted yesterday and today, I am feeling so much better about it. What you said above is exactly why I think we are just going to continue with the plan. Thanks, and I am going to call you soon! Are you on Central time? Do you have a time preference that is good for you?
Amanda, I agree there is always some reason to postpone something. I am glad that you guys have decided to just move forward and do it. You will be happy that you did and hopefully you will have family around to help with the upcoming holidays.
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