Thursday, November 13, 2008

Physiatrist Appointment

We are back from our appointment! It went perfectly, I couldn't have asked for anything better.

She was very pleased with what Leah was doing and didn't even need to see the videos that I brought. We put Leah's bi-valved cast on there and she saw right away Leah used her hand. It was great.

Leah's OT and PT wrote her detailed emails, so I didn't have to tell her much! Dr. Gaebler did say she agrees with Nadine (PT) that we need to get a brace on her right away. She wrote a script so we can move forward with that. She said she thinks a hinged AFO would be the best fit for Leah right now. She said it would help the most with her hyper extension. She also said that we might want to get her something different for at night, she said she will discuss with Nadine and have her get back to me.


This is the brace we are most likely getting, except it will be hinged. (If you checked earlier, yes it is different, I re-read the script and realized she wanted the DAFO 3.5 for Leah.)It freaks me out a bit, but then I think about how little Leah is and how little the brace will be and I kind of think it will be cute! I mean, listen, no one wants there child to wear a brace or need something like it, but if she going to have to have one then I might as well embrace it!

She was very pleased with the bi-valved cast. The schedule that Lisa (OT) and I made was that it would be on one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon. Obviously, if I'm feeling up to more to do it! Dr. Gaebler insisted that one hour at a time is too long, because most kids get frustrated. Well, I politely corrected her and told her that one hour is not too long for Leah. She could care less if the cast is on. So, she told me that and hour is great then!

We talked a bit about the MMR--which she is all for and about a few other things...all good! The last thing she said to us is that her hope is that the next time we see her (in April) that Leah is walking. I told her I'm pretty sure she will be!

5 comments:

Popcorn House said...

So glad it went well. The articulating AFO will be so much better then the solid. It sounds like you have a great team behind Leah!!!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like it went great! I think you have a great attitude about the brace. It is time for Addison to get new braces, and we are trying a new place and looking into getting a different AFO for her. The DAFO 4's worked well but we just want to make sure there isn't something else that would work better. They do make them so cute now, that makes it easier to handle. I'm glad to hear you have embraced it!

Barbara said...

The brace will be a good thing. It has done wonders for Bennett and helped him progress a lot faster than he would have without it. When he stands without the brace now his foot while still turned in a bit is flat to the ground. The hardest part was finding shoes!

Anonymous said...

Fab news! DAFOs are excellent. And since it is near winter, you can get used to it while she is wearing long pants. Congrats!

mandy said...

Amanda, what is the difference between seeing a Psychiatrist and a Pediatrician?