Michael's PT

Today was another fun time at Michael's physical therapy appointment. Michael is making great strides at every visit. He now has full range in his neck, and his tightness is nearly gone. In fact, we are down to only performing the "Monkey Stretch." We got to lose the other stretches and will focus more on strength exercises. He also showed off his rolling from back to tummy. He's gotten lazy about rolling back the other way from his tummy to his back, but his therapist said he's just a typical boy - on to learning the next trick. He's very focused on sitting up right now, and the therapist cannot believe how strong little Michael is despite his torticollis.

Michael will go for a head scan within the next week or so just to make sure that his head is rounding out the correct way. The therapist is very proactive and doesn't expect him to qualify for a helmet, but she said now would be the time to do it. He also passed the vision testing at this point - apparently some babies develop torticollis due to a wandering eye or strained vision, which can cause them to tilt. Michael's tilt appears to be muscular in nature, and in fact, may have been more noticeable due to his many ear infections.

Michael is a trooper at therapy - he hangs in there longer than most babies, but you can definitely tell when he gets tired; he is sure to let us all know that it's time to go. He graduated to going to therapy every other week versus his weekly appointments today. In fact, he's doing so well that he may be able to go to monthly monitoring. With each new task he learns, he will have the tendency to tilt or "cheat" due to his torticollis, so he'll be monitored until he is walking like a pro. I asked the therapist not to teach him to walk too early as I am not ready for that stage just yet.

I couldn't write this update without giving a shout out to Hollie for catching this early - I imagine this continues to play an integral part to Michael's quick and positive progress. Thanks so much!