The Diagnosis

Jason and I were elated to find out I was pregnant with our first child.  Along with our elation, came the worry.  What if our baby wasn't healthy?  What if we somehow screwed her up with our warped sense of parenting?  Was it cruel to bring a child into this turbulent world?

Fast forward to 8 weeks postpartum; where a dark fear came true.  Our pediatrician recommended Colleen have a sonogram to screen for hip dysplasia.  It turns out that hip dysplasia is common with breech births and c-sections.  It is also more common for first born girls and those who have hip problems within the family.  Needless to say, Colleen was a prime candidate.  Could the odds be any more in her favor?

The sonogram yielded the bad news; Colleen has hip dysplasia.  Further visit to the pediatric orthopedic confirmed it, and thus began her sentence in a Plavik Harness.

A Plavik Harness is a velcro soft shell harness that wraps around a baby's body to spread its hips in an attempt to correct the dislocation in the hips.  It is large, cumbersome, and comes in annoying gender based colors.  Why pretty the damn contraption in an attempt to also gender stereotype a child who could care less that her extremely restrictive and annoying harness is pink?

Colleen was a champ in the doctor's office despite the hour long wait, and game show host of a doctor. Seriously, a cotton houndstooth suit?  Despite numerous warnings, Colleen only fussed at the end of her visit, when she realized she was starving and no one was feeding her just yet.

I think I was more of a mess than she was.  Seeing her wrapped into a contraption, confining her little legs, and knowing that she will have to remain in the harness for at least six weeks, almost killed me.

Thus begins this blog.  This blog is designed to shed light on a little discussed condition (if you don't believe me google it- there is information yes, but nothing compared to other infant conditions).  It is meant to share what a family is going through, and is not intended to be a textbook regurgitation of what you can find on the internet.   Anything, including methods I use, opinions I have, or reactions of my daughter are expressed just for information and insight only.  I neither encourage or discourage things I do, or doctors do.

Thank you for reading.