[desirae]

I feel horrible that it has come to this. The Ped. kept putting it off because it looked as though she may straighten her legs out herself, they had approved greatly since she was a little baby. She has bowed legs and pigeon toes.

I'm crushed some how I feel that maybe this is my fault, she came out of my womb with her legs crossed, the doctor told me she sat crossed legged for 9 months, and they may have caused her legs to bow.....that may just be a theory though.

She got fitted a measured today and she will be wearing her braces in a week. I hope people will not stare and gawk at her. I'm just glad that she's so young that she will not remember none of this later, plus she will not be teased at school neither.

Everytime I think of braces, I think of the movie Forrest Gump and all of his peers calling him a slow freak. Maybe I'm just overly nervous.

[DorianGray]

sorry to hear.
try to be positive for her sake.
children can sense unhappiness/worry

to live is to suffer
one way or another

[desirae]

I'm thinking about calling them princess shoes. She's 18 months old, so if I was to tell a little fib like princess shoes, I think she would believe me.....I hope so

awwwww poor sweet baby......but she'll handle the braces just fine....

[jennie]

desirae, everyone is different. it's okay your child learns now everyone is different.

I hope a "pediatric orthopedist" is treating your daughter.

When my child was first born, a few doctors pediatricians recommended my son get braces on his legs due to congenital hip dislocation and also mentioned my son may need surgery.

When we went to the specialist (orthopedics doc), this doctor say he heard nothing wrong with my son's hip. He said that the other pediatricians were just CYAs (covering their buttocks). However, it was good the other docs were concerned and made a referral to the specialist.

[Sarah116]

Let her know that people who tease others because of ridiculous things like getting help (She is getting help for her feet and legs) are not nice people. They probably just want attention or to look better. But they are really putting themselves down in life. I wish you both luck and remember at least there is a treatment out there to help!!

Once when I was young i had an orthopedic problem and it was fixed after wearing and brace in my shoe and plenty of PT. I am basiclly all better now!

wearing braces as a kid and now as an adult - people are going to stare no matter what. sometimes its just from curiosity other times its because they have never encountered a person in braces before. your child is going to be getting her clues about how to react to being in braces by how you are reacting. You make it out to be a hardship and so on then she will feel negatively about it. you look at it as a good thing and a challenge then so will she. Its not the end of the world. Theres no telling how long kids need towear braces some only a matter of a few months and others for years.

One thing that I did when I had to go back into wearing a brace I figured you know what they are going to look and stare so I might as well give people something worth staring at and had a decorative design put into the making of my brace. Now the first thing anyone notices is not the fact that I have the brace for a reason its - look then look again for what is that on there?. Now days kids are in school with many kinds of children some with hearing aids, some with glasses, some with braces and some with crutches and or walkers and still others with crtutches, walkers braces and wheel chairs. in todays world its normal for children to know someone that needs something that will help them see, hear, walk and so on. So she most likely won't have a big problem of bullies. she will problably be asked things like does it hurt and can I try them on and so on. Give her a few humorous lines to say to the few and far between that are ignorant enough to call her metal legs, robot and so on and on the home front deal with this as a good thing not a bum deal and she will be fine.

as for memory I recieved my first braces as a 4 year old and I sure do remember some of that. But what I remember was my sister pretending to rip my clothes in a comedy routine as she opened the velcrow on my braces and at times comedy routines of acting like I farted when my shoes made a sound on the floors or as they were removed.

When I was in my third to last year in high school... I had a friend... who had a boyfriend... Who was born with his legs intertwined together and they surgicly had to seperate them... I can't remember when... Maybe when he was three years old. His legs were uneven. The right leg was larger than the left leg because the way they seperated them they were uneven. You know what? He was one of the most popular kids at high school because... He was such a nice guy.

Dealing with physical ailments can be hard. For adults and for adolescents and for children. I'm temped to say that adolescents have the hardest time because their self doubts come in time when their peers are most critical. Some adolescents have braces, for example. Let them meet their peers at high school reuinions and see how much straight teeth matter! Let them meet their peers and discover that the 'cool kids' often develop a life of teen pregnancy and substance abuse while the 'uncool kids' develop straight teeth and professions in law or medicine. Extreme examples, to be sure. All I'm saying is that yes, your kid is indeed likely to have a hard time of it from her peers in general. Will it make her a better / more sensitive / more kind person? With the support of her family who loves her regardless, sure. The braces will come off one day and then what will she be left with? Internalised representations of a family who love her no matter what. In the case of my friend popularity because he never had a nasty word to say to anyone and because he was such a nice (and sexy) guy. Will your daughter be able to develop this? Sure she will. It must be hard for her now to be sure, but for her future... It could well make her a more sensitive person to the plight of others. Horrible thing... But benefits to be had to be sure...

[darkeyes]

I'd only be concerned if in front of kids a little older than her may laugh if she says she has princess shoes on.
Though as a mom, (my baby is in college) you want to make something feel nice and like fun for our children when the reality may not be.
I guess it depends on if she is around the same kids(playmates) all the time, or familiar places often.
The princess shoe thing can go 2 ways, a positive approach or not so positive. Some kids are hurt when parents have told them a fib and then have to tell them the truth.
Will she have to wear them long? When I teacher aided for 2nd graders for 5 yrs., I saw a mix of behaviours,sadly to say a large percent were bullies,yes girls and boys.
Many parents are bringing their kids to be aggressive but there seems to be no boundaries where the aggression is appropriate. Personally I didn't care for a lot of the things I saw deteriorating over the years. Sorry, I strayed, but I feel it may not be necessary to fib, but maybe tell her the truth and that she will get better, and when the braces come off, you'll have a party for her.
It may even cool, if kids ask her about the braces, that she will have a real explanation, natutally teach her about that on a child her age level.
When we had children enter our 2nd grade class with some sort of handicap,ailment,allergies, and asthma, they would explain to the others what it was about and kids never made fun of them,but actually would alert us and others if the child had an attack or fall.
This is just my thoughts,for I really do not know you or your little girl,cyber conversations can be difficult,so I apologize if anything I said came out sounding unpleasant, I had no intentions of doing so.
I wish your little sweetie lots of luck with this,she'll do fine I'm sure. And I wish you,too,the same.
Sincerely,
DE

((((((((( Desirae and daughter )))))))))))


BTW
My husband,his sister, and nephew, had to wear braces too, for a little while,today they are all grown up and have straight,strong legs. My MIL,said my hubby's legs were also bowed and was pigeon toed, one would never know after things all settle in,the bones are still soft at that age so she shall do fine.

[SpazKatt]

I'm sorry you feel that way, it's understandable but you REALLY couldn't do ANYTHING to help it! How old is your daughter? My sister wore leg braces for 2 years, luckily she only had to wear them around the house and at nights and could take them off for outtings. Best of luck to both of you!

[desirae]

Thanks all so much for your support, I had no idea so many experienced this. My daughter is 18 months now. We will be getting her braces in a week or two, they've been fitted and ordered. I'm still a little nervous and in denial, but I know ultimately it will be okay. I don't care what people think, all I'm concerned about is her health and future. Somebody mentioned that my attitude needs to be positive in order for hers to be the same and I agree. I plan on making a fuss about them as though they are cute. Yesterday I painted her toe nails red and she was fascinated because of the fuss I was making. I know that means alot to a baby her age.

The types of braces she will be recieving are cable braces. I've never heard of them or seen them before, I actually have no idea what they look like or how they work. The braceman that measured her told me a few facts, but didn't get into to much detail.

Thanks all so much for your support and understanding, I appreciate it.

if they are what I wore and am thinking about she will have shoes that have a clip loop or attachement hole. then elastisized "belts" that attach to the shoes and wind around her legs in a spiral upwards where they will be attached to a loop on a wide waiste band. When I wore them I was in paain because it was basically pulling my legs and muscles in the opposite direction then they were pointing and also realigning my hips. For the most part being active playing and so on I could ignore the pain. I was older than your daughter so was very aware that it was the braces causing the pain and threw many temper tantrums to get my family members to take them off. Being your daughter is only 18 months old her bones have not grown completely together or into the joint suckets so she might not even experience the pain of bones being turned and held in the right position in the sockets and so on. but if so keeping her as active as possible will help. And hang in there. Its best that she have them now then when she is older and by having them now at 18 months you and she may not have to worry about what and how the kids in school react to her because this might take care of the problem before then. and she might not be in braces then.

[JustAPixie]

((((((((( desirae ))))))))

[Meta]

hi desirae,

I wore leg braces and casts on my leg continually until I was around 7 or 8. I don't think I thought much about them before I went to school. I think whoever said your daughter will have a positive attitude if you do, was right. Now as a parent, I know my mom was not as casual about these things as she acted when I was a kid, but it was good for me that she did not make a fuss. (((((((((Desirae))))))))

Meta

[mrb020377]

((((((((((desirae)))))))))))))))

[desirae]

Thanks all for your support, I really appreciate it. I'm still a little nervous, but of course that is normal. The braceman will be calling this Friday or the Friday after that at the latest and I will go take Sissy to get her braces on. I hope they are not uncomfortable for her, that is my worse fear.

As long as she's able to do what she does now, that is all that basically matters to me. I don't want her to be confined in anyway, she tends to not like that.