So last post I shared a bit about the challenges we have been dealing with in terms of little M's feet and legs. On the whole things have gone really well, but having a baby in a harness means a lot of aspects of life change--and I'm sure we will find the same to be true when he goes into his casts and then into his brace after that.
I've been reading blogs from other parents who have been through these challenges already and absorbing their tips and tricks. So I figure I will pay it forward and share ours as we find them! Plus I have found very few resources for babies that have had both club feet and hip dysplasia, despite the fact that they are often associated conditions. The inturned feet have added a few challenges on top of the harness alone.
One of those challenges has been babywearing. While the harness holds his legs in a good position for many carries, his little toes sometimes get stuck and snag on things, and the angle of his shins/ankles seems to make getting him properly "seated" in a carry tricky. I've been wanting to wrap him on my back, but my first few tries at the oft recommended newborn carry (Secure High Back Carry, or SHBC) weren't great.
So this morning I tried my favourite carry from Evan's later infant days--Double Rebozo Shoulder-to-Shoulder, or DRS2S. Somehow this seemed to be the magic solution:
(For the record, I had him up several inches higher, but moved the knot from my front to my back and he sank a bit. Lesson learned--although I liked the enhanced lung capacity of the back knot!)
Another hack I learned today from our physiotherapist--to allow him to relax his legs while on his back, you can put a nursing pillow under his legs. So his butt goes where the nursing mom's tummy would be, with his legs able to rest on the pillow! I wish we'd found that one earlier. Not much fun to always have your legs suspended in midair, I wouldn't think! Not that you would know it from this happy guy.
I will try to keep posting our solutions and strategies as we continue to navigate this journey!
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