Hello World!
Over the last few days, I have begun to think about a small increase in dosage for Gideon. We will discuss this with his therapist this week. He seems to have acclimated and seems eager to move forward with his abilities. Yet, as his parents, we want to be sure that he is ready. To that end, I decided to look back at the last few weeks.
We are very pleased with the successes and they are outstanding. With any new treatment, especially with one related to physical mobility, it is important to make sure that you have done everything you can to ensure that the next change will bring success. In Gideon’s case, my hyper-focus is on his hypotonic core muscles. Looking at the last 2 weeks, we believe that he has more control over the area. Yet, since it is his first time having control over these muscles, they are very weak (as is the case with the spasticity in the other muscles). So, prior to increasing his dosage, you would want to consider whether he may need to strengthen his muscles a bit more. Again, we will continue to think about this and discuss with his medical professionals before coming to a decision. This is my primary concern due to his swallowing. While he may now have more control over them, he does not know how to use them yet. He is getting there, but increased laxity without knowing how to control those muscles could increase his risk of aspiration. This may not be true, but until we have discussed this with his medical professionals, we will not move forward with an increase in dosage.
Over the last few days, we have seen Gideon push harder each day (all on his own!) to move in new ways or make new sounds. We are so proud of him and his drive! Gideon is excited to laugh and “talk” more. He is really working to get into crawling position. Of his own accord, he puts the lessons he learns with his therapist to use. And about that, I must vent here, lol…
There is something I call (which is probably already named in some piece of medical literature somewhere) the “caregiver effect.” To me it is when a therapist can do something with your child once and your child just gets it and enjoys the therapy-play process. Yet, when the primary caregiver attempts to do the same with said child, lol, this child suddenly decides it’s like a trip to the dentist! Ugh! ???? No matter how much play I try to integrate, he always seems less interested in therapy when I’m the one helping, lol.
On a more serious note, it is clear that the interaction of the therapist with our children holds an important key to the learning process. From the perspective of neuroscience, it is like a mental cue. If you see a professor take the podium as a student in college, you sit up in class and listen to the lecture. The same thing applies here. More than that, though, I think the bond they have with these caring, helpful people helps them on a core level. For that, we are thankful.
On to the best part—Gideon fell off the couch! Yay! Why is that a cause for celebration instead of horror, you ask? Well, it means that Gideon was mobile enough to actually fall. That is wonderful! He has been able to get off the couch before. Yet, at those times, the circumstances were different. The couches were firmer, so moving toward the edge was easier. Our couch is well-worn, and it dips down and toward the back of the couch. For Gideon to overcome this shape difference, he has move himself out of a hammock-like position and up over the edge of the couch. If you are cradled in something, it is often more difficult to move from that space. That is fantastic!
One final note to close this blog: our blog may continue to be every few days or slow down to weekly. We will continue to update on things we have mentioned and, of course, we will let you know about any new developments. If we do increase his dosage, we will return to small daily posts, because that will require closer monitoring.
Thank you for reading! <3