Keeping the Pavlik in Perspective
I didn’t think I’d write about the Pavlik harness Indie wore for several months, but now that her hips are in good shape I think it might be useful for other parents.
On day one in the hospital her pediatrician diagnosed her with hip dysplasia and wanted us to triple diaper her so her hip didn’t come loose from the socket. We were told to get to an orthopedic specialist immediately. I had never heard of this condition except in dogs. My friend’s beautiful white Great Pyranees had this condition and walked on three legs (and quite well, actually).
So I panicked. Does this mean my new daughter won’t crawl, won’t have two legs of the same length, WON”T WALK? Egads. She was barely in this new world and already I was preparing for the worst. (this is very much like me).
Also, I was recovering from a c-section, so going from one hospital in a wheel chair to walking through the halls of a children’s hospital, in jake’s slippers because I was still full of IV fluid and my shoes didn’t fit, foggy from all the pain meds, and terrified that someone might BREATHE near my newborn was enough to send me sailing clear off the edge. Because it’s a children’s hospital I saw clowns walk by the door of the room I was holed-up in away from the germy BREATHERS, but was afraid one might pop his head in and I would have FREAKED and possibly PUNCHED A CLOWN. I’m not a fan of clowns anyway but especially on that day…
But fast-forward to meeting the good doctor who prescribed the Pavlik harness and the orthopedic doc who we visited for many months to see how Indie was improving. Greatly! Yes, it was a hassle because this device had to be worn 23 hours per day and kept her in what I call a “cowboy stance”. Ok fine, she wasn’t crawling yet anyway. And by the time she WAS crawling, the harness was almost a faint memory.
Last week we had a final xray of her hips and they are growing beautifully. She had been walking since 11 months and now at 2 years is quite the runner. Without the harness, she could have grown up fine but may have had very early arthritis in the hips, possibly requiring surgery. Because we kept that thing on day and night and she grew normally, this is not something we need to worry about anymore.
Also, our usually energetic doctor was yawning through our visit. He’d just returned from Haiti and spent a week in surgery after surgery putting people back together. His story REALLY put this whole experience into perspective. Yes, we were freaked out for a few months and had lots of follow up visits, but nothing compares to what’s going on in Haiti. For this whole experience I’m again grateful for the reminder: keep it in perspective…