Guess who got his restrictions lifted last Monday?
Yep, Mister David has been given the all-clear by his neurosurgeon. We can now pick him up under his arms, give him a bath, and let him play in his bouncer. Paul and I are so much more relaxed when we hold him, and David is a happier, wigglier baby. I’m so grateful that the surgery and recovery went well.
We are still running into surprise issues here and there. Since David hadn’t had a bath in six weeks, he wasn’t very appreciative the first time I gave him one. Actually, he shrieked and screamed until I decided that a two-minute bath was a good enough start. Yesterday he still screamed at the beginning of bath time, but he settled down eventually and seemed to be adjusting a bit.
The exersaucer also hasn’t been popular after six weeks of disuse. David has been crying when we set him in it, refusing to put his feet on the floor — he bends his legs at the knees to hold his feet up. With lots of entertainment and reassurances from Mommy, Daddy, and Ian, he is gradually warming up to it. Yesterday afternoon he even did a bit of bouncing.
While he rolls over like a pro, David is still working on sitting up, since he spent several weeks mostly in a prone position. He’ll get there, though.
Currently we have a follow-up appointment with the neurosurgeon in a year, when we can see how David is walking. There is a chance that David’s spinal cord could retether, but the surgeon says he only sees that in about 10% of his cases. The biggest thing we’ll need to watch is bladder issues as David gets to potty training age. Those are the nerves most likely to be damaged by the lipomeningocele. Since those issues won’t become apparent for several years, for now I’ll just enjoy my squeaky, happy baby.
The neurosurgeon did suggest using “common sense” when it comes to sports and perhaps steer David toward individual sports like swimming and track. Definitely no football, and no checking leagues for hockey (if David wants to play, goalie is probably the safest position for him). The combination of the congenital spinal defect plus the laminectomy as part of the surgery means that David’s back is a little more vulnerable to injury. I feel petty saying this, but there is a part of me mourning those tiny limitations on David’s activity. Part of the joy of childhood for me is all possibilities that exist for the future, and it’s sad when any of those possibilities disappear, even if they were unlikely in the first place (NHL career, perhaps?). But overall, I am grateful that we are talking about limitations of sports, not limitations of mobility.
We’ve had a fun week having a healthy baby again.
HOoray! I hear you on the mourning the limitations, even though I feel silly about it, too. I mean, she probably WASN’T going to be an Olympic gymnast, but because of all of her lingering issues and delays, she probably will never have the coordination she otherwise would have. But, yeah, silly, but I get it.