The Magic of Therapy

So when Ella was 6 weeks old, I noticed that she was restricted in her neck movement. My husband, friends and family told me I was crazy and that Ella was fine! I was in the land of new mummy worry, quite literally. Is she nursing well enough? Is she developmentally normal? Is she sleeping enough (the answer to that one was a very clear no!)? Is she pooping enough? Is she pooping TOO MUCH? These were all my day to day worries and I can understand how my family thought I was one brick shy of going right off the deep end. HOWEVER! With this, I was correct. The physio and mummy in me told me that something just wasn't quite right with her neck movement so I brought it up to our family doctor. He took a look at her at one of our well baby appointments, referred us to a pediatrician and gave us a referral for physiotherapy.
Being a physiotherapist myself, I wasn't going to take Ella to just any clinic. I did my research, and called around to find a clinic that I was comfortable with, and would meet Ella's specific needs as a baby. Having worked in private practice myself, once upon a time, I knew how rare it was to see this condition in a normal adult practice, and I wanted someone with experience.

I found it at Footprints Therapy. We booked an appointment with Doreen Hilliard, clinic co-owner, physiotherapist and osteopathic manual practioner. I was nervous, very nervous, because I really wasn't sure how much therapy Ella would tolerate. At that age, Ella was in what I would dub her "Screamy Phase". When she wasn't eating or sleeping (and she didn't sleep all that often) she was screaming. At the top of her lungs. For hours at a time. I couldn't change her diaper without world class dramatics, how in the world could she tolerate therapy that may or not be uncomfortable for her?

My worries were unfounded. Doreen was and still is absolutely wonderful with her. Ella tolerates an HOUR (yes, an HOUR) of therapy with Doreen and she has just worked wonders with Ella. She uses gentle physiotherapy and osteopathic techniques and has worked on her skull, neck, shoulders, thorax and pelvis to help her achieve balance throughout her body. I fully credit Doreen and her therapeutic skills for helping us achieve so much improvement in not only the muscles of her body, but the dramatic improvements in her head shape as well.

Here are some pics from a recent treatment session with Doreen! A typical session starts with a good old fashioned romp to the toy box!

Once Ella has chosen a toy that is particularly tasty, the therapy can begin.

Yummm, giraffe.

Oooh, this one is good too.

What is Ella looking at? Doreen's office is full of mobiles that she has collected from around the world. :)

 (This one is my personal favourite)

From there she worked on the muscles of Ella's neck, her skull and surrounding areas.

Thanks Doreen! That feels pretty good!

A little work on Ella's pelvis alignment..

Another tasty treat from the toybox...

And our therapy session is complete for the day. One hour of gentle therapy complete, which Ella has thoroughly enjoyed. Hurray!

Ella continues to make gains during her therapy sessions and we are likely to graduate in the next few months. While we will certainly miss Doreen and all the lovely people at Footprints, it feels great to know that they are there if we ever need them again.

Special thanks to Doreen Hilliard and the staff of Footprints therapy for agreeing to be a part of our blog this week! Visit them at www.footprints.ca for more info.