Question About Hypertonicity - "Overtoned" Baby

Does she get early intervention therapy??? there is a strange procedrue but it WORKS! it is botox injections and it relaxes the muscle kdis with Cp do this and it ets them to walk, it is amazing. You should look into getting servies for her good luck
J.

I always exercised my babys' legs myself. Lay her on her back and meaage her legs, especially theknees to warm then up a bit. Don't forget the ankles. Then one leg at a time, hold the thigh and gently bend the knee back and forth maybe 5 times then message the knee again and repeat bending another 5 times. Then do the same to the opposite leg. After a few days the knees should be pliable enough to add to the workout. Stretch gently and relax 5 times (both legs at the same time). Baby on her back, raise legs and stretch outward then together 5 times each. You can exercise their arms also. It was always part of playtime for my kids and myself. My daughter is 3 years older than her brother and she laid right next to him and continued to exercise with hi. When he was old enough to do it without my aid, the 3 of us would lay on the floor and exercise together. My kids grew up very "fit" and athletic. Maybe this is not for everyone but it was great to strengthen their little parts and to tire them out before naptime.

Call Easter Seals today. They will be able to help you.

Hi S., My son was alittle different. He has speech issues. But we used AID which they are everywhere it seems. And they do everything, from speech to physical therepy from ages 0 thru adulthood. I dont have there number anymore but im sure you can look them up. I donate money to them every year when they do there yearly fundraiser on comcast channel 4. Good luck.

When my niece was 6 months old she had the problem of too much tone in her arms where her arms would stick out behind her where it was difficult for her to roll or do anything that her arms would get in the way. She was sent to a physical therapist where her legs were also overtoned. After several months of physical therapy and exercises at home, she is totally fine. Hitting all milestones and no residual. I would suggest talking to your doctor and getting some therapy!

I used early intervention for my son and we loved it. He had very mild needs, but he is a superstar at preschool now! A friend of mine has a son who is still very stiff at 4 years old. He can jump but he can barely bend his legs. She didn't keep up with private physical therapy after EI ended at age 3, but her son gets some services at school. I feel the stiffness affects her son's ability to keep up with other children physically at the park or on playdates. NOT to scare you but he has no other issues but mild sensory isues & stiffness . When I started with EI I asked for the telephone number from my pediatrician. Once I called, they scheduled an evaluation. I have heard much success with using Early Intervention for everything from special needs children, to children that have only physical issues, to children that just needed a little help to get to the next milestone. It's a great program and the therapists we have all used in my circle of friends have been very helpful. The earlier you can help your child the better off they will be in the future.Good Luck!

I called EI when my son was 14 months because of speech development and motor skills. They discovered that he has low muscle tone. His pediatrician did not even discover this before I had a PT look at him! I would suggest calling EI. They might be able to figure something out that your doctor can't...My son is now walking and saying 2-4 words per day at 17 months! (: I really feel EI has helped him.

I echo the girls who said to call Early Intervention!

Rainbow Center (in Aurora, IL on Farnsworth Ave. across the street from the outlet mall) also offers free screenings (for physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech-language therapy) if parents have any concerns and want to know if they should pursue a complete evaluation or not. They take about 15-25 minutes. Rainbow Center is a pediatric outpatient clinic employing physical and occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists.

Our almost-9 month old just start lifting his torso from the belly down position, as if to try crawling, but our daughter did that at 6 monhths. He was also pulling himself up to standing a couple months later than her, but sitting up well a couple months earlier. If your daughter was sitting up well at 4.5 months, that's really early! When I asked our doc about my son not rolling from front to back at 6 months, he said some babies just don't because there is a moment of time they are "free-falling" so to speak that scares them, and that's normal.

S.
I definitely would have you pediatrician check her. He can refer you to First Steps which is Indiama's state organization to help children birth to 3 years of age. If she qualifies the therapists come to your home and teach you things you can do. Don't delay, the sooner you start addressing the "stiffness" the better results you will have.
S. Britton (certified occupational therapy assistant)

My daughter did the EXACT same things when she was 6.5 months old. She started sitting at 6 months, but hated tummy time, didn't roll over. She also loved being held up in a standing position and had those strong, stiff legs.

I really don't think you have anything to worry about. Aroung 7 months, my daughter started getting more comfortable on her stomach, and around 8 months, she finally started rolling over. After that, she started crawling around 9 months (but she still army crawls, instead of crawling more upright. I've done a lot of reading up on the subject, and the consensus is that all babys are different when it comes to crawling. They'll all do it at their own pace and in their own way.

For now, all you need to do is encourage that tummy time. I got down right on the carpet with her. But really, once she turned over, my daughter did most of her tummy time on her own in her crib. I would leave a few toys in there, and every morning I would realize that she's been up for at least 20 minutes quietly playing with her toys on her tummy.

But of course if you are concerned that there is a more serious condition, ask her pediatrition.

I am a physical therapist and my first advise is to talk to your doctor. You can always have an evaluation with a pediatric physical therapist, they are the musculoskeletal specialists. If there is a problem, then there is nothing to treat and they'll tell you that, if there is, then you will get the help you need. Good luck and keep on playing in tummy time! T.

Both my kids were born with very low fat content, and both are VERY toned. Both HATED tummy time, though my daughter is just now starting to enjoy it. She rolls and is 6 months, but my son dod not really roll over till close to 8.5 months. He was sitting up however at 6 months. Remember every kid is different. He did not crawl till 11 months but walked at 12mos. He always had a lot of stiffness, but I never took him to therapy. I talked to my ped and was told that if I was bothered by it, to do some flexibility exercizes. My mom did the same with me for 20 min's a day. bicycle legs and stretches, coupled with lotion massages at night helped me feel better about it, though I cant say it made much difference in him. He's a typical two year old, not really that flexible, but he's atill able to do everything physically that others can do(besides the splits). My daughter always shoots her legs out when she rolls to her belly, and the first step in crawling is going backwards. So that's also totally normal. My son didn't develop limb control till after 10 months, whereas I saw many other kids with great control at 6 months. However my son spoke full sentances before any of his friends who are all girls and 4mos+ older than him. They all grow at a different pace. Just wait and see what surprised you'll get if you have more kids. You'll have expectations from your first, which will be totally not on par with the new childs critera. If you're really worried talk to your ped. It just seems that today people are so hypervigilant about taking kids to specialists, therapists and chiropractors; always looking for something wrong, that they are forgeting the fundamentals of letting kids be kids and develop on their own time. More than likely your daughter is fine.

I would recommend calling your local Child and Family Connections office (See http://www.childandfamilyconnections.org/forms/list.pdf to find out which office serves your county). They can do evaluations to determine if your daughter needs any therapy to address these issues. This is Illinois' Early Intervention program. It's a fabulous program (I'm an EI service provider, but I work with the 2-3 population instead of the young babies)

I do marketing work for Pathways Center but also took my own kids there to be evaluated. They do free, 15-minute evaluations and are located in Glenview. www.pathwayscenter.org.

My kids did not have the same issue (one has low muscle tone, the other was a "toe walker") but I liked the opportunity for the evaluation. If they do determine your child needs therapy, you can get it from anywhere, including EI or another therapy center closer to where you live.

Good luck!

I can't say if this stiffness is typical or not, but I would encourage you to get it checked out. My daughter has been in therapies here for the past 5 1/2 years and I can tell you that there are plenty of great resources around. We use both St. Margaret Mercy (at Omni) and Wee Care Therapy. Both excellent. For a baby, however, I would recommend you go through the First Steps program (https://www.infirststeps.com/matrix/default.asp). This is Indiana's early intervention program. They will help you to figure out exactly what your child needs. It has had some serious funding cuts since my daughter received services (it covers kids 0-3), but it is still a great resource. Any therapist will tell you that the earlier the intervention, the better. Please trust your mommy instincts and get it checked out. Good luck!.........J.

I would talk to your doctor about your daughter first. My children were extremely early (premature), so I don't know for a full term child. But in your area there should be early intervention or known as birth to 3. Lot of people think it is for premature babies or children with disabilities. It is open to everyone. They have many different types of therapist. And they can do evualuation for you as well and give you advice or suggestions. I honestly would not get too concern as every child is different. It is hard having a premature children it has been very hard...it is a waiting process. Good luck.

Sounds like our daughter, except she hasn't quite figured out crawl yet and gets stuck. Shoots her legs straight out and goes backwards!
Ask your doc if concerned, but I think she sounds fine. Go with YOUR gut.

hello- my daughter had the opposite problem- very low tone in her legs, so she was a late walker. I would get her evaluated through the state program: early intervention. They evaluate and treat kids from birth to age 3 for physical therapy, speech, OT, nutrition etc. They will then provide you with a physical therapist or whatever is needed. Good luck and good job figuring this out while she is very young, I am sure you will get her the right help she needs.