Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Original Blog Post: April 26, 2011- Baby Steps

Caedmon has been sans cast for three days now.  On Friday his new AFOs  were finished and he had his final fitting.  With the support those give his newly surgeried foot/ankle, we were able to take off the cast.  Tomorrow will be his first bath, so looking forward to that! 

It has been difficult watching him these last few days.  He continues to scoot around on his bottom and does not want to crawl at all.  He doesn't believe he can get down from his dining chair, or any chair, on his own.  He won't even try to climb into a chair.  He is terrified of the stairs, will not kneel next to the couch and cries if we try to help him stand or walk.  All things he could do brilliantly just a few short months ago.

I know it is a matter of time and patience, I am trying to let go of Pushy Mommy and allow him to go at his own pace.  His PT told me today that the fact that he was so strong and able to do so much before the surgery will mean he will bounce back fairly quickly.  It is still really difficult.  It is really hard to see how far backwards we have gone.  It's hard to see him as scared to take risks when he has never flinched at trying anything before.  I hate to see how his confidence has been sucked out of him.  I got a little teary during our appointment today.  He was so cautious and shy, not my bubbly go-getter at all.
My hope is that when he gets back in the water again on Thursday for aquatherapy he will start to remember all the wonderful things he's been able to do.  He will start to regain the confidence to stand and walk and explore.  I know this phase will pass, I know he will go beyond what he ever has before, but I also see how easily it can be to lose gains and what an uphill climb it will be for him to keep pushing and not give up.

So for now we take baby steps: encouraging crawling using verbal cues, helping him get back into the habit of tall kneeling while playing at the couch, maybe in a couple of days he'll try to climb the stairs, and maybe next week he'll try to stand, and a few days later he'll try to take a few steps. 
Life is all about patience and adaptability.

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