What's Worse Than a Cast? . . . A Brace.

The second cast came off last Friday and Hazel's foot looked great. Then the doctor told me to get her fitted for a brace. When we started this whole thing on January 9th, she said Hazel's foot didn't look very serious and we should only need two or three casts and then some physical therapy exercises. I asked her specifically about the brace, and she said Hazel would not need it. When I asked her why she wants Hazel in one now, the only explanation I got was, "Well, I thought about it this week, and I think a brace would be good for her." That's ALL she said! I was in too much shock to think of what else to say (besides @#$&) until after I'd gotten home.

If I thought the cast was bad. . . The brace is a million times worse. It's heavy and unwieldy. It's a pair of shoes attached by a metal bar. It holds Hazel's feet at shoulder-width with her toes pointing out. She cannot move her legs independently. Hazel doesn't fit into her carseat anymore - one leg has to be lifted higher than the other. I worry about the weight hanging off her legs and putting stress on her knees, so I've been holding the brace up while I carry her. She's got monstrous blisters on her heels, ankles, and toes even though I've kept her covered in moleskin. For three days Hazel ate almost nothing, slept terribly, and cried almost constantly. By Monday evening, she was starting to come around again, but would have freak-outs suddenly and try to kick the brace off, while crying for hours.

By Tuesday night, I had decided the brace was causing my 8-week-old baby major emotional distress and boycotted the brace. She's had it off for about a day and a half now, and she's slowly returning to normal behavior, although she hasn't recovered fully yet.

My mom and I have been doing little foot exercises with her whenever she's awake, and are trying to find alternate solutions to help the little one. I know physical therapy alone is a viable option, because that's what the doctor said we would be doing at our initial visit. I need to speak with her about how Hazel had a very low tolerance level for the brace and get some professional advice about other avenues to head down. If this doctor is not supportive, I'm going to seek a second opinion elsewhere.

Update: I called the doctor's office and asked about alternate treatments. We're going in tomorrow to get Hazel fitted for a plastic splint that will go on just her left foot. I'm feeling really optimistic about it.