If you remember way, way back in October last year, after a selection of typical NHS cock-ups, we got to see the paediatric orthopaedic specialist, way down in the Vale of Glam, who said that after worrying, fretting & double-nappying, Squeaky's hips were "just within the normal range", but that they'd send us another appointment for 6 months time to check again once she was walking. 6 months came and went. No surprises in the tale of missed dates that this whole saga has been, and to be honest I was torn between harassing the doctor to find out what was going on & shrugging it off thinking they'd said things were ok.
And then last week we got one of those letters addressed to "THE PARENTS/GUARDIANS OF MISS SQUEAKY BABY" in big capital letters. Telling me to phone Llandough & make an appointment to see the orthopod for a follow-up. 6 months has become 14. I umm & ahh for a week, forget to phone them because the appointment line is only open silly hours & eventually get round to making an appointment for 15 December. Happy freakin Christmas.
I know in my rational brain that all will be well, she doesn't appear to have any issues with walking. Part of me doesn't even want to bother going. But I know I'd never forgive myself if something wasn't picked up. So now we have another round of me fussing, fretting and generally getting into a state, a trip to Lovely Old Out-Of-The-Way hospital, and a trip to somewhere nice on the way home as a reward. Hobbycraft? Ikea? The drive-thru Starbucks? All of the above? Who knows.
Showing posts with label ddh. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ddh. Show all posts
Wednesday, 23 November 2011
Friday, 29 October 2010
Hospitals, and other adventures
We finally had our appointment with the paediatric orthopaedic guy last week, after a very last minute cancellation of our original appointment. X-rayed (do you know how difficult it is to keep a naked and wriggly 9 month old still long enough to have her hips x-rayed?), examined, and apparently she's now within the normal range. Not in the middle of the normal range, but within it at least. Which is a huge relief. Seemingly the double nappies have done their job, and I will not be sad to say goodbye to them - they've been getting harder & harder to put on because they add so much to the time a nappy change takes. We've still got to go back in 6 months time, for a follow up check when she's walking properly, but generally, we're very very relieved.
I said hospitals up there, not one but two. Last weekend my right knee started playing up. Just felt a bit bruised, like maybe I'd knelt on something awkward or something, so I shrugged it off. But it got progressively worse, until Monday morning I could barely stand on it. So I phoned the doctor & got an appointment for that day, toddled off, doctor took a look and phoned the hospital & sent me off up there. 5 1/2 hours of sitting around in casualty, x-rays, blood tests, and purple pen marks around my now bright red & swollen kneecap, and apparently I've got an infection in the fluid on my knee, giving me Housemaid's Knee. Of all absurd things. It kind of makes sense when you consider how much time I spend on the floor, crawling around after Squeaky, but even so, I can't get any kind of glamorous complaint, can I? Bloody housemaid's knee, I ask you!
Squeaky also had her 9 month check up this week, and passed with flying colours. According to the doctor, she's quite advanced, in as much as she's happily crawling, pulling up to standing, and cruising around with something to lean on when the mood takes her. Is good, if scary. Honestly, she's a little dynamo.
Oh, and her latest discoveries? She can remove any kind of shoe I put on her. Elastic, no problem. Velcro, easy. Boots, piece of cake. Shoes with built-in socks, no worries. I don't understand. How can she be mine & not want all the shoes in the world? And she's also figured out how to clap her hands herself. She figured out flattening them to make a noise when I clap them a while back, then last week how to clap my hands together holding on to my little fingers, but yesterday she put the two concepts together and learned how to clap her own hands. This is maybe the most exciting thing ever, from the look on her face when she does it. Hours of entertainment to be had now.
I said hospitals up there, not one but two. Last weekend my right knee started playing up. Just felt a bit bruised, like maybe I'd knelt on something awkward or something, so I shrugged it off. But it got progressively worse, until Monday morning I could barely stand on it. So I phoned the doctor & got an appointment for that day, toddled off, doctor took a look and phoned the hospital & sent me off up there. 5 1/2 hours of sitting around in casualty, x-rays, blood tests, and purple pen marks around my now bright red & swollen kneecap, and apparently I've got an infection in the fluid on my knee, giving me Housemaid's Knee. Of all absurd things. It kind of makes sense when you consider how much time I spend on the floor, crawling around after Squeaky, but even so, I can't get any kind of glamorous complaint, can I? Bloody housemaid's knee, I ask you!
Squeaky also had her 9 month check up this week, and passed with flying colours. According to the doctor, she's quite advanced, in as much as she's happily crawling, pulling up to standing, and cruising around with something to lean on when the mood takes her. Is good, if scary. Honestly, she's a little dynamo.
Oh, and her latest discoveries? She can remove any kind of shoe I put on her. Elastic, no problem. Velcro, easy. Boots, piece of cake. Shoes with built-in socks, no worries. I don't understand. How can she be mine & not want all the shoes in the world? And she's also figured out how to clap her hands herself. She figured out flattening them to make a noise when I clap them a while back, then last week how to clap my hands together holding on to my little fingers, but yesterday she put the two concepts together and learned how to clap her own hands. This is maybe the most exciting thing ever, from the look on her face when she does it. Hours of entertainment to be had now.
Saturday, 25 September 2010
Double Nappies, DUR!
We've been at this double nappy malarky for a month or more now, the appointment with the paediatric orthopaedic guy is in a couple of weeks, then maybe we'll be sorted.
So why has it taken me this long to realise that double nappies can actually make things easier, not harder? For ages I've been completely removing the outer nappy before starting on the inner, cleaning, etc. Then getting the inner nappy out of the way, putting the outer in place as the new inner, then a new outer. And one day it occurred to me - if I leave the outer nappy underneath, then when I remove the inner, it's already there underneath the (hopefully) clean bottom, ready to be stuck down & I only need to do half as much "bum in the air" getting a nappy underneath.
Some days I really do wonder about myself, you know.
In other news, the new curtain rail is now up, and having a 24 hour cooling off period before I try putting curtains on it & putting Squeaky back where she belongs at night. I don't trust curtain rails, never mind our DIY skills (apologies to anyone following me on twitter, I had a bit of a meltdown).
So why has it taken me this long to realise that double nappies can actually make things easier, not harder? For ages I've been completely removing the outer nappy before starting on the inner, cleaning, etc. Then getting the inner nappy out of the way, putting the outer in place as the new inner, then a new outer. And one day it occurred to me - if I leave the outer nappy underneath, then when I remove the inner, it's already there underneath the (hopefully) clean bottom, ready to be stuck down & I only need to do half as much "bum in the air" getting a nappy underneath.
Some days I really do wonder about myself, you know.
In other news, the new curtain rail is now up, and having a 24 hour cooling off period before I try putting curtains on it & putting Squeaky back where she belongs at night. I don't trust curtain rails, never mind our DIY skills (apologies to anyone following me on twitter, I had a bit of a meltdown).
Wednesday, 11 August 2010
Date - Up!
So the blog grader thinks I should update. Therefore I will update. (Please, don't look at my grade, it's embarrassingly low)
Since the hospital appointment last Monday, and the tearful post that followed, I've calmed down a bit. That's a good thing, right? Squeakydaddy & I went to see our GP on Wednesday (we couldn't go earlier, there's 2 GPs on jobshare at our practice, and we wanted to see the one who's been involved this far, rather than having to explain everything to the other one, who wouldn't really be able to add anything anyway). We had a good chat with her, and a bit of a cry (or I did, anyway) and, love her, she's really helpful. She spoke to the surgeon's secretary & got a copy of his report faxed through, so she actually knew what had been decided, which is MUCH more than he told me, and then she told me that info.
Mr Orthopod has referred Squeaky to Llandough Hospital, to a Paediatric Orthopaedic specialist for a second opinion, because when he manipulated her hips they felt OK, but the ultrasound showed an anomaly, so he wants the Paediatric guy to do whatever they do. There's a real chance they won't feel the need to do anything except monitor it, which is a big relief.
I'm also strangely excited about it being Llandough. It was a 50/50 in my mind whether it would be the Paediatric unit at University Hospital, in the centre of Cardiff, which would be a) dull, and b) an utter PITA and involve me dealing with horrible junctions on horrible busy bits of road. But instead I get to go to a beautiful old hospital out in the back end of nowhere, with loads of parking, and to get there I have to drive directly past (and take a diversion via, obviously) lots of exciting places like Hobbycraft, and Mamas & Papas. I'm allowed to go to nice places when I've had to do something scary, it's my reward. Llandough has a really new specialist Orthopaedic unit, which is clearly why we've been sent there. It's a lovely old place, just a long way from anywhere.
My doc's back in the office today, and she said she's going to chase up the new Orthopod's secretary to try and speed up the appointment for us, especially after the delays that were at least in part down to her. So hopefully there will be another update here soon.
*nervous*
Since the hospital appointment last Monday, and the tearful post that followed, I've calmed down a bit. That's a good thing, right? Squeakydaddy & I went to see our GP on Wednesday (we couldn't go earlier, there's 2 GPs on jobshare at our practice, and we wanted to see the one who's been involved this far, rather than having to explain everything to the other one, who wouldn't really be able to add anything anyway). We had a good chat with her, and a bit of a cry (or I did, anyway) and, love her, she's really helpful. She spoke to the surgeon's secretary & got a copy of his report faxed through, so she actually knew what had been decided, which is MUCH more than he told me, and then she told me that info.
Mr Orthopod has referred Squeaky to Llandough Hospital, to a Paediatric Orthopaedic specialist for a second opinion, because when he manipulated her hips they felt OK, but the ultrasound showed an anomaly, so he wants the Paediatric guy to do whatever they do. There's a real chance they won't feel the need to do anything except monitor it, which is a big relief.
I'm also strangely excited about it being Llandough. It was a 50/50 in my mind whether it would be the Paediatric unit at University Hospital, in the centre of Cardiff, which would be a) dull, and b) an utter PITA and involve me dealing with horrible junctions on horrible busy bits of road. But instead I get to go to a beautiful old hospital out in the back end of nowhere, with loads of parking, and to get there I have to drive directly past (and take a diversion via, obviously) lots of exciting places like Hobbycraft, and Mamas & Papas. I'm allowed to go to nice places when I've had to do something scary, it's my reward. Llandough has a really new specialist Orthopaedic unit, which is clearly why we've been sent there. It's a lovely old place, just a long way from anywhere.
My doc's back in the office today, and she said she's going to chase up the new Orthopod's secretary to try and speed up the appointment for us, especially after the delays that were at least in part down to her. So hopefully there will be another update here soon.
*nervous*
Monday, 2 August 2010
Crying. Or DDH diagnosis.
Me crying, not Squeaky, though she'll join in from time to time.
I'm just SO frustrated. At Squeaky's 8 week check (which was more like 10 weeks, because the practice nurse was away so clinic was cancelled), the doctor said her hip was a bit clicky. So she referred her to the hospital for a scan. Which in itself took 4 or 5 weeks to happen. Then they wanted a follow up scan,which the radiographer said should be 4 weeks later, but was 6. At that scan, the radiographer said that he'd write the report and we should have an appointment very soon, and if I hadn't heard from orthopaedics within a fortnight, to chase it up. The fortnight comes, and goes. I phone up, they have no details, in orthopaedics, or paediatrics. So I get an appointment with my GP, now 4 weeks after the second scan, and ask her what's going on. She finds that the hospital didn't do a referral to orthopaedics, & she needs to. 2 weeks later I get an acknowledgement letter, a week later an appointment letter, and now today, 10 weeks after the second scan, we finally get seen by the orthopaedic surgeon.
For about 2 minutes. He does the manipulation again, says "Double nappies & I'll refer you to the paediatric orthopaedic unit in Cardiff." That's it. Oh, there were a few coos over Her Squeakyness, but that's all.
No-one has bothered to give me any information, to give me a clear idea of what we're really dealing with, what to expect, what to do, or to avoid. And that means I look on the internet, and the most comprehensive information I can find all suggests that because of all the stupid delays in getting to this point, treatment is more invasive, more complicated & less effective.
Here is a really useful website giving lots of information about DDH. In my rational mind, I know we were a much increased risk. Squeaky was breach until about 3 weeks before she was born, my mum had severe hip problems in childhood (DDH or not, we don't know, but we're talking about years in a Spica cast), I'm very double jointed, she's a first born girl. So yeah, the risk factor was pretty high.
I just, argh, I don't want to see my beautiful girl in pain - now or later. I don't want her to have to go through what my mum had to go through. And I feel like it's my fault - I made her, and I can't even get that right.
I'm just SO frustrated. At Squeaky's 8 week check (which was more like 10 weeks, because the practice nurse was away so clinic was cancelled), the doctor said her hip was a bit clicky. So she referred her to the hospital for a scan. Which in itself took 4 or 5 weeks to happen. Then they wanted a follow up scan,which the radiographer said should be 4 weeks later, but was 6. At that scan, the radiographer said that he'd write the report and we should have an appointment very soon, and if I hadn't heard from orthopaedics within a fortnight, to chase it up. The fortnight comes, and goes. I phone up, they have no details, in orthopaedics, or paediatrics. So I get an appointment with my GP, now 4 weeks after the second scan, and ask her what's going on. She finds that the hospital didn't do a referral to orthopaedics, & she needs to. 2 weeks later I get an acknowledgement letter, a week later an appointment letter, and now today, 10 weeks after the second scan, we finally get seen by the orthopaedic surgeon.
For about 2 minutes. He does the manipulation again, says "Double nappies & I'll refer you to the paediatric orthopaedic unit in Cardiff." That's it. Oh, there were a few coos over Her Squeakyness, but that's all.
No-one has bothered to give me any information, to give me a clear idea of what we're really dealing with, what to expect, what to do, or to avoid. And that means I look on the internet, and the most comprehensive information I can find all suggests that because of all the stupid delays in getting to this point, treatment is more invasive, more complicated & less effective.
Here is a really useful website giving lots of information about DDH. In my rational mind, I know we were a much increased risk. Squeaky was breach until about 3 weeks before she was born, my mum had severe hip problems in childhood (DDH or not, we don't know, but we're talking about years in a Spica cast), I'm very double jointed, she's a first born girl. So yeah, the risk factor was pretty high.
I just, argh, I don't want to see my beautiful girl in pain - now or later. I don't want her to have to go through what my mum had to go through. And I feel like it's my fault - I made her, and I can't even get that right.
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