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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

Flat head

12 replies

AlphaAndEcho · 13/02/2013 15:51

14wkold ds who really doesn't like lying on his tummy has started to get a flat head .

I don't know how to get him to lie on his tummy more I'm worried he is on his back to much . And I dont see any other way to prevent a flat head .

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Shelleylouise · 13/02/2013 16:46

Hi, I think that when they start to sit up their heads return to normal shape. You could speak to your health visitor.

Beamae · 13/02/2013 16:49

Lilla Kuddis pillows are good. We never did tummy time because of reflux and started using the pillows to correct a flat spot behind my daughter's ear. Her ears were in different positions too but it's all fine now. When she fell asleep on the pillow we repositioned her head to not be on the flat spot.

scarlettsmummy2 · 13/02/2013 16:54

I didn't really lie my daughters down at all unless sleeping- if awake I kept them in a bouncer. Seemed like less pressure on the back of the head.

staverton · 13/02/2013 16:56

Honestly I wouldn't worry.
My ds had the weirdest shape head as he had a mild tortocollis meaning he always slept with his head on the same side.
His head was basically a parallelogram, very obvious, lots of comments.
At 5 now it's back to normal.
There is a lot of stuff on the internet about helmets- totally unnecessary. There is no evidence that the end result is different. They possibly might speed up how quickly your child's head shape returns to normal but in the meantime they have to wear this dreadful thing, get itchy and hot (probably increasing cot death risk) and attract more comments than the original problem

Check he's not got a torticollis as there are simple exercises that help. Try and encourage lying on the other side. I wouldn't give a pillow to an under 1

babySophieRose · 13/02/2013 22:10

Put a soft baby pillow under the mattress sheet and try to move the head left-right, depending on where the flat spot is, when asleep. This worked for us.

SuedeEffectPochette · 13/02/2013 23:13

Don't worry but buy one of the Love Nest pillows or similar to make sure it doesn't get any worse.

Here

www.amazon.co.uk/Babymoov-052028-Lovenest-Head-Support/dp/B000CEM6XS

sleepyhead · 13/02/2013 23:17

Would he be happy (and would you be happy) toting him around in a sling or carrier for an hour or so during the day? I don't know how long he'd have to be upright to make much of a difference though.

FWIW my nephew had a really noticeably flat head at that age but he'd grown out of it by the time he was about one.

estya · 15/02/2013 21:05

I don't think you could do enough tummy time to make a difference.
DS has a bit of a flat head, we started to really notice it at about the same age as yours and I was a bit worried and embarrassed about it.
At that age he was in the sling several hours a day so I can't think 10 mins tummy time would make much difference. When i was googling what would help DS I thought this was a bit of a silly suggestion.
We got one of those love nest cushions and try not to leave him lying down for too long. Its getting better.

SmeeHee · 15/02/2013 21:40

I agree with estya that you're unlikely to get your DS to do enough tummy time to make a difference at this stage.

I had the same issue with DS1 - he hated tummy time (probably due to reflux) and had a preference for looking to one side so ended up with a flat spot on one side of his head. I got him a love nest cushion, stopped leaving him to lie on the floor under the baby gym so much (him really loved it!), wasted money buying various things to encourage tummy time (none of which really worked) and tried to keep him upright more (in the sling, sat up in the bouncy chair or Bumbo etc).

I will say that flat spots don't always round out - DS1 at 5.5 still has a slightly "misshaped" head. It's not a big problem and I expect most people don't notice it, however I really wish I'd heard about babies developing flat spots before having him.

BlueMoon74 · 15/02/2013 21:43

oh so pleased you have posted about this. Am worried about my 14week old DD. Her head is also looking somewhat flat! She sleeps on a memory foam wedge due to reflux, which is supposed to prevent it.

What about a bumbo as mentioned above? I'm tempted to get her one. Are they any good?

capecath · 15/02/2013 22:40

Yeah bumbos are good! Also recommend a sling and a doorway bouncer (when a little older). DS2 had bit of a flat head on one side for some reason, also a cephalohaematoma from birth. Seemed to peak around 3 months after which point it got better and isn't noticeable anymore at 6 months. Not sure if doing those things was what made the difference but did them anyway... And now at this age he spends most of his time on his tummy.

Original poster

AlphaAndEcho · 15/02/2013 23:07

Oh thank you so much for the replies that's really helped . I think I will try one of those pillows . Are they safe to sleep on in the cot overnight ? I'm seeing hv on tuesday anyway so I think I will mention it to her see what she says . Thank you

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