Really worried about limited arm movement in baby

[concernedmummytoday]

Our ten week old is smiling and cooing, and starting to lift head up when put over shoulder or Boppy pillo (hates just being put straight on tummy on floor)

I’d noticed that while she lifts one arm and waves it around, the other one she moves less. She can lift it up so that it’s sort of flopped back from elbow so her hand is by head when sleeping (maybe you know the position I mean!) and does move it and wave it around. The difference is she never seems to lift it from shoulder, so upper arm doesn’t get higher than it would when she startles.

When she is swaddled in Grosnug she likes to have one arm right up and this other one right down by her side. The more active arm has the hand she sucks although she occasionally sucks other hand.

Has anyone experienced the same? Worried sick about cerebral palsy, stroke in womb, all the worst case scenarios.

IME the NHS is very good when there are concerns about small babies - if the USS is clear I would ask to see a paed physio or OT. My friends baby had a birth injury that meant one shoulder and lung weren’t moving properly due to nerve damage but it totally resolved as they got bigger.

Thank you. GP did mention physio, but not a referral specifically. I will go back after ultrasound. In a way I hope something minor shows up so we know what’s wrong and can help her

I’m scared if it’s neurological it will be much harder

A birth injury would be odd though as she had a straightforward delivery.

Sorry I know this was back in June but I wondered if you had any update?

Just stumbled across this as my 10 week old has the exact same thing, he seems to be able to raise his left arm a lot higher than his right. He also prefers to suck this left hand. But he moves both arms and legs an equal amount. Is there an update, or does anyone have a similar experience?

Just wondering if the OP ever got a diagnosis re this? My 4 month old DD is doing something similar.

Hi, I know this quite old but I was reading your thread and it sounds very similar to what I’m encountering with my son. I have been worrying myself sick, but the GP just asked me to wait and see!!!! Wondering how the ultrasound turn up and if you found any therapy or activities that were helpful on this area?
Thank you!

Returning to this thread from a new account to update for anyone looking for answers and saw that I've had some replies since - how are your babies now?

We found out that our daughter has Sprengel's shoulder deformity which restricts her upper arm movement. She also has congenital scoliosis with hemivertebrae and additional vertebral anomalies. She'll need surgery but she's doing brilliantly - you'd never know it unless you knew what you were looking for and she's very happy and active.

These conditions are very rare, so it's unlikely that your children will be affected. I did have to see several paediatricians privately before we were taken seriously. I'm also glad that I stopped the physio exercises we were told to do that just didn't feel right, as her body can't physically stretch that way.

Other diagnoses that were suggested included torticollis and muscle shortenings as by that time we could tell it wasn't a neurological problem as she was using both hands so well. We knew what it was though from the shape of her shoulder blade and the way her spine looked to us - although I think our paediatrician thought I just had the google fear!

I hope your babies are ok PPs

We had similar issue and it was due to torticollis.

I’m in a similar situation and just wondering if there were any other outcomes @Peach07 @Gil84 @Colinthedog

In our case it turned out to me nothing at all @ELW85 He suddenly started using the other arm, and he’s now 15 months and uses both equally. So it would seem I was worried unnecessarily. But hopefully encouraging to others reading this thread that things can happen that are a bit odd, but it doesn’t always mean there is something to worry about. With my DS he just sometimes masters things with one hand or arm first but then catches up with the other side pretty quickly.

@Colinthedog - thank you so much for your reply.
I’m having a very worrying time with DS and I’m flip flopping between “I’m sure it’s fine” and cerebral palsy on almost an hourly basis.
Basically DS started having these weird shudder attacks. Got reviewed by a neurologist who diagnosed as benign but in watching the videos had said “potential hand preference” for his left side.
I’d noticed he’d always stared at his left hand more but not thought any thing of it.
Since then I’ve been focusing on putting things to his right and he’s been great, staring at his right more, putting his right thumb in his mouth more etc, reaching out for things equally with both hands.
Got reviews by a physio who said no clinical hand preference or wastage/increase in muscle tone etc.
He still throws his left arm above his head more but that’s about it...
Until today when he’s now started reaching for the things I’m putting to his right with both hands and transferring to the left.
I realise it’s only one day but I’m back to being beside myself after thinking it was going to be ok.

@ELW85 I totally emphasise, I sometimes feel like I’ve spent a huge amount of my DCs lives worrying about health conditions. In my case I have health anxiety which I’ve transferred from worrying about myself to worrying about the kids since having them. And in my case there’s never been anything wrong. With DS1 I worried about autism (he doesn’t have it as far as I know and is now 5) and with DS2 I worried about cerebral palsy. He was very stiff as a small baby and arched backwards when I held him or carried him in a sling. So when I saw limited arm movement in one side I panicked. Even getting him checked out by a paediatrician when he was about 2 months old didn’t reassure me. But I’m now watching him running round the living room, grabbing things with both hands, and he displays no signs of any problems at all. He’s actually super active, he crawled at 6 months, pulled up to stand at 7 months and walked at 11 months. But I was so worried about him, I totally understand how you are feeling as I’ve been there so many times. But the fact that he’s been checked over and nothing was found is such a good sign. And my DS definitely goes through periods of favouring one side. When he first started weaning he wouldn’t pick up any food for a month, and when he finally started feeding himself he only used one hand for weeks. But he then started using the other one out of the blue and now uses both. I wonder if lots of babies do it but we only notice because we are hyper aware as we are worried about something. Maybe other parents just don’t notice?

@Colinthedog - that all sounds so familiar! I wouldn’t have given it a second thought but it’s one of those things; now I know about it, I can’t get it out of my head and I’ve just convinced myself that it can’t be anything other than CP,
I feel sick so much of the time and instead of marvelling at the fact he’s just started rolling, I’m like “well you’ve only rolled to your left today but yesterday it was both”
The only thing I’m clinging on to is that he’s doing more in other ways with his right today, like his thumb in his mouth and hand spread open. I keep thinking if it was neurological, there would be a blanket lack of use and skill on that side?
Or maybe I’m wrong. I’m just scared for him.

@ELW85 I don’t know if this will help you as everyone is different, but it definitely helped me. When I found I was constantly worrying about CP, to the point that it was impacting my time with DS ( I felt sick a lot of the time too), I started to accept that my fear might be true and try to think of it more positively (even though it wasn’t true in my case, and doesn’t sound like it is in your case either). But realising that a lot of CP cases are actually quite mild, and that many, many people with CP lead happy, fulfilled lives really helped me when I was at my lowest. So even if it is CP (which i can’t stress enough, based on what you are saying and the medical assessment you’ve had sounds unlikely), maybe it wouldn’t be as bad as you think? I hope I’m not minimising your fears, but it’s just a way of thinking that helped me, trying not to think the absolute worst case scenario all the time.

@Colinthedog - I’ve tried thinking of it like that but I keep thinking to help make it as mild as possible, early interventions are really necessary and I feel like the paeds aren’t taking it seriously.
On a good note, he’s just been very active with his right before bed and transferring his teething ring from his left to his right with his arms pretty straight!

Hi ELW, you’ve described how I’m feeling exactly with the CP concern and situation with your baby. Has any of this improved? My 7.5 month old is very similar and I’ve been a wreck for months.

@ELW85, sorry, realized I didn't tag you quite right. Do you happen to have an update on this? Very worried with similar concerns and hoping it all worked out.

@Newmom202122 - hi sorry for the late reply, but Eve had DS checked by 2 independent physios and a neurologist who isn’t concerned in the slightest.
He evened out pretty well and he actually got his pincer grip nailed on his ‘weaker’ hand first.
He’s 13 months now and still doesn’t love his gross motor stuff but 12 month HV review had no concerns.
He’s happy, pointing, waving, chatting away, feeding himself and just generally a wonderful boy.

What are your concerns and have you spoken to a doctor so far?

@ELW85 Sorry for jumping on an old post here, but rhe way you described how you're feeling is exactly where I am right now. I don't really have a question, but just felt the need to reach out to someone. My little boy will be 8 months next week (born at 35+5) but 7 months corrected. He moves both arms around, particularly to his mouth or rubbing his eyes, but doesn't reach for objects nor push up on his arms. I'm worried sick, and the wait for a referral is driving me insane. I keep getting annoyed at myself that worrying about CP is stealing this precious time wirh my baby, but I have this constant sinking feeling in the pit of my tummy. He seems happy, but his core is definitely weak and he's only managed to roll from his stomach to back a couple of times in the last week or so, so isn't really ticking off all the developmental milestones. He has been referred to a paediatrician, physio and OT but the waiting is killing me 🙄

@Newmom202122 Hi, jumping on your post here. Did your situation get resolved? My baby is nearly 8 months, (7 months corrected due to bring prem) and I'm constantly scouring for a positive outcome to stop my anxiety 😒

@Gingerninjas9 - I’m so sorry you’re going through that, he sounds really similar to my little boy who didn’t push up until 8 months, crawl until 14 months or walk until the end of 18 months.
As I suspected, there was something underlying as he’s hyper mobile, but it’s benign hyper mobility so no underlying conditions and nothing to treat other than buying him sturdy shoes.
I know how isolating it can feel but I promise you you’re not alone.
If you do have any questions, feel free to PM me!

@ELW85 Thank you so much for replying. I'm hoping we'll get an appointment through this week for his physio referral, as the more I watch him, I think it's all coming from his shoulders. I hope you're wee one is doing well now and you've managed to stop worrying (as much as we ever can as mums!) X

@Gingerninjas9 - I hope you get an appointment really quickly too, for peace of mind.
What makes you think shoulders, if you don’t mind me asking?
I will say that the older he’s gotten, the less I’ve worried but equally you will always find something to worry about! It’s what parenting is, I think! X

@ELW85 Just by observing his movements. I feel he moves his arms but mainly from the elbow. He doesn't reach out for things in front of him or above him but will pick up objects from the floor next to him when lying on his back. I'm no exoert, but I've spent so long analysing his every move, I'm going demented! I saw the consultant audiologist today (he has a slight hearing impairment) who said that his MRI didn't suggest any developmental delay, although he did declare it is not his area of expertise. It has given me a little reassurance for now though. I swear I've aged 30 years since having my little boy 😒