This last week, we got ankle braces for Nadia. She'll be turning 2 soon and isn't walking independently yet. She has come a long way from where she was though!
Delayed development isn't new territory for me. Julia didn't walk until she was 21 months old. Some of you may remember her walking on her knees for awhile. One time, when Julia was wearing a dress that skimmed the floor while on her knees, I overheard some women talking about her being a midget! That was funny to hear!
For some reason, I handled Julia's delayed development better than Nadia's. I've often wondered, how come? Is it because I knew in my heart that Julia was capable, but was being stubborn? Is it because she never required physical therapy? Is it because Julia was a happy kid? I've determined that Julia dealt with having low muscle tone too. Julia isn't double-jointed in her legs like Nadia, but she is in her fingers. We've since learned that both Michael and I are double-jointed and have passed it down in different ways to our daughters.
Nadia has to work harder because of the low muscle tone in combination with her knees being double-jointed. I've read that she has to be twice as strong as your typical kid before she can manage her knees. So why has her development bothered me? I believe it is because we live in a new place. We are still meeting new people all of the time. We made a change in church recently and are meeting even more new people. With Julia, everyone knew her and us from the beginning and the delays just became known. With Nadia, I have to introduce her delays to people over and over again. I believe that having to explain your child to someone is what wears on a parent. I don't mind questions or curiosity, I just don't like having to EXPLAIN to someone I may never see again.
This idea has been such a lightbulb moment for me. I have friends and family that probably have to "explain" their child every day and it is a more serious explanation. Nadia will walk one day and we will quickly forget these days. For others, this will be a life-long ordeal that require much more than therapy every now and then and a pair of braces. The invisible differences can be just as hard as the visible differences. If you know someone that deals with this, say a pray for them. Parenting is hard, y'all!
Let me show you Nadia's ankle braces. Why the ankles? She rolls her ankles some and braces will fix that. The braces will align everything from ankles to knees to hips. Once she is able to focus on only what her knees are doing, walking should come quickly. We'll have to wean her off of the braces, but I don't anticipate that being too difficult. So there you have it!
Aren't they cute?
2 comments:
Super-cute ankle braces! You're doing a GREAT job!!
Sweet girl! Parenting aint no cake walk. Thats why i always tell me people the desire to be a mother is the most selfless want God could put in you. If its there, he intends to give it to you.
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