dumb baby question

Victoria808

This is probably so stupid that I'm embarassed to ask on 0-6... When you hear about babies having flat spots on their heads, what part of their heads are they talking about?  I thought it would be the back of their head from putting them on their backs and leaving their head looking up.  But then I read someone saying the left side is flat... so is it making sure that you turn their heads to look to different sides when they're laying on their back?  And if it's the turning, why has the rate of flat spots increased if you would be putting their heads in a similar position if they slept on their stomachs?   The things you think of at 4 am   Thanks for any insight!

MrsKimberlyD

the flat spot is usually from laying too much on one side.  tony had a slight one.  he was such a good sleeper and i let him sleep, but that gave him a slight flat spot....  so we did waaaaayyyy more tummy time and it fixed itself.

mrs.magoo

There is no such thing as a dumb question! (especially when it comes to your baby) Yeah, I've heard that babies tend to favor turning their head one way while sleeping/laying down and that part of their head can get flat....I've noticed that Austin favors one side, but I try not to worry about it, they grow so much and the plates shift in their heads so much that it will probably correct itself eventually, with most babies (not all)...but like Kim said, you could probably do more tummy time if you are worried or notice it...

JustCallMeMrs.P

Not a dumb question! This is EXCELLENT to know!

Mindy-lou

It isn't a dumb question at all!  It could be the back or the side that is flat.  If you think about it, if you are laying on your back , you probably turn your head to one side to get more comfortable.  A lot of babies do that too.  The back of the head might be flat b/c even if they turn their head while sleeping, it is against a carseat, bouncy seat, swing etc a lot too. 

Owen favored his left side a lot when he was a newborn.  Although that side wasn't flat, the Dr wanted us to encourage him to look to the right.  So, when he was playing we would prop him up on the right side, he usually didn't stay that way though.  Also, if it is one side of the head you can try putting them in the opposite end of the crib & that might cause them to turn the other way.

Shann50952

No question is a dumb one   One thing I read to do is to vary which way you lay them down onto the changing table each time that way they have to turn their head a different way to see you each time.

aparadis1013

Not a dumb question at all! I was wondering the same thing this morning cause Tyler always lays with his head turned to the right

Victoria808

Thanks girls   All great advice on how to get her to turn her head both ways!   I guess I thought it was a dumb question because don't you do the same thing if you're lying on your stomach??? It just didn't make sense to me that babies today would have more flat spots than we did when we were put on our stomachs. 

WideSmileMama

I have read research that suggests that plagiocphally can initially be caused by a baby's position in utero, and may not actually have as much to do with how a mom positions the baby while sleeping as previously thought.

Just my little contibution

MyNameHere

I am an expert on this topic as my DD wears a helmet to correct her head shape.

There are 2 main types of "flat head." One is Brachycephaly where the entire back of the head is flat. Way more common is Plagiocephlay where only one side of the head is "flat" but also causes asymmetry to the whole head and face (forehead, ears and eyes misaligned, etc).

I used to wonder why some babies got this and others did not as they all sleep on their backs now. What most often causes Plagio (I read 85% of the time) is a condition called Torticollis - a neck muscle problem that causes limited neck mobility (not being able to turn in one direction and a tilted head/chin). Torticollis can be mild (favoring one side more often) or severe (a complete lack of being able to turn the head in one direction). Torticollis is mostly caused by poor position of the baby in the womb (breech babies, large size, multiples) or birth trauma causing damage to the neck muscle. Anyone with any of those conditions should more closely monitor their babies' necks / head postions as early intervention with physical therapy / repositioning can help a lot (esp. in mild/moderate cases).

My DD was large, breech and had a traumatic birth and ended up with severe torticollis - she could not even turn her head in one direction at all and had a major head tilt. She has been seeing a PT once a week since 2 months old to help correct it. We also kept her off her back/head as much as humanly possible and she still developed moderate plagio:( I hate when people assume babies get flat heads because their parents didn't do enough tummy time.

Sorry this is so long but there is a lot of misinformation out there about this.

Victoria808

THANK YOU!!! You are definitely the expert! Good job Mommy!   Thanks for sharing all of that information.  Side note- your daughter's eyes are gorgeous in your siggy pic!