hi, my son is 6 months old and seems to have a problem with bending. he will stand in his walker or excersaucer and will be picked up in the straight position and also lays down in the bath. he will not sit or bend his arms or legs. i have to sit him on my leg and let his legs dangle down the side of my leg, he will rarely let me sit him on my lap bent at the hips. he will balance like that unsupported for about 5 seconds. he will not sit in highchair or bouncy seat either nor in the bath tub. if i try he will forcefully arch way back and scream till he can stand. he also wont let me bend his legs to change his nappy or bend his arms for me to put his car seat harness on. if i forcefully bend him he screams like im breaking his bones. is this normal? will he outgrow this? i am beginning to wonder if his body and head twisting while laying down is normal. he only does that on the change table and in the bath. not so much when he is on the floor or when he sleeps as he is on his tummy when he sleeps. also he always has his toes scrunched up especially when in water. do you think there are any abnormal behaviours there and should i see someone about it? thanks in advance.

Hi Tamika:

If you do not mind me asking, why is your precious baby splinted (right arm)? I assume your son will be having a 6 month check-up with his pediatrician. At that check-up, please bring up your concerns about your son's muscle tone. A child with severe reflux could exhibit the same symptoms your son does simply because of reflux pain and poor gastric emptying in a sitting position when the hips are flexed and there is pressure pushing up on the stomach. For this reason, may infants dislike being burped, being placed in a car seat, or sitting up. If you think about the body mechanics, standing in the exersaucer or walker involves extension of the hips. This position promotes better gastric emptying and decreased pressure on the tummy. In addition, when laying down horizontally as if to have a diaper change, reflux or stomach contents tend to come back up. Our GERDlings typically dislike this activity. Because of where the gastric inlet is anatomically, laying on the back is actually not the best position for gastric emptying. Prone position, or lying on the tummy is the best position for emptying, but goes against the SIDS recommendations. Many of our GERDlings prefer sleeping on the tummy and sleep better. Back is always best unless your physician recommends another position. I close my mouth on this topic...lol!

Try to elevate your son for baths and diaper changes in addition to when he is sleeping. 30-45 degrees is reflux protocol. Have your physician assess his muscle tone at the next visit. He/she will let you know if they are concerned about hypertonicity. I hope this helps :)

Robynne

thank you very much for all the info. that explains alot. his arm had a cannula in for dehydration and for incase he needed emergency surgery. (they thought he was bleeding internally) he wasnt though.