When I found out my son needed a helmet for his flat head I was devastated. Sounds silly but I was. Wait, what? Yeah ok I see it, but doesn’t that usually correct itself? I guess in some cases they do, but not my son’s. I developed a lot of mom guilt. What if I held him more? What if I never used the rock n’ sleep (information has now come out that this particular product is not good for children to sleep in)? What if, what if, what if?! The questions swirled my mind as I would cry and blame myself for the inevitable: a helmet. 

But it’s just a helmet right? It’s just temporary? Yes and yes. However, no one prepares you for it being more than just that. No one tells you how miserable your child will be in the beginning, how his or her demeanor will change and the adjustment period (which we are still in). No one can explain to you the sadness you feel seeing your child wearing it and knowing they are uncomfortable. No one mentions naps and nighttime sleep with be completely affected.  No one tells you that people will stare. They will look with curiosity or judgement or ‘I feel sorry for you’. No one tells you for a while cuddles will be different, kisses on the head will be extremely limited and your adjustment to it more than your child’s will be challenging and even emotional. No one, unless they have gone through this, can share it and there isn’t much information or research that really provides you with any comfort. 

Yes, it could be so much worse, I understand that. I am thankful this is something that can and will be fixed. But it doesn’t mean that I can’t be hurting. It doesn’t mean that it’s easy. And it definitely doesn’t mean it’s ‘just a helmet’. 

I am thankful we are able to correct this problem now. I am thankful there is something to correct this type of thing. But I also can’t wait for it to be over! If you’ve been here, I’d love to hear your story and ask you some questions 🙂 Thank you (and hugs!) to the few people who have shared their story with me and helped make this transition a little easier for me!