Hi, my name is Cheryl and I have an addiction. You see? I’m terribly addicted to using Dr. Google. I often like to joke that I’m not a doctor, but I like to play one on the internet. Now if only I could figure out how to get a doctors salary out of it!
We finally had our appointment with the orthopedic surgeon on Thursday. We got referred to the clinic in JUNE of last year. As much as I love our health care benefits, sometimes the non-emergent wait times kill me! Early in Jillian’s diagnosis, I was opening google pretty much everyday, reading about Jillian’s Cerebral palsy, trying to figure ways to fight “against” it. It wasn’t uncommon for me to walk into Jillian’s pediatrician’s office and say “So… I was googling” Often, he would listen and offer his medical advice. One conversation we had was about Botox. At the time of our conversation (Jillian was probably 13 months old) he said that we weren’t at the point that we need botox yet. Now, Jillian is 28 months old and we’re at the point that we need to look into some antispasticity options.
Botulinum toxin type A, or botox, is a therapeutic muscle-relaxing agent that reduces the rigidity of muscles or unwanted spasms in a specific muscle. Botox is produced from the bacteria that causes food poisoning and provides relief for muscle stiffness at the site of injection. Though high doses of botox can be deadly, the very small doses used in cerebral palsy cases. Over the past ten years, the use of botox has shifted from wrinkle reduction to successfully treating muscle spasticity in children with cerebral palsy, making botox and cerebral palsy a hugely successful match.
We have tried other holistic approaches to maintain flexibility, but as Jillian grows, her muscles become tighter. Which brings me to the question of the week (Have you noticed I ask you questions at the end?!) what type of treatment have YOU tried for your child with special needs? And if your child has cerebral palsy have you tried botox? How was the end result? (Whoops. That was 3 questions!)