Tortle Winner!

Congratulations Doris Thompson! you are the winner of our Tortle Giveaway (please contact us speakeatplay@gmail.com by 7/15/13 at 10:00pm eastern time or we will select a new winner). Thanks to everyone else for entering and for your great feedback, please continue to read our posts for future giveaways. Thank you www.Tortle.com for the great donation.

Tortle Giveaway! (positional plagiocephaly)

FREE GIVEAWAY!!!! (***update...this giveaway has ended, but you can still purhcase a tortle, HERE. Be sure to follow us by email so you can get updates on future giveaways)

Thanks to Tortle for providing us with a Tortle for one of our lucky readers!!! Read below for a chance to win.



picture source: http://www.tortle.com/

Positional plagiocephaly (flat head) and torticollis has become a big worry for parents lately especially due to the back to sleep campaign, to learn more about it read our post, HERE. All babies are at risk especially those that are premature or from multiple births. Studies show that plagiocephaly and torticollis have an increase in developmental delays.  There are different lifestyle changes that you can make to prevent a flat head and torticollis. The best way to prevent plagiocephaly is to be very consistent with repositioning your child, and lots and lots of tummy time! Remember you can start tummy time right after birth to strengthen baby’s muscles! As an occupational therapist, we always recommend limiting the amount of time that your baby is in a stroller, car seat or bouncy seat. But, with our busy lives it is often inevitable that your baby will need to be in one of these resting positions for long periods of time.

Dr. Jane Scott is a Pediatrician, mother of 4 has created the Tortle. The Tortle is a beanie that helps with preventing flat head and torticollis when your baby is in resting positions. Thank you to Hilary Abbott Company, Inc for providing us with our very own Tortle to giveaway to a lucky reader! Keep reading for entry details.

For more information and to purchase a Tortle please click, HERE.

What Is Tortle?

Tortle is a simple, comfortable beanie that helps prevent and treat early stages flat head syndrome: plagiocephaly & torticollis. It makes the job of repositioning newborns safe and easy.

It is recommended that all newborns wear a Tortle for the first few months of life to aid in repositioning; which supports healthy development. Tortle works by gently deflecting your baby’s head when she's sitting or lying on the back of her head, to gently move her head from side to side.

The incidence of plagiocephaly and torticollis (or flat head syndrome) has increased by 600% since 1992 due to the amount of time infants spend on their back (the safest place to be). However, if left untreated, treatment is expensive and can be hard on the baby. Moreover, long term developmental delays can occur. But plagiocephaly and torticollis almost 100% preventable with repositioning, which Tortle makes easy.

 

How Do I Use It?

• Put the beanie on your baby when lying awake (such as on the floor or in a bouncer or swing), sleeping with your supervision, or traveling in a car seat or stroller.

• Align the support roll behind one ear, then at feeding time, switch sides so she doesn’t begin to favor a position. Tortle is not intended for overnight use.

• If your baby has developed some flattening or plagiocephaly, use the Tortle to position the head preferentially to the other side. Once the flattening has improved, then return to alternating it side to side.

• The patented support roll aids in repositioning: it’s firm enough so she won’t roll over, and soft enough to encourage natural, comfortable movement. 

I was able to take a look at the Tortle and here are my thoughts:

I often recommend parents to use a blanket to help positions babies in certain positions but this is a lot easier to use correctly. It’s also great for prevention as long as the caregivers are consistent with alternating sides. It is very lightweight and won’t overheat easily it’s perfect for babies that have a preferred side. Also it allows baby to move freely.

Overall, I wish I would have had the Tortle when my daughter was a newborn it would have decreased my anxieties of having her in the car or stroller for long periods of time.

If you suspect your child has positional plagiocephaly or torticollis, talk your doctor as soon as possible and see an occupational therapist, or contact us speakeatplay@gmail.com, for positional changes as well as to determine if there are any developmental delays.

Ice Cube Trays for Meal Time!

By Karina Gonzalez, MS CCC-SLP

I want to share a great motivational feeding tool that only costs a dollar! Ice cube trays! I started using them recently in my feeding sessions and they have been working out great! I use them with both picky eaters and with children that have issues with pacing and overstuff their mouths.

For picky eaters, I find that when you use an ice cube tray instead of a plate, they are more open to trying the new food. The spaces allow you to place the bites individually and to a child with food aversion, it is not as scary as having all the food bunched up on a plate. They also provide the child with a visual of when he is done with the meal. You can fill all the spaces or just a few, and your child will know that once he finishes all the pieces, he is done! This usually gets them more motivated to participate. Plus, it’s just more fun than a plate!

Whenever I introduce a new food, I always start small (think crumb size) and I start with only 5 ice cube spaces. At the following meal, I will increase it to 6 and so on. I will also increase the size of the crumb to the size of a pea, then dime, etc. If your child is not doing well with the smallest size and quantity then you will need to stay at this level for a few more meals.

On the other hand, if your child overstuffs his mouth, you can use the tray to remind him to take “one bite” at a time. You can cover the holes with your hand or a paper showing him only one at a time. Tell him to chew and swallow before opening the next hole.

If your child needs more motivation, purchase these robot ice cube trays for boys HERE and princess trays for girls HERE.

I hope this simple tool can make meal times more manageable. Please comment below, we love to hear your thoughts.

Have you read my post on making meal time fun, HERE? and Food Play for Picky Eaters, HERE 
Also take a look at these fun face plates,HERE. 

As always, we are here to help you may contact us with any questions or concerns speakeatplay@gmail.com