Emilia - 18 month follow up clinic

I don't know why updating this blog has become such a difficult thing. One of the reasons probably is that I am just too darn tired after getting home from work and putting Emilia to bed.

First of all, she has adjusted to the Toddler Room really well. No more crying and clinging during the morning drop-off! In fact I went to my very first Parent-Teacher interview (I didn't know I would go to one this soon) few weeks ago and the teacher reassured me that she was doing well.

We had a visit with the neonatal follow up clinic in early March. It was for her 18 month check up. Growth-wise, no concerns at all. She was trending the way she always was (somewhere in the 80th-95th for weight and head circumference and just above average for height). For developmental test, they used the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. It was basically a series of game-like tests where Emilia had to sit at a table and play with toys and solve puzzles. Some games were timed too. She was amazingly engaged, as the speech pathologist who was conducting the test said. I had not known Emilia could be so concentrated and focused for a long time. She had to take a few breaks during the test but she was very co-operative.

At the end of the follow-up appointment, they told us that she had no issues with cognitive skills and her speech was OK. But they mentioned again about her left side (high tone muscles), which I expected. Since the very early days of her life, I have been aware of the issue, though I have to admit I have been in denial. During the NICU days, her brain ultrasound scans suggested periventricular leukomalacia (PVL for short). The prognosis at the time was basically cerebral palsy but the doctors just could not know to what degree she would be affected. The follow-up clinic told me it was very very mild CP ("at the end of the mild spectrum") but they still recommended physiotherapy. As Emilia grows up, there is going to be a higher demand on her body for physcial activities (playing soccer, running, etc) and the mild symptom now could later be more noticeable and hinder her from taking part in the normal activities other kids do. So, we got referral and are back on physiotherapy. The first session is this coming Wednesday. I am so anxious to hear what the PT is going say about her.