Spica cast - what to expect: The big day - the cast comes off

Again, I can't thank other parents enough for their wisdom. We were told BEFORE we went to the hospital to give JT some Motrin because it would be very painful when he got his cast off because of the stiffness and soreness. 

We were warned that he wouldn't be able to really move much for a few weeks after the cast came off. We headed to the hospital and took JT to the office via wagon. 

We didn't want to use our stroller because we knew we would want to hold him and he wouldn't be so heavy after the cast came off. The nurse practioner was great at explaining everything. We held JT's arms tightly so he wouldn't fighy the saw and I kept my face right up against his. I am not sure if that was so he wouldn't see the saw or so I didn't have to see the saw. After his cast came off you could tell he was in pain and he didn't try to move his leg at all. He would cry if we touched it. Luckily, we had given him some Tylenol to help with that as well. 

Once we got the all clear, we were able to wash him up and get him dressed with REAL PANTS (not sure who I chose green if all colors!!!)

It was very exciting and the best part was to be able to wrap our arms around him and hold him close. He laid around for several hours in his favorite spot on the air mattress. It wasn't until late that evening that he attempted to crawl. 

We were lucky and within two weeks, he was taking his first steps again. It was as if he had to learn to walk all over again. His siblings would scream and squeal in delight everytime he took a step. I can report that we are 2 months post cast and he is running circles around people. He still has a bit of a "clunky" gait, but overall you would never know he had broken his femur.

Spica cast - What to expect: Scooting

I had read that many kids start moving around, flipping themselves over and scooting around like crazy. It wasn't until the week before JT was scheduled to get his cast off that he even attempted it. He was able to roll over and then began scooting himself backwards as quickly as he could go.

It was a funny, funny thing to watch.

Spica cast care tips: Hair Matting

While having a girl would be nice for the clothing part of the puzzle (it would have been great to put JT in cute dresses), it was definitely nice to have a boy when it came to the hair matting issue. JT had his fine, bright white baby hair still and we quickly found that it matted horribly from him spending so much time on his back. 

We were able to buzz his hair, but before my husband made that choice WHILE I WASN'T HOME... we had figured out we could put some conditioner in it and comb through it during bath time.

Spica cast care and tips - the Must Haves list

We scoured the internet for any help and advice we could get on caring for our toddler in his Spica cast. We found that the best advice came from parents who had been there and knew our concerns, fears, hopes and exhaustion. Here is a list of items that we consider MUST haves when caring for a toddler in a Spica cast (keep in mind we had a stability bar so the bean bag was not much use to us but is highly recommended by most): 

Must haves: 

Air mattress with raised edges 

Memory Foam pillows 

Umbrella stroller 

Poise pads - preferably the Ultra kind because they are longer and can be tucked inside the cast 

Diapers 2 sizes larger than one child was wearing pre-cast 

Large plastic bibs with catcher trays Hippo Snug Seat car seat (most hospitals have them for rent, don't leave without it) Medicine log - keep track of medications Children's or infants motrin/tylenol to rotate 

Patience/love/strong arms 

Nice to haves: 

larger shirts (2 sizes bigger than child was wearing before cast) 

leg warmers 

movies 

small, easy to hold action figures or play figures 

foam balls - JT loved throwing them and we would "fetch" for him, it kept him engaged 

books 

noise makers (as much as you can stand it) 

wagon - if it is nice oustide 

blocks 

TV tray for use as a table when child is in umbrella stroller 

From other parent lists: 

bouncy seat - we couldn't find one that would work with the bar 

Bean bags - again, they didn't quite work with the bar 

I hope this is helpful and perhaps that best help of all was that other families had been through this and survived. It was encouraging to read their stories of how their son/daughter was now walking and happy and healthy. This too shall pass.

Spica cast care tips: the UMBRELLA stroller

We went out and got a $15 umbrella stroller from Walmart. It was perfect. We could put a small pillow behind him and then set the bar on the umbrella stroller. 

He LOVED being pushed around in the stroller. It was as if he was mobile again and could see things and get from place to place. 

The Umbrella stroller also served as a high chair of sorts and gave us more freedom to take him to events and other places without having to carry him around everywhere. The SPICA cast gets heavy quickly! The Umbrella stroller is definitely top on the MUST HAVE list!

Spica cast care tips: Clothing

Obviously, with a large SPICA cast, clothing your child was wearing is no longer an option. We were able to get JT clothing that was 2 sizes larger than what he was wearing. We got large shirts and then used legwarmers or knee socks to cover the open leg. Because we had the stability bar, larger pants were not an option. We were able to find some cute leg warmers and got several as gifts from my sister as well. The larger shirts were nice because we could pull them down over the cast and it helped keep food and other items from falling into his cast. He found ways to shove things inside the cast, but at least the covered area kept crumbs and other small objects from falling into the cast. He seemed to like to not have a sock on the casted foot, but if we were going outside, we would either wrap him in a blanket or put a sock on the open toes. Dresses would have been a great option had he been a girl!

Spica cast care tips: Diaper changes

As I am sure you can imagine, it is difficult to perform diaper changes when the diaper area is a small opening from a cast covering the rest of the lower body. At the hospital, they suggested using a smaller sized diaper and putting it inside the cast and then putting a larger diaper outside the cast. This worked ok, but I had read online about using adult Poise pads. We found that the Poise pad soaked up most of the urine and other waste and we were able to change the outside diaper less often using those. The ultra Poise pad was the perfect size and we could push the top into the cast area and the bottom into the cast area so it was as if the entire opening was closed off with the Poise pad. The outside diaper rarely got wet or dirty. 

So, here is a check list: 

Wipes 

Ointment in case needed for chaffing Ultra Poise pads (they are longer) 

Diapers that are at least 1-2 sizes larger than what your child was wearing before the cast. This will then fit outside the cast area. 

We made sure to lay him flat and have all of the wipes and everything there ready to go before we started the process. We also tried to be sure to take a clean diaper wipe and quickly wipe any of the areas that were near the diaper area, even if they didn't look to be dirty. It helped us keep him cleaner over all.