Question about neck stretching exercises for infant torticollis?

Question

I have to do exercises with my 2 month old three times a day to stretch her neck muscles due to her having torticollis. She tenses up and cries during the exercises though. I'm afraid they won't help her neck if she ends up straining it when I'm doing the exercises. How can I get her not to tense up and to be ok with the exercises?

For those of you who don't know what torticollis is....

http://www.torticolliskids.org/

My daughter's torticollis is very mild and not bad at all. But it can get worse if we don't correct it or keep up with the exercises.

Answer 1

I am so sorry that you have to go through that and try to find a way to make it work.  Maybe you can try making a game out of it and sing silly songs while you're doing it.  If she's interested in toys at all yet you could try letting her be distracted by some cool new toy.  You could also try doing them during times of the day that she is most relaxed like right before or after a nap time.  Think about what normally relaxes her and see if you can incorporate the two together.  Where's she's so young laying her on a soft fuzzy blanket on your bed may be enough to keep her relaxed for a bit.  

Stay relaxed yourself and be confident in what you're doing.  It's obnoxious, but babies seem to know when Mom isn't sure of something and react to that.  Even if you're frustrated out of your mind try to act secure and relaxed and see if that helps.  If she starts to tense up I imagine that there isn't much wrong with stopping for a minute, letting her calm down, and going at it again.   Combining that with lots of tummy time should help, yes?

I'm sorry I don't have any really  useful information for you, but you're going to do great.  You're passionate about what you believe in, which means you'll find a way to make this work for both of you.