I knew all along that I would eventually want to blog about all the changes occurring in my life, I just didn't know when to start, or how to start, or what to include....so I guess I'm just going to put it all out there! The primary focus of this blog will be to talk about what we went through having our son, Keaton.
Keaton was born on February 29th, 2012 and it was a fairly routine delivery. Prior to his arrival we were informed in our 12th week of pregnancy that Keaton would be born with what is called bilateral clubfeet. Hearing that news so early on we were both taken aback and did not know what to expect...I had never heard of clubfeet in my life and it sounded so scary. I cried my eyes out in that doctors office. I immediately envisioned my baby being deformed and in pain.We were reassured by our obgyn that it was actually a very common birth defect and that it was also very treatable. There were no clues as to what causes it and there was nothing we could do until he was born.
And so we waited...we did all the research we could to prepare for his arrival. We had a multitude of sonograms verifying his disorder, we prayed that it was a misdiagnosis, and we interviewed (interrogated) a number of doctors and orthopedics to be prepared for his treatment once he arrived.
What we found out about clubfeet was all very elusive...its an anomoly, there is no rhyme or reason to which baby gets it and which ones don't. It may be partially genetic. Your chances of having a second baby with clubfeet is higher if your first have it. Boys are born with it much more often than girls. I wanted to talk to other parents who have gone through this, but it was so hard to find any. This is why I am starting this blog....I know it will lead into other topics, but hopefully if a parent is searching for some guidance first hand from another mom they will come across this blog.
We decided collectively not to focus primarily on the clubfeet that Keaton was to be born with. We felt that sharing the news of the clubfeet made it more real, and that it would be focused upon more so than the excitement we wanted to feel about our baby coming. It was something that we kept to ourselves mainly, and quietly prepared for. I am so glad that we chose to do this. Your pregnancy needs to be a time of happiness and excitement, especially towards the end when you are feeling huge and anxious!
In the following posts, I will discuss Keaton's life with clubfeet and the decisions we made along the way for his treatment. I will also share pictures of his development and how we dealt with it all.
