Answers to a few questions asked....

OK so we got these questions I thought I would answer.

Why is the roof of her mouth so thick and why is so chubby? If she's in therapy shouldn't see be losing weight?
and
Why is her face puffy? Does she have issues with her circulation?

Those kind of go hand in hand so I will answer them together.

Emma's face is chubby and puffy because her muscle tone is not like it should be in her face, her muscles just don't work they are super tight! So it makes her face look fat. As for being Chubby she actually isn't chubby at all except in her face where her muscles do not work. She only weights 30 lbs, which at age 4 puts her in the 10th percentile for weight, meaning out of 100 kids her exact age 90 weight more than her. Her twin sister has a good 7 lbs on her but somehow still looks like the "little twin. See the pics of Emma's little legs after her casts are off? They are nothing but skin and bones. She is on a limited diet through her mickey button of only 720 calories a day which is very low compared to the other kids her age, they do that because when she was younger she put on a bunch of weight all at once, and now they want to regulate how much she puts on so it doesn't effect her breathing, its not her total weight that is an issue, but how fast she puts it on.

The roof of her mouth being thick is very common with cerebral palsy patients. While I have noticed it being like that, I have never asked why, mainly because all my friends with CP kids all have the same thing, and I figured if it was a problem a doctor would have mentioned it. I looked it up online and all I can find is that the soft palate can be effected by the issues she is having with the muscles in her face being so tight. I also know that one of the medications she is on (phenobarbital) makes her gums swell, so that just adds to it.

Great questions so far! We love questions, so make sure you keep asking them, I will be glad to address them. Happy Monday everyone