Pediatrician Update
Sloane went to see Dr. Coy today for her four month shots (even though she's five and half months).
Part of the delay was that I had some difficulty scheduling (my work schedule and Dr. Coy's availability never seemed to coincide) and part was that I wanted to wait a bit to let her immune system develop. These will be her last vaccinations until the dreaded MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) at about 12 months.
I've been doing a lot of research on the link (or lack of link with causality) between MMR and autism, and we've decided that the research is inconclusive and the link is circumstantial, so we are going ahead with the MMR. I did ask Dr. Coy to do each one separately and to use preservative-free vaccinations. She was on board with that. We will do each shot a month apart to allow Sloane's immune system to "catch up" between. I was pleasantly surprised at Dr. Coy's responsiveness to my concerns -- I guess it just reinforced that we made the right decision in choosing a pediatrician. I know a lot of people think I'm nuts that I not only solicited recommendations, but also phone interviewed three pediatricians when I was pregnant, but I think it's important to have a doctor who listens to you and is willing to accommodate your choices about your child's healthcare.
So, back to today's appointment... Sloane is, as expected, a giant --- 16 pounds, 2 ounces (76th percentile); 27.5 inches (91st percentile) and 17.5 inch head circumference (also 91st percentile). She is developmentally on target or ahead in all categories. Her eyesight and hearing are good. The flat head on one side has gone away (yay - we worked so hard for the last three months on getting her to stop favoring one side). Dr. Coy also thinks that her eyes are going to stay blue, which is fantastic because they are so pretty!
She handled her three shots with grace - barely crying -- I think I was in worse shape than she was! She let out a quick howl, looked at me with big, teary eyes ("mommy, why are you letting this mean nurse poke me?") and promptly fell asleep in my arms. When we got home, she played quietly for about an hour and now, she's been asleep for nearly two hours. Poor little girl.
Dr. Coy suggested that we can start solids whenever we feel she is ready (the benchmark is doubling the birthweight, sitting up with assistance and good head control -- Sloane is close to tripling her birthweight and meets all the other criteria). We plan to start in about two weeks (close to her half birthday). She can go straight to stage 2 foods (multiple ingredients). The plan is twice a day (breakfast and dinner, after her normal bottle), she will get three tablespoons of cereal (rice or oatmeal or barley) mixed with either a fruit or a veggie. Veggies she suggested that are good to start with are carrots, sweet potatoes and peas. Fruits she suggested are apples, pears, bananas. She can also go for more exotic items such as apricots and plums. At 7 months, we can start her on baby yogurt such as Yobaby. At 9 months, we can introduce meats and non-shellfish seafood (such as tilapia). At 12 months, we can drop the expensive formula and move on to whole milk.
Can you tell that I'm excited???
All in all, a very productive and good doctor's visit.
Part of the delay was that I had some difficulty scheduling (my work schedule and Dr. Coy's availability never seemed to coincide) and part was that I wanted to wait a bit to let her immune system develop. These will be her last vaccinations until the dreaded MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) at about 12 months.
I've been doing a lot of research on the link (or lack of link with causality) between MMR and autism, and we've decided that the research is inconclusive and the link is circumstantial, so we are going ahead with the MMR. I did ask Dr. Coy to do each one separately and to use preservative-free vaccinations. She was on board with that. We will do each shot a month apart to allow Sloane's immune system to "catch up" between. I was pleasantly surprised at Dr. Coy's responsiveness to my concerns -- I guess it just reinforced that we made the right decision in choosing a pediatrician. I know a lot of people think I'm nuts that I not only solicited recommendations, but also phone interviewed three pediatricians when I was pregnant, but I think it's important to have a doctor who listens to you and is willing to accommodate your choices about your child's healthcare.
So, back to today's appointment... Sloane is, as expected, a giant --- 16 pounds, 2 ounces (76th percentile); 27.5 inches (91st percentile) and 17.5 inch head circumference (also 91st percentile). She is developmentally on target or ahead in all categories. Her eyesight and hearing are good. The flat head on one side has gone away (yay - we worked so hard for the last three months on getting her to stop favoring one side). Dr. Coy also thinks that her eyes are going to stay blue, which is fantastic because they are so pretty!
She handled her three shots with grace - barely crying -- I think I was in worse shape than she was! She let out a quick howl, looked at me with big, teary eyes ("mommy, why are you letting this mean nurse poke me?") and promptly fell asleep in my arms. When we got home, she played quietly for about an hour and now, she's been asleep for nearly two hours. Poor little girl.
Dr. Coy suggested that we can start solids whenever we feel she is ready (the benchmark is doubling the birthweight, sitting up with assistance and good head control -- Sloane is close to tripling her birthweight and meets all the other criteria). We plan to start in about two weeks (close to her half birthday). She can go straight to stage 2 foods (multiple ingredients). The plan is twice a day (breakfast and dinner, after her normal bottle), she will get three tablespoons of cereal (rice or oatmeal or barley) mixed with either a fruit or a veggie. Veggies she suggested that are good to start with are carrots, sweet potatoes and peas. Fruits she suggested are apples, pears, bananas. She can also go for more exotic items such as apricots and plums. At 7 months, we can start her on baby yogurt such as Yobaby. At 9 months, we can introduce meats and non-shellfish seafood (such as tilapia). At 12 months, we can drop the expensive formula and move on to whole milk.
Can you tell that I'm excited???
All in all, a very productive and good doctor's visit.
posted by Daniella at
3:51 PM
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