"Eyes"

These past few weeks have been filled with many appointments for Maelee and the upcomming weeks are just as equally busy. This always seems to be the time of year that all the specialists want to see our precious angel!

Last Friday Maelee was seen by a pediatric ophthalmologist who specializes in different disorders of the eyes as well as being highly referred to us for her prematurity and neurological concerns. Her doctor was amazing. She played with Maelee, spent time with her, and even put drops in with not one tear and only smiles.....I was shocked! This was the third eye appointment this year and it was shocking to see someone take the time to spend with Maelee and let her work through eveything she needed to....a 2 year old is no easy task and this doctor knew exactly what to do! :)

Maelee was diagnosed with Accommodative Estropia, which is a type of Strabismus. Maelee has been squinting one eye frequently, you can watch her little eyes turn in on occasion, and for the most part it has really been noticed during fine motor skills......the squinting became the only way Maelee could do certain tasks. 

"Accommodative Estropia is a common form of Estropia (eyes turning inward) that usually occurs in children 2 and older. When the child focuses the eyes to see clearly, the eyes turn inward. The crossing can happen in one eye or both. Glasses reduce the focusing effort and often straighten the eyes, some children may need bifocals or patching therapy as they grow. "

"Strabismus is a visual defect that causes the eyes to go in different directions while focusing. Strabismus is common among children with disorders that affect the brain such as Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Hydrocephalus, Brain Tumors, and Prematurity. It is not something the child outgrows but training the eyes to see correctly and use both eyes to visualize is very important."

Maelee got glasses last Friday and it has been a battle to wear them. She is a very sassy little girl and does things on her own time....so I pray that we keep working with her and she will find that they help her and realize how adorable she looks! 

For her birthday she was given a sweet baby from her Aunt Megan who has glasses....what a great idea!!!!! Maelee calls glasses "eyes" which is so precious! I just wish she would wear her eyes more! Since she got her new baby with glasses and will be getting new AFO braces I went ahead and made little braces for her baby! 

Looking forward to having Maelee see the world without struggle!!!