Maria had her first visit with the orthopedic doctor here in Phoenix. Up until now we’ve had to use Shriner’s because PCH had no orthopedics or something like that. Anyhow, it will be nice to have a doctor locally rather than flying to Salt Lake.
They did x-rays, although their machine was on the fritz. They’ve apparently grown a lot in the last year and are still using the one x-ray machine so it keeps breaking down. They did films of her hips and back and he says they look better. Her hip displasia is improving, which he said is very rare, and her scoliosis is very minor. He said we don’t need to get a back brace for her (yay) and we would be better just focusing on standing, walking, etc.
Maria is starting to show interest in walking and standing again. She likes to use those pullup bars Manolis put in, though she needs a little help with balance. The PT wants her to walk without her AFOs so she can get the tactile input from the floor to help her orient herself. She will be getting two PT appointments a week over the summer, and she improved the last time she got extra therapy.
She’s been having terrible allergies. We give her Claritin which seems to help but she’s definitely not happy when her nose is itchy. She understands that rubbing her nose makes it feel better and that’s exciting from a cognitive point of view. Unfortunately she doesn’t know when to stop rubbing and her nose can get very red and irritated.
Manolis has gotten settled in back in Greece. He’s staying in a nicer place than he usually does, but of course he misses Maria and is counting the days until he comes back.