A Hairy Situation

***Instead of including another full list of "Things I Wish I'd Known/Tips for New Moms" for the next stage of infancy, I will periodically post random information, advice, and product recommendations and label them so they all fall under the "Mom Tips" category for easy searching. The following information is definitely something to be aware of when you have a baby.***

In addition to strech marks, a softer belly, and boobs that are a little more National Geographic and a little less Victoria's Secret, hair loss is a lovely postpartum side effect for many women....including yours truly. My hair is currently falling out constantly, and it is EVERYWHERE! It makes me think of the Dashboard Confessional song (minus the infidelity part).

This situation doesn't help the fact that infants develop "hair tourniquets" very easily. Many people have never heard of hair tourniquets (including my Mom), but a friend of Lauren's who is a primary care nurse said that they see babies with them all the time at the hospital. I heard about them a while back, so I knew to be on the lookout on Ava's fingers and toes (baby boys can even develop them on their penis...eeeeek!).

A couple weeks ago, Josh noticed a red line around one of Ava's toes that appeared to be a hair tourniquet. But upon close inspection, we couldn't see a hair. However, I started researching them online later in the day and discovered that sometimes you can't see the hair without a magnifying glass. Josh bought a magnifying glass at CVS, but we still couldn't see anything. I called Lauren, who happened to be with her primary care nurse friend, and they confirmed that the doctors often use special glasses to see the hair.

At that point, I was really worried because it was a Friday night and we couldn't get into the pediatrician until the next morning. The pictures I saw online did not help the situation, especially since they often have to cut the side of the poor baby's toe to remove the hair. However, the end of Ava's toe was not red or purple, so if it was a hair tourniquet, it was not yet cutting off circulation. So, we put her to bed, and I set an alarm to check her toe every couple hours throughout the night. Luckily, it never got any worse.

We took her to the pediatrician the next morning, and the doctor said it was definitely suspicious. But after he inspected her toe very closely with his super-magnifying glasses, he couldn't see a hair. He said that she has deep toe creases, and it was likely just red for the same reason babies' neck creases get red. The doctor also mentioned that if it had been a hair tourniquet, she would have fussed when he handled the toe. Thank goodness!! All that worrying over some chubby toes :).

Below is a picture of Ava's foot that I took that Sunday. The line around her middle toe was not quite as red by then, but you can still see it.