Natural Birth and Baby Care.com

Lumpy Baby Head

by Shawna Hanan
(Ashland OR. USA)

My beautiful 5 week old has big ridges along the back of the head and a little in the front too, (by her temples) She has a lot of hair so it does not look that funny, but I can really feel them.

I did some searching on the internet and got really freaked out. Her naturopathic doctor says they are probably fine. It seems to me like the plates are overlapping, is that normal to still have at 5 weeks?

Answer:

Hi Shawna,

As you've no doubt found through your research, overlapping is pretty normal for a baby during birth. It can take days or even weeks for the plates to slide back into their normal place.

Chances are that your little one's plates are just taking longer to move back into place than other babies' do. This can be the case if she had a lot of molding during delivery.

Usually molding is not so much of a worry as having the fontanelles (soft spots) close too early, which is a big complication for babies.

Having said that, however, if you're concerned I would talk to your naturopath again and even ask for a referral to have it checked out by a specialist. That can often ease your mind about things, or give you more options to consider.