Melvin was born on November 6th, 2013. Although slightly premature, he was healthy, a good weight and had the most beautiful little face I’d ever seen, I was in love!

When Melvin was about 8 weeks old I noticed his head had suddenly began  to look flat on his right side. I showed his GP who dismissed it and said there was no treatment for this condition available under the NHS due to it being purely cosmetic, although she said Melvin might benefit from me repositioning his head, which I did religiously to no avail. I even tried using a Sleepcurve mattress designed to prevent and reduce plagiocephaly, however the damage was already done and the mattress had no effect on Melvin's head shape.

I kept up with repositioning but noticed that from above, Melvin’s head was not only completely  flat on the right hand side but now came to a severe point on the left, it appeared almost suddenly. I could see Melvin’s right ear and cheek were also becoming out of line. This worried me so  I began to research the internet , and to my surprise I found there was treatment available; helmet therapy. However, this is only offered privately and a helmet costs a hefty sum at approximately £2000.

I was in turmoil because in my heart I felt Melvin would benefit from helmet therapy but at the same time I knew I would not be able to fund it in my current situation. I found a provider quite local to me, Technology in Motion, who offered a free consultation and I decided this was the best way forward, at least I would be able to find out if treatment was recommended for Melvin’s particular condition.

After taking measurements, the orthotist informed me that Melvin was suffering with two separate conditions; plagiocephaly, when the skull becomes asymmetrically distorted , as well as brachycephaly; when the head widens due to a flattening at the back of the skull. She also told me that Melvin’s measurements underlined that his plagiocephaly was considered very severe. This didn’t surprise me as it was clear that Melvin’s head was not perfectly rounded as it once was.

Melvin’s ear canals were also measured and his right canal was significantly shorter than the other, the Orthotist said that although there has been some research, there was no definitive proof  that plagiocephaly is linked to hearing problems, although she said it would make sense that a shortening in the canal could lead to such problems. After hearing this I couldn’t believe that the NHS didn’t fund treatment for babies affected by plagiocephaly/brachycephaly or even put more research into finding a link between hearing problems and these conditions. I also found out that for babies who have sever to very severe plagiocephaly that isn‘t treated with helmet therapy, may suffer with distorted facial features as children and adults; all I could think about were the social implications for Melvin and how I needed to make sure he wasn’t going to be picked on later on for something that can be rectified now.

Melvin will be having his helmet fitted in just under two weeks and this is how I come to Just Giving to ask you to help me raise enough money to pay for Melvin’s helmet and with the charity Headstart4Babies (headstart4babies.co.uk), raise awareness for these two conditions which aren’t widely heard of. All the Money raised goes towards Melvin's treatment and any excess goes to the charity to help other families.

I have three months to raise as much as possible and I am in the process of planning a sponsored walk,  'Heading out for Melvin', which will be at the end of July. I will also be selling items on Ebay to go towards the treatment.

I will keep this page updated with news on fundraising and Melvin's progress.

If you would like to donate, you can do so through this page (any amount would be greatly appreciated!).

Thank you for your interest in helping Melvin and others like him,

Marie and Melvin :)