Mom has traumatic C-section, 2 weeks later notices baby’s head isn’t normal

It only took one mom from British Columbia, Canada, two weeks to notice something wrong with her newborn baby. 

Kazlyn, 23, told Newsweek that her daughter, Annara, appeared just like any other healthy baby, hitting milestones as normal, but it was the shape of her head which was unsettling. 

“She couldn’t lie flat on her back because the back of her skull protruded too much,” Kazlyn said. “She developed a preference for lying on one side more than the other and would cry if you tried to change her head position.” 

Annara’s head shape even prevented her from sitting comfortably in her bouncy chair or car seat. There was a firm ridge that also ran from front to back—something she had never seen with her first child, 2-year-old Ender, with partner Mat Bonazew. 

As she researched probable causes, Kazlyn’s family tried offering reassurance. “They tried to…tell me that babies have odd head shapes, it takes time for them to round out, I just needed to wait and give her some time,” she said.  

By the time Annara was 3 weeks old, she had a strong suspicion of what she was dealing with. 

When Kazlyn mentioned what she had read online to her family, she was told to stop Googling. “I think they were just worried because I’m a young mom and maybe young moms have a tendency to get worked up over nothing, but it was a bit disheartening,” Kazlyn said. 

Still uneasy, the mom of two kept searching until she found a photo that looked exactly like her daughter; the same elongated skull, pronounced forehead and back and the unmistakable ridge. The link led her straight to a page describing craniosynostosis. 

A CT scan ordered by a pediatrician confirmed her worst fear: Annara had sagittal craniosynostosis, a condition in which the head’s top suture fuses prematurely—restricting skull growth and forcing the head to elongate instead of widening naturally. 

Craniosynosiscan be serious if untreated. As Kazyln learned, pressure can build within the skull, potentially causing headaches, vision loss, developmental delays, hearing problems, seizures and, in severe cases, brain damage. “Thankfully, there’s been much research done around craniosynosis and most all procedures are very safe,” Kazlyn said. 

Because the mom caught the condition early, Annara qualified for minimally invasive endoscopic surgery, requiring only two small incisions.  

Annara spent just a few days in hospital recovering. The next phase is helmet therapy, designed to guide the skull into a more-typical shape as it grows. Kazyln has already chosen her daughter’s helmet and completed the pretreatment scan.  

Over the next six weeks, Annara will gradually increase wear time until she reaches 23 hours a day—likely for about a year. 

The diagnosis also reframed her daughter’s traumatic birth. After 10 hours of excruciating labor—including multiple failed epidurals—she recalled screaming that the baby was stuck on her pelvic bone before undergoing an emergency C-section.  

For parents who suspect something might be off with their baby, Kazlyn urged parents to trust their instincts.  

“Do not be afraid to keep advocating for your child if you get shut down,” she said. “You might end up being worried about nothing, or you might end up saving your child’s life. As the saying goes, it is always better to be safe than sorry.”