[atouchofheaven]

i have an adopted child with bilateral cleft lip and palate. he had the surgeries before he came to us, but we've seen pictures and heard the stories. it's an easy surgery but there are stitches to be careful of. one thing they did was put arm restraints on my son so he couldn't pick at it. he also could only eat soft foods. i'm not sure about the cost, because my son was in foster care, it was paid for. we are having struggles now with sleep apnea and he will end up needing his adenoids taken out soon. as well as tubes in his ears (which he's had since his first surgery) but they need to be reinserted every year. he gets speech therapy once a week, but otherwise, is a happy healthy kid. a lot of cleft kids have trouble pronouncing things correctly, it is very important to find a speech therapist who has special training or experience with this population. good luck.