Hi Paige,

Most importantly, congratulations on the birth of your granddaughter. I knkow how confused you and your son and the mom must be right now. I remember it very well. My daughter is 4 years old and is doing great. No one ever guesses she has a disorder. When I do tell someone who is going to be watching her they are always in disbelief. He life is completely normal except she takes medicine and sees the endo and blood draws. I think that once you learn all you can about CAH and then are completely prepared it is easier to relax and enjoy this baby. Make sure you and her parents know how and when to give the solu Cortef shot. Always carry advil/tylenol, extra cortef the shot. Write down questions and bring them to the endo. Make a plan of action for different illnesses and degrees of fever, vomiting diarrhea, broken bone etc. Write it down and use it in cases of illness as you might forget in a worried state. Don’t second guess your written plan as for short periods of time too much cortef will not hurt her but too little may!! As for the question will your daughter feel like a girl....I can answer that my girl knows she is a girl ( she has not had surgery on her enlarged clitoris) shows both "girl" type and "boy" type behavior. She takes care of her baby doll, loves to drees up as a princess well as a knight, loves to paint her nails and pretend to put on makeup...she also loves to hike, ride her bike, chase the boys and be competitive. Then again I, too, was a tom-boy! She has extremely high self esteem (which she’ll need in the future to get her through the teen years ). She is super smart, strong, well coordinated and strong. I love her so much and often forget she has CAH. Research as much as you can and find an endo you feel comfortable with who listens to your concerns. We fired our first one and then found an excellent one. Take care and I wish you all well. Julia