hypermobility & orthotics

[verybusyspider]

Had an appointment with podiatry yesterday due to ds (5) complaining of pain in his ankles and GP referred him as he is flat footed.
She said he looked hypermobile and is getting a couple of sets of orthotics made up (one for trainers one for school shoes) which will be ready in couple of weeks.
Told school he'll need to wear trainers for PE not black pumps so he had more support - they asked if he should be wearing trainers rather than bare foot? (at lot of indoor PE is bare foot - I didn't know that) can't get hold of podiatry today - what have others done? any advice whilst I wait for inserts and have chance to ask?

Also School said if we have 'diagnosis' of hypermobility they will put a 'care package' in place for ds so that everyone is aware ie he will be justifiably be allowed to rest during PE if he needs to, they will see if they can help with his hand writting (which is poor at the moment) etc - how do I find out if he needs a diagnosis? The first time hypermobility was mentioned to me was yesterday, she got ds to do some stretching type things ie touching floor, she bent his knees back etc but that was all... not sure what I need to be doing about it now?

i have hypermobility but it hasnt caused any real problems, you just have to be careful not to overstretch as you can easily strain things.

And also flat feet (was told by the podiatrist they are hobbits feet)

bare foot running hurts my feet, it aways has, as long as I can remember.Trainers support the flat foot and remove the pain. I put some of my old orthotics inot my wellies, as they also hurt to walk in (and always have, ever since I was little)

hypermobility caused me problems in both preganancies, but he doesnt have to worry about that!!

re school and PE they really ought to just check he doesnt over stretch, and they ought to let him wear his trainers

hope that helps x

What a wonderful and clued-up school

You can ask your GP to refer you to a rheumatologist for a diagnosis; this seems as if it might be worth doing, seeing that it is impacting on his daily life and there would be support in place.

Having had to fight all the way for support for my hypermobile dd, this sounds fabulous.

cory the school already have one child with hypermobility so if any fighting had to be done I imagine her parents have done it and I'm benifiting from their effort - shame I don't know who they are as I could thank them for that

I will speak to GP

thanks missing probably best I say he has to wear trainers all the time then?? just need to find out if he has to wear non marking soles.... I can see this will now cost us in shoes! I bought him good old fashioned starite shoes shoes but was told to go and get some more like trainers as they are too heavy for him I've always avoided those ones as I've never felt they looked smart enough! shows what I know!!

Spider, my DS2 has hyper mobility and also wears orthotics. He is 3.5 and was diagnosed earlier in the year, mainly due to his very flat feet and ankle issues.

If your ds is prone to falls and pain when he is bare foot then he probably needs to keep something on his feet. I think it's a case of finding the right balance and weighing things up. What does your ds do for PE? If it's lots of running around and some contact sport then some support will be needed. Also how long is he doing it for? Does this compare with the time he is barefoot in the house?

Ds2 must wear lace up boots with a very firm back. This was advised by his physio and orthotic guy. I buy him walking boots (Meindl's from Little Trekkers) and these along with the insoles have made a huge difference. You could look at something like Ricosta's or other european brands. I get DS2 measured up in our local Clarks, resist the pressure from the assistants who think they know my childs feet better than myself and then look around on the internet. Ebay is great for last years colours etc. Always make sure they have a decent returns policy though.

DS2's physio is fantastic but there isn't a great deal you can do for hyper mobility apart from exercises and learning how to make life easier. Hopefully as your ds grows and his muscles/joints strengthen he will grow out of it (at least thats what we keep being told!) We are also being referred to a rheumatologist however I do question what we will gain from it at the end of the day. Ds2 tires very easy, uses a Major buggy and has episodes of incontinence, all of which I know will improve... slowly but surely.

ds complains of pain in his ankles but says he doesn't want to wear trainers for PE because no one else does - we may have a battle! - he only does indoor PE once a week so I may leave that for the podiatrist to tell him, her doing it might carry more weight with him.
I hadn't really thought about barefoot time at home, he has slippers and prefers to wear those... maybe thats why?

I think he will improve, podiatrist was supprised he could ride his bike even though I know he can only do it for short distances its at least something we can build on

Thanks for shoe tip, we bought some boots recently as thought they would help - not really had much advice apart from looking at his school and sport shoes - I must write list of questions for next visit!

in case this is useful.. barefoot at home and on the grass has never hurt me

barefoot running always does and wellies always do

my DS shoes are from clarks and very lightweight and trainer like, this is because he is half moneky and half premier league footballer, so nice smart school shoes were never going to be any use to him - if your DS needs the ankle support they might not be good enough but if its just the flat foot support you might find they do the job

You need to be guided by what the orthotics dept say. Ds is hypermobile - ankles, knees, hips particularly bad but also wrists. He has worn orthotic insoles since he started walking just before 2. At some points he had to always wear shoes (inside and outside). Now he is 7 and wears orthotics in his school shoes but doesn't have to transfer them to his school trainers if they are doing sports on grass. If it is on a hard surface he has to wear them. Apparently he'll have to wear them until his feet stop growing.

If he spends time barefoot then it isn't long in the context of his school day so not a problem.

At the age of 4 he couldn't run without falling over. Now he is one of the fastest runners in his year. Our consultants's recommendation was to make sure he kept active and had strong muscles to help support his lax joints. He is incredibly strong for his size and very active. He does lots of sport and plays tag rugby but will need to be assessed before we'll know if he can play contact next year.

I was told that hypermobility was hereditary. I have it and did very little sports at school because of it.