What shoes can a child with hypermobility wear during the summer?

[baliboo]

I wonder if anyone can help me please. My 4 year old son has hypermobility syndrome and has special insoles to support his arches and help his knees. At the moment he wears Geox boots which give his ankles added support, but when it comes to the summer, the poor kids feet are going to be roasting. We are also going to Miami next week and I would love to be able to buy him a pair of shoes to wear around the pool or for short walks that would allow some air to circulate around his feet, but I dont know what are best. Does anyone know of any brands that are best for hypermobility??

ds2 (hypermobile) likes crocs

tbh we just let DS wear trainers in the summer months, and crocs if he isn't wearing them for too long.

Might be worth talking to your podiatrist?

btw - at school he continues wearing his boots.

Ds has hypermobility and inserts in his shoes as well. I have inserts in my shoes for fallen arches so I know how difficult it is to get sandals that are suitable. I am going to get DS something like this
www.clarks.co.uk/p/20349586
which has a back in it for the insoles to sit against. We use a strip of to keep the insert in place.

That is a strip of velcro. Sorry.

Ahh this is all brilliant! Thank you !!
He had crocs as a baby but you could see his ankle bending in them, but we've not tried them since so maybe thats an idea?! Albertswearengen- They look brilliant. I will go and have a look on Sunday and see how he goes. Our podiatrist has merely said that we need to put the shoes on and look closely at his feet. He is now under the care of a biomechanic specialist. I had never heard of hypermobility but as soon as ds started walking i just knew there was a problem. The bones of his ankle look like they're coming through his feet and it really makes me squirm. If i can get him something that allows some air to move around his feet that would be great. Someone recommended North Face sandals?! Has anyone tried them?? I dont know if Ecco do sandals? I never would have guessed that in this day and age its so difficult to get shoes for a problem like this.

crocs aren't great with hypermobility, they don't give any support, tho my ds has dcd and low muscle tone too.

I bought ds something similar to these He is supposed to wear orthotic supports, so needs something more enclosed

these are a lot like ds's actually.

OMG i was looking at these earlier and wondering if they would work. Do you find that they are supportive and stop the ankle "thing" happening?? They would be ideal as his insoles wouldnt slip out either! aww chopstheduck thank you so much! I was feeling a bit down thinking his poor little feet would be sweltering but these would be ideal!

They wont be as effective as boots, but they will be a LOT better than crocks, and will hold in orthotics, so I'd go for them.

ds1 still finds the ankle thing even happens with boots, so I think the orthotics are prob the biggest help.

and btw I got ds's from BHS, almost identical to the second link at a fraction of the price

I am really liking those Geox sandals- I might try and track a pair down for DS.
I am amazed how good the orthotics are. DS (3.5) has only been wearing his since the end of January and his legs are much straighter and he doesn't have huge unsightly bulges where his knees were out of line. Plus he can run without falling over.

Really? BHS?? I'll go and have a look. Thank you chops that really is brilliant. Its tough when you have kids with hypermobility as you're restricted to the shoes you can buy and they all end up costing a bomb. His geox boots were close 55 and apparently they go up and up in price with the size of foot. Yaaay joyful news :( . They look so much more fashionable though than some of the boots they recommend for kids with hypermobility!

albertswearengen- They make a huge difference dont they? Mind my DS still falls over but not as much . I think he's just clumsy. I feel for him when he is in pain though, his poor knees and ankles get so hot. Apparently kids with HMS grow quicker and get taller than if they didnt have it. Our specialist has forecast DS reaching 6ft5? . Having shoes like this will help though because its horrible them being stuck in boots when its roasting. So long as its not for long walks i think it'll be ok (she says praying). If not then good old calpol or tylenol will take the edge off.

We have used those type of sandal trainer cross things with orthotics without any trouble.

that's interesting about the height thing, ds1 is very tall but never heard of a height link before.

We tend to dose up on ibuprofen since it's supposed to reduce inflammation. We have to be careful and just pace him and be aware of his limits. He does have a wheelchair which he had to use quite a bit for a while. Though he does have other issues too.

Oh Chops, poor little man :(. We spent almost a year carrying him around because after 10 minutes he would be in tears with pain and our dr just said it was growth spurts. That in itself wouldnt have been so problematic if I didnt have a degenerative disease in my spine. Yes the specialist said because their ligaments and joints are more flexible that they will tend to grow taller as there's less resistance than in "normal" joints and ligaments. He is very tall now and quite willowy as well, but he's always been light and skinny. The pacing is very important, I just wish DH would understand and remember that just because he's had nurofen or calpol it doesnt mean he can rush walking distances. Are your DS feet narrow?

ohmeohmy- thats brilliant news and puts my mind at ease. I'm so glad I started this thread. its my first time on here and it was my friend who advised me to do it because I've never met any other parents who have kids with HMS and its a huge comfort being able to speak to you all and get advice.

xxx

For future reference we found that Timberland Boots are brilliant for school, they have loads of support. two lots of velcro - we had a nightmare with laces as he couldn't tie them due to his bendy fingers and the school wouldnt do it so were letting him run around with them undone - thus defeating the object

They have also been the longest lasting so far, the price is a nightmare though!

Yeah, they are fairly narrow. Like your ds, mine is also very slim built. Our OT told us that because of the HMS he will find tasks harder and burn more calories doing everyday stuff, so we think that is why. The growing thing def makes sense.

Does your ds have any toileting issues? DS is prone to loose bowels too because of his hms. If he gets even a slight tummy upset he isn't able to hold it, and our OT said it's because everything inside is loose too.

How did you find your specialist? Our OT has been absolutely fab with support, and ds has had quite a lot of input. DS1 struggles with fine motor skills as his fingers are very lax. He uses adapted cutlery and special grips for writing.

Enjoy Miami! What are your plans for while you are there? I've been but very briefly. We stayed over there on a trip driving from Orlando down to the Keys.

Henwelly- i"ll make a note of that thank you so much. They're hard wearing as well which is ideal for a mischievous little boy. Brilliant x

Chops- the only thing tummy wise was reflux for the first 18momths. It was awful, he only weighed 12lb by the time he turned 1! Our specialist was appointed by my sons physio. She wanted confirmation that he had HMS and not just HM and the specialist was amazing from day 1. I think it's one of those illness's that you don't hear of very often but it has such and effect on them! Your poor little boy. Is there any help that they can give him?? I'd never heard about the calorie thing but it makes total sense! Does he suffer a lot with the pain from his HMS??

Ah we're going to do the normal things while we're there like seaworld and Disney but I'm going to take DS to discovery cove to swim with dolphins and then do some exploring and maybe hit Daytona beach. I want to stay in Kissimmee instead of international drive because of the scenery. Most of my family are American and a couple live in Florida so it'll be the first time they've met DS. V exciting. What did you do while you were there? Did you do any beaches close to Orlando??

That reflux must have been horrible :( Yes, ds has a lot of pain. Mainly in his hips and ankles. If he overdoes it he simply can't weight bear and drops to the ground. He complains a lot about his ankles bending randomly on their own, I probably should get him some boots, but it does it even in those. the main thing he really needs to do is build up muscle tone, but he is prone to low muscle tone, and we find even after building it up all summer, doing outdoors stuff, he tends to lose it over winter again!

We stayed in Kissimmee too, the lake there was gorgeous and there was a fab park there too for the kids to play on. Didn't really do the beaches, except one in Jacksonville which wasnt anything special (went up there to visit family). We went at xmas, did the parks, I-drive, and lots of outlet shopping too! Dh has been several times and reckons the best is in st Petersburg, was very quiet and golden sands.

My DS2 is 4 and we have the same issues as all of you above, bowel incontinence, fatigue, pain etc DS wears orthotics (hard plastic, half length) which are proving to be difficult to fit in shoes, it's a nightmare isn't it?

Ds's physio recommends Kickers however they are too narrow for DS at anybody who has the beautiful canvas style boots on the website. We are currently stuck with walking boots, which I have to say, are excellent.

At our last appointment I asked what we could do regarding sandals as DS's ankles are our biggest problem. The dr said to buy a regular pair of sandals, with a closed in back to wear only on days when it is really hot, not ideal but we live up north, summer days are few and far between at the best of times!

I have queried Piedros but the dr said that although they would support the ankle, they would not provide suitable arch support and are not worth the wait/cost when walking boots are more readily available.

I highly recommend the Little Trekkers website, they have a great selection of boots and sandals. Jack Wolfskin also have suitable looking sandals which I'm eyeing up...DH was so chuffed to have sons and therefore quell my shoe shopping addiction...