Anyone have any idea what sort of sport a boy with hypermobility can do at school??

[BelleDeChocolateFluffyBunny]

His feet are a big problem, he wears boots most of the time as there's no other support for his ankles, he tends to fall over as his ankles just flop IYKWIM. His new school teaches rugby (not tag) for the Autumn term and has agreed that this isn't a good thing for him to do but he needs to do something. Running is a problem aswell as it's painful for him and his legs become very tired.
He does tag ruby at his current school (in his boots) so he's not knocked over. He is also taking pilates lessons outside school in the hope that it will improve his muscle tone but it's a long process.

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Swimming?

dd has hypermobility and loves trampolining, swimming and riding

What about something non-contact but active like karate?

Or something where he doesn't need to run, such as rowing or canoeing? (needs to be a swimmer first of course).

Rowing? Bit hard to come by unless you're near a school or club that offers it, but good for boys who find running difficult.

Ditto cycling.

Cross posts with clary, sorry.

Thankyou. They do alot of clubs at his new school, rugby is timetabled for the first term though and he'll do himself a mischief. He's done fencing aswell, this was OK. I think I should offer a suggestion what he can do instead of rugby though, what would they allow him to do? He's said he'd rather sit and read which isn't going to happen, he still needs to do PE.

They have a gym with some rowing machines, one of the GP olympic team used to go to his school, I think it's just for the 6th formers though.

What do you think they would allow him to do instead of rugby?

fluffy I think you need to ask them.

It kind of depends on what facilities they have - you know better than we do and I guess they know best of all.

I emailed them, the head of PE is going to talk to the deputy head. I was sent a list for rugby kit that he needs, as he's unable to play ruby I didn't see the point in buying it. They have loads of facilities, I just don't know if schools would allow him to do something else due to staff.

What does his GP/physio recommend? Ds (5) has hypermobility and his initial assessment said no contact sports ever (ankles/knees/hips/wrists badly affected). He will never be the most able sportsman but his reception teacher (very keen cross country runner) taught him to run without falling over. He plays tag rugby and we shall see when he is older whether he can graduate to contact rugby. He does swimming (highly recommended by his physio for strength and muscle tone development).

He also does horse riding, golf, karate and cricket as I wanted him to do activities that he can continue in the event he can't continue with rugby and football when he is older.

Does he wear special boots or just normal boots? If the latter you might find it helps to have him fitted with orthotic insoles to add support.

He's only seen the physio once, he has another apointment on Tuesday, she's not said alot to be honest, she's given him three exercises to do, 1 is OK, 2 are quite bad, he has to be on all fours so they put pressure on his elbows, they bend inwards too much when he's like this so the pilates teacher (who is training to be a physio) has adapted them. The hospital physio has said he probably won't get any better then how he is now. His ankles and feet a the main problem, he has little control over his feet because they are just so floppy. He used to fall over all the time, I brought him some boots so it's reduced this alot but I still have to walk with him and hold his hand, he's fallen whilst crossing the road a few times. He's asthmatic aswell so running is a problem as he keeps having to stop. He used to be told off constantly during PE for falling over and not joining in.

They ar normal boots Mollie, I had to buy them myself. He has insoles in them which don't seem to be helping at all, he appears to walk putting the balls of his feet down first, I think this is what's causing some of the pain.

I think you are unlucky that it wasn't picked up earlier. Ds had lots of physio at 2 once he started walking. It was obvious from when he was newborn that he would have problems so I knew something had to be done once he started walking at 22 months.

Are the insoles the special orthotics ones? Ds has those and they definitely make a difference. He falls over more when he doesn't have them in his shoes. We see the orthotics dept direct every time he needs new insoles and they have said he will need them until his feet stop growing.

Ds's ankles are very floppy. They turn over so much that when he stands barefoot the bottom of his leg almost seems to be touching the floor (rather than on top of his foot/ankle).

Has the physio given exercises to try and change your ds's walking position to heel first? Did the phsyio get him to do the proposed exercises with her? Everything ds had to do was run through with the physio to see how it would actually work. Some exercises were nigh on impossible to start with (eg the crab walking) but gradually improved with practise.

He was walking at 10 months, he's always been a bit advanced. The insoles are specially made for him at the hospital, his feet are completely flat, his ankles do the same as your son's. The physio hasn't sone much, he was given three exercises to do, 2 of which he can't do. They really have not been useful.

hockey ? Less contact and more skill. ds tends to do climbinga dn sailing given the choice but hockey if pushed for a team sport.

Swimming is the absolutely best thing dd has ever come across; in fact, her joints are always better in the summer because she gets a lot of swimming in.

He did like hockey, his feet have become more unstable since he did this at school though.

Swimming's a good idea, I asked at the local leisure centre and there are no clubs until September though. I might ask again, you sometimes get a different answer from different members of staff

I assume he is at a fee paying school? There should be lots of varied sporting activities for him to try. What about fencing or golf?

Would they allow him to cycle around the field while they play Rugby?

God I sympathise-DD (5) has the same problem and despite spending 100s of £ on orthotics etc has not shown a marked improvement.Summer typically difficult as orthotics don't fit in sandals/crocs.
Swimming is the ONLY sport DD is capable of as her legs hurt when running and feet go all over the place.
Trampolining she enjoys but her ankles are so floppy-too much jumping and they turn over.
it is a real problem.

fluffy, re swimming, it's free for u16s at city council pools - not sure what clubs you are after but surely he could go any time?

Can he swim? Because if so at 10 he's fine to go on his own (I mean you could sit on side, of course, if you wanted to) so it wouldn't cost you a penny.

hmmm I think you'll be starting off on the wrong foot if you go in saying he can't do certain things - ime schools like the one your ds is going to tend to want ALL the kids to take part unless they have a really major problem. There will be lots of other non-sporty kids there - some will be fat, some completely uncoordinated, others will be hypermobile - and I'd be enormously surprised if they laid on alternatives for everyone. I think you run the risk of coming across as a bit of a problem parent if you say he can't do regular PE but he can do something else

and you never know, your ds may surprise you ... ds2 is dyspraxic and hypermobile and while he's never going to be picked first for any team, he's discovered that he's actually not a bad bowler - and the more sport he does, the fitter and stronger he gets

I had thought that basil. It is a major problem for him though. When he holds his arms outstretched they bend downwards at an angle, he's almost walking on the inside of his ankles, he falls over very regularly without his boots so he could be a hazard to himself in the very first lesson. His pilates teacher/physio have agreed that rugby isn't safe for him, he's likely to dislocate something if he falls over, if someone lands on him then he can't fall safely so could also hurt them aswell as break something. I have said he is encouraged to do other sports, this is disabeling (sp?) for him, he's unable to walk more then half a mile without needing to stop because he's in pain, when he runs he needs to stop after a couple of minutes. There are other things he can do, his current school makes reasonable adjustments, like putting him in the goal when they play football which helps. The boots he wears work wonders but he will and does fall over if he isn't wearing boots as he needs the support around his ankles. They should be made aware of a child's needs, it's not a case of him being a PFB.

He can swim, not very well though as the lessons he had at school were very hit and miss.