Anyone with experience of overpronation of the feet?

[Surfermum]

Dsd (13) has been diagnosed with this and the doctor is ordering some insoles for her school shoes, but has suggested she gets some trainers as well.

We went to look for them on Saturday but as she's a size 8.5 the choice was limited to mens' trainers and there weren't any she liked.

I was wondering though whether there is an alternative to buying specialist trainers, and whether a second set of insoles would be better so that she can put them in whatever shoes she is wearing - or whether there is any alternative to the insoles.

Anyone got any experience of this? TIA.

You can buy interchangeable insoles/ or have them made.

I have had several pairs over the years, but because I wasn't corrected til I got foot and knee pain in my 20's, I actually find corrrection aggrevates my pain so choose not to wear them.

Also impossible to wear with fashion shoes, so vanity wins out here

The insoles for her school shoes should fit her trainers too I would have thought.

Oh that's great, thank you. Do you know where we can get them from?

She's very fashion conscious - even at 13 - and I really can't see her wearing the trainers very much. They look ridiculous with her skinny jeans! And while I don't mind forking out £80 for them, I'd rather do it on a pair of insoles that she can get better use out of.

My DD2 is 5 and pronates and has insoles. They can be put in any of her shoes/trainers.

Depending on how much support your DD needs will affect what shoes she can wear; some insoles are quite built-up and would rule out ballet slippers and low-back trainers, for example.

Didn't you say the doctor was ordering some?

Yes, I did - doh ! We may not need a second set of insoles.

I'm going to get dh to ring her doctor to get his advice first hand, as she went with her mum and what dh was told was that she's getting insoles and needs to go and buy the trainers in the meantime. But if the insoles are interchangeable then there's no need is there?

I'm surprised she's getting them from a doctor, rather than a podiatrist. Is the doc an orthopaedic doctor, or the GP?

We get DD2s from a paediatric podiatrist, they are made from a mould taken from her feet and take 4-6 weeks to be made. We only get one pair.

No, it's her GP. I took her to get school shoes with dd (local independent Startrite shop) and he refused to sell me any for dsd until she had insoles. He said she'd need to have a cast taken and said where she should get referred to.

Her GP doesn't seem to agree. But like I say, dh is getting all his info second hand, so I think a phone call to the GP would be helpful.

I hope we can get this sorted for her as she wrecks every pair of shoes she gets as her feet roll over, and she can't be doing her knees any good.

Hmm, I would be asking for a referral to a paediatric podiatrist, this sort of thing is their bread and butter. GPs are not trained in this sort of stuff and insoles without casting are probably no use at all!

You're right as well, pronation can cause knee and hip problems apparently. I bet once she has insoles she will walk so much more easily!

I had mine casted.

I had to build up their use gradually over a few weeks to let things (joints, muscles, ligaments etc) adjust to the new position.

I have these insoles. It does limit your choice of shoes as you need ones that cover a bit more of your feet, as they insoles push your feet up in the shoe. It looks funny and doesn't give much support. I mostly wear shoes with an approx one inch heel. Complete flats, other than Birks (they're basically one big insole), are out, as are high heels.

There are, however, some OK shoes out there. This is the casual shoe selection from Shoon. The nice ones are expensive if her feet are still growing.

My DDs both have pronating (flat) feet and I took them to a podiatrist who had this special gait analysis scanner.

It took pictures of their feet from all sorts of angles including from below and the data was sent to a company who made these really slim but rigid orthotics that fit inside their shoes (even the fairly slim court shoes that teens seem to prefer.)

They cost an arm and a leg but were well worth it. One of DDs friends went to a chiropodist and the inserts she had made (much cheaper admittedly) were really big and clumpy.

get custom made carbon fibre orthotics - heaps betterthan the bulky cheap ones