12-year old daughter struggling to find suitable shoe

jhagan2

My 12 yrs old got her new splints a bit wider than her last one struggling to find shoe, did buy boots from clarkes but not wide enough

abstractLucas

Hi @jhagan2,
I had exactly the same problem with my son's splints, so you have my sympathies!  We managed for a few years when he was little, with various combinations of different types of splints and specialist shoes, but his latest splints, about eight months ago, just would not fit in anything (he's just turned 15).  To get shoes that were wide enough to fit his splints in, they would have had to be size 12 (adult size 12) shoes, and they would have had nearly two inches after the end of his toes inside the shoes!  I talked to the orthotist and explained the situation - because his splints are fixed at the ankle the shoes had tone undo far enough down the front to be able to get the splint in, as well as being like clown shoes on him, and as he is very unsteady on his feet at the best of times I felt those size 12 shoes would be dangerous for him.  
After looking at the splints and shoes the orthotist agreed, and came up with another plan.  As well as the splints he now has (custom) supportive boots which open up really wide so I can get his foot and splint in, then tighten up by twisting a dial at the acknowledgement.   It's really hard to describe but it's the same idea as these http://tomcatspecialneeds.co.uk/6-easy-steps/.  Because my son's are ankle boots he now only has one splint and a moulded insole instead of 2 splints, and they work for him.  We didn't have to buy them, they were ordered by the orthotist as they agreed there was a clinical need for them.
Obviously I don't know if they'd work for your daughter, but they worked for my son in a similar situation.  His aren't those ones exactly - they're from a different company as he needed them to provide additional ankle support.  Maybe it would be worth doing some reading and have a chat with your daughters orthotist?  After all, it's no good her having splints if there are no shoes that can fit them in!
Lucas

niceboots

Hi, I'm 30 and have worn splints for most of my life. For smart shoes (eg for work, or going out) I wear Piedro boots (pretty much the staple shoe for most of my life - and many other people with cp!) I find them really easy to get on and off as they open really far down the boot and have hooks for lacing rather than threading the laces. They also come in lots of width fittings which is very handy for splints.... The rest of my the time I wear trail running shoes or hiking boots as they come in very generous sizing (generally wide and deep) perhaps getting advice from your daughters orthotist as they may be able to supply them on the NHS, I buy mine from Amazon as my local orthotics dept won't supply them as I wear splints on both legs, so by their criteria there is no clinical need for them... Despite me not being able to find smart footwear to get my splints in and needing smart shoes for work....