Tripping, falling, clumsy or Growing pains – Is it really normal?
Is growing really responsible for your little one’s discomfort?
So, your little one is having a tough time and, therefore, so are you! There’s something not quite right but you just can’t put your finger on it.
Perhaps they seem clumsy, or they trip and fall a little more than their friends of the same age. Maybe they don’t want to walk distances. Perhaps it appears they tire out more than the other kids. Sound familiar?
One of the most frustrating things for a parent or carer is having a child that, for no know apparent reason, wakes at night with pain in their feet legs and lower limbs. Often they’ll be in tears with pain. You’ve tried massaging them, or heat packs. You may have tried Panadol and Nurofen.
What you need is answers!
You head to the GP to tell them the things you’ve noticed. Frustratingly you’re told, “they will grow out of it” or…
“it’s growing pains” or…
“All kids get that” or …
“There’s nothing that you can do” or…
“Oh, it’s completely normal”
Whaaaaaat – You scream!!!
Well we don’t think it’s normal and thereis something you can do!
All of the above are classic symptoms we see and recognise as signs your child has foot and lower limb posture problems, and this most certainly CAN be treated.
Getting rid of your child’s pain
We see hundreds of kids who present with their parents with very similar complaints each and every year. Frustrated parents with children who are looking for answers.
One of the most rewarding things about being a practitioner is getting these kids back to health, activity and pain free! To do this we start by running through a detailed history. We examine walking, standing and posture.
We will then recommend treatment aimed at stopping the pain and making your child comfortable (and happy!) again. We provide useful suggestions around footwear, prescribe therapies like massage or orthotics alongside possibly stretching and muscle strength exercises – all aimed at kids and designed to be kid friendly!
Results that make you smile!
There is nothing better than seeing a once uncomfortable child who woke at night crying sitting in your office with a big smile! With parents who have equally enormous smiles!
Parents get to see their once-clumsy-child running around without as many grazed knees. Many mums feel relieved that they no longer have to continuously pick up their child or push them endlessly in the pram because they can now walk distances complaint free!
As a clinic we see numerous kids each week, and we LOVE it! There is little greater than knowing you’ve made someone else’s life just a little bit better. It’s quite addictive.
In an age where we find ourselves complaining that our kids need to “get outside and play more” or we’re constantly saying “put your device down” it’s important that we make certain that they have the ability to be active – without pain.
Too many times we have meet frustrated parents and upset kids who come into our office after being told there is nothing they can do only to find they could have been making things better weeks months or even years earlier!
First steps
Is this sounds all too familiar, we’d like to help. Perhaps this is something that a friend or relative may benefit from. If that’s the case we’d love you to share it with them so they can find relief!
A Step Ahead Foot + Ankle Care is based in Western Sydney. We have multiple practitioners with loads of experience treating kids! Its our passion!
If you’d like more information please contact our helpful front desk team. They are brilliant at working through what help you need, guiding you to the appointment that is right for your family, running through costings and then reserving your appointment time. Call us today on +61 2 9673 2987 we look forward to helping.
How come my child’s heel pain isn’t getting better ….
Soccer, rugby league and Netball all culprits for creating heel pain in kids if mixed with poor foot posture and growth spurts
“He had heel pain last year and now it’s back. They have NO idea what it is. They did an x-ray and it’s not Severs. The physio massaged his calves and it helped for a few weeks but it’s not better. It’s almost been 6 months. We had to halve how much sport he does now and he hates it. As soon as he starts running or playing a game, it comes on. He describes a tight feeling when he walks too”
Very honestly, these were the exact words that came from a frustrated and concerned mum, paired with an equally frustrated 13 year old boy, just before lunchtime today. This family traveled across the city to see us, which is not uncommon but it must be frustrating.
The tragedy in these words is that they’re NOT uncommon. At least a few times a week I hear grumblings from frustrated parents – and they most definitely have a right to be frustrated! – because they’ve seen various practitioners without a real diagnosis and just when something has been suspected, imaging has gone and ruled it out and we’re back at square one. Or are we?
The matter of the fact is: People make mistakes. Practitioners make mistakes. Radiographers make mistakes. We’re human! It’s going to happen.
I feel like I could host a conference discussing the amount of times I’ve been handed an xray telling me that there is nothing wrong with my patient that currently sits in front of me in AGONIZING pain!
If it doesn’t sound right, you better believe that it’s not. Let me emphasis: pain does NOT happen for no reason, and no amount of negative radio-graphs is going to magically fix your very real pain.
Kids stay happy and healthy and active – Kids should play sport PAIN FREE!
So then, WHY does this happen?
There can be a variety of reasons, and I’m going to give you the very real uncensored version that other practitioners may get annoyed at me for.
• Referrers can order the wrong TYPE of imagine study. If you’ve damaged a muscle, ligament, tendon or any soft tissue, your x-ray will show you are perfectly fine! Yep, go over there and sit your torn Achilles tendon down because you’re fine to go run that marathon. (Please DONT we are kidding)
• Radiographers are very HUMAN and can miss things. Some are likely to have seen more of a certain condition, or be more familiar with an area of the body, and so some may pick up or recognise things that others miss. And you can’t blame them – the body is composed of an extraordinary amount of bone and soft tissue and any expectation for every single person to be a scholarly expert on every single part is drastically unrealistic.
• Things CHANGE over time. Your imaging from a few months ago is a picture of what is happening in your foot a few months ago. Since that time, some tissues may have gotten better, some tissues may have gotten worse, and some ones may now be damaged that weren’t before!
Be assured:
There is NOTHING wrong with wanting a second opinion and getting a referral for another ultrasound or X-ray
There is NOTHING wrong with re-imaging if you feel that your injury has changed. And if you’re having pain but you’re being told there’s nothing wrong, you have EVERY right to be frustrated!
You SHOULD get a second opinion! or a third even if you are not getting the answers you need.
There is increasing evidence that we need to look past radiology reports and look at clinical symptoms
So what do you do next?
Your child should not have to play sport in pain, we can happily tell you that we work with kids to get them back to happy healthy and active every day. Our team will work with your child to develop a detailed care plan, this of course after a thorough assessment of their run + walk patterns; including video analysis. we will examine foot wear and make recommendation and look at the damaged soft tissue and assess what is the best way to rehabilitate this back to health! They may require a soft pliable orthotic for inside their shoes to wear while playing (just like our patients that are international level athletes!)
One of the delightful things about treating kids is seeing them return smiling and back to playing the sport they love!
And for all those wondering.. Yes our little champion from this morning did have Severs 😉
A Step Ahead Foot + Ankle care Penrith, St Marys and soon to come to a suburb near you!
A Step Ahead Foot and Ankle care have founded “My Kids Foot Doctor” a clinic specifically geared towards treating Kids feet. We see dozens of kids a day, unlike other practitioners who see your Grandma’s toe nails and the occasional kid we see these balls of fun all day every day.
About our clinics
Our team see dozens of kids from across Sydney every day
Our clinics are set up with kids in mind we have big toy boxes, TV’s coloring in and lucky dip boxes. Our practitioners are the kind that sit on the ground and chat to your child, who laugh, may wear silly glasses and love handing out chocolate WE LOVE SEEING KIDS!
What does this mean? It means we have built up an enormous amount of experience with kids because we get to see them ALL the time! If we can help you with your little one, if you have a nagging doubt or worry please call our helpful team on 96732987 we’d love to help!
Did you catch our Podiatrist Dr Brenden Brown on the Today show? Brenden is an expert when it comes to Kids feet and the Today show called on him to review the best School Shoes for 2014.
Podiatrist Dr Brenden Brown reviews the best school shoes for 2014
Watch the clip below and see what Brenden says will help keep your kids healthy happy and active.
Due to the magic of TV (meaning its pretty quick and you don’t get all the time you’d like on TV) Brenden doesn’t get to mention all of his TOP 4 see our other blog post HERE
where Brenden reviews all his favourite school shoes for your kids.
Kid’s feet come in all different shapes and sizes and so do their FEET!
Having healthy feet is vital to a child’s development. Did you know that problems not resolved in children’s feet can become major problems for them when they become adults?
Not all kids foot problems show up by resulting in pain while many parents recognise flat feet as a problem many other signs may not be as obvious!
Tripping and falling – tiring easily while walking or playing – laziness – clumsiness – growing pains and trouble keeping up with peers are all signs that your child may have developmental problems with their feet.
Appointments can be made and are available at our St Marys and Penrith clinics 9673 2987 or 47322007
At a step ahead we have a passion for looking after kid’s feet! As a result our practice is very kid orientated and we get to see loads of kids – we love what we do!
Our team will check your child’s feet ensuring that no unidentified problems continue! Kids need healthy feet to develop normally so our podiatrist will video them walking playing and running, they will test their muscles to see how they are developing after taking a detailed history to get an idea how they are developing.
Our job is to make sure your child get to be their best! and we think its kinda cool – because seeing kids get better, run faster, play longer and smile more makes our day! We live for the smile a happy kid can bring to your life.
Our team is led by Dr Brenden Brown – He has over 20 years experience. His passion for looking after kids foot health has made him recognised as an expert on kids feet in Australia. Brenden has been the Podiatry advisor and expert for Clarks kids footwear Australia for many years. He has feature on Television, on channel NINE on the today show and A current affair helping parent to make good school shoe choices each year and advising on good foot health. He has also featured in magazine like Practical parenting and Good Medicine magazines along with Men’s Health, Women’s health, Woman’s Day, Cosmopolitan and many many more!
Brenden though is most proud of being a dad of two young girls and understanding what its like to be a parent and looking after two growing kids!
Appointments can be made and are available at our St Marys and Penrith clinics 9673 2987 or 47322007
Kids do much more than just go to school each week! What did your kids feet do this week?
Kids feet do much more than just 30 hours a week at school – they play handball – run races – play basketball – touch footy – practice ballet – play rugby – skip………. But are they ready to do all that activity and more?
Many times children won’t tell Mums and Dads about foot pain till its too late and it becomes a bigger problem.
Growing pains
Tripping and falling
Clumsiness
Wearing out shoes
Tiring easily
These are all signs that something maybe wrong with your child’s feet. Having your child’s foot posture and walking patterns by our Podiatrist who can quickly and safely help to find pain free solutions.
Every year we get to treat hundreds of kids! We love it not only are we getting to meet and have fun with some pretty cool kids we get to see them become happy healthy and active again. We’d love to be able to help your family as well!
Contact us at 9673 2987 with questions we want to truly understand what’s happening at present with your foot and leg pain if you are ready we will set up your initial appointment.
Learn more about your condition - Check out over 40 Educational videos our team has prepared on our Facebook page. From heel pain, and what’s the best shoes, to ball of foot pain; it’s all there.
Speak to A Foot Doctor - Reserve your free 10 minute review with one of our qualified Sports Podiatrists to review where you are up to and discuss what are your next best treatment options. (Availability limited due to demand)
Try our Heel Pain Treatment advisor. Answer 7 simple questions to get a quick, reliable report on what treatment options you should be considering!
