When my rapidly growing 11 year old son came to me complaining of heel pain being a Podiatrist I knew exactly what to. I knew exactly what he had to do. I see this everyday. I treat Severs disease everyday. There was a problem though – he didn’t want to do what he had to do. I soon realized how stubborn 11 year olds can be.
My boy loves to play football. Aussie rules. He would play it all day every day if he could.
He loves running around with his friends. The more active he is the happier he is. The heel pain he was experiencing was starting to get to him. He wanted to keep being active but was afraid of the pain getting worse so would spend more time in front of the television or on the iPad. Not good.
One of the textbook treatment methods for treating Severs disease (read our last blog) is calf stretching. You have to stretch I would tell him – as I tell my patients. If you want the pain to go away and not come back you have to stretch – as I tell my patients. He WOULD NOT stretch. If you are not going to stretch and still have pain stop complaining about it I would tell him– I don’t say this to my patients.
To cut a long story short I had to do something to help him get out of pain – without the stretching and fast. What could I do to help him where he didn’t have to do anything (he was driving me crazy with his complaining and excessive iPad usage). No rest, no ice, no compression, no elevation (RICE), no stretching. Nothing.
I did it. The right heel lifts (not to high and hard) and a very specific strapping technique. He just had to sit there while I applied the tape and stick heel lifts into his shoes. Easy. He played lots of sport and had no heel pain. We have since progressed to inserts in his shoes where I don’t even have to do anything anymore. Happy son. Happy mum.
If this is your child – I want to help you. I want to show you the strapping technique; I want to provide you with the correct heel lifts. I want you to be a happy mum or dad. If this is something you may be interested in send me an email and I will show you exactly what I did that you can do to. amy@borderpodiatrycentre.com.au
You can fast track their heel pain resolution and book an appointment. Either way I know how children work in regards to not helping themselves (well my son anyway) and have developed a way around this specifically in regards to their heel pain. What are you waiting for?
Thanks for reading
Amy