There are two exam rooms - one really huge one and one itty, bitty tiny one. Guess which one we got? Uh huh, the small one. The kids actually did pretty well. I put two on reading duty, one on iPhone camera duty and one on "keep Luke happy" duty.
Our amazing orthotist, Bud, who fitted Luke for his helmet last July was on the case again for Luke's foot braces. Or is it feet braces? I don't know. It didn't take long at all and a few days later the actual braces came in and we trooped back up for his fitting. These are much different than his helmet in that we don't have to go in every two weeks for an adjustment. It's likely he will wear them two years. Yes, I said years. But, we won't go back in for about a year to get new ones.
We put them on over his socks and they cover his entire foot, ankle and about two inches above the ankle. His shoes then fit over the top of those. Now, his shoes are three sizes bigger and two times as wide as before. We call them his clown feet! I was really worried that we would have to go back to physical therapy when he got the braces as I was convinced that it would really throw things off. Guess I was wrong.
When we went to get his new shoes, the gal helping us encouraged Luke to take a few steps. I looked at her and apologetically explained, "Oh he just got these new braces so he won't be able to do that."
Then, he walked across the room as if to say, "Mom, please don't tell me what I can't do."
The braces haven't slowed him down one single bit. In fact, I think he runs a little faster and a lot steadier. He wears them during his waking hours and we take them off for naps and bedtime.
I'm so hopeful that this proactive approach will help him in the long-term and it will be yet another thing he'll have to read the blog to remember!
1 comment:
I just wanted to pass along a little encouragement from the SMO department. Our now 8-year-old wore them for about 2.5 years. It made a WORLD of difference and we so don't regret it. We still have one of his pairs, and we cherish them as a marker of how far he has progressed. I'm not sure how it is in Texas, but around here so many kiddos have them for one reason or another that most never even seemed to notice and I can't remember him ever being teased for them. That's one improvement I guess in modern times: more tolerance in the medical device department. You're doing the right thing, and one day your handsome little Luke will so thank you for it!
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