Monday, July 21, 2014

Clubfoot Files: 2 Year Checkup

Welcome back to another riveting edition of the Clubfoot Files!





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I've had a few people stop by this blog who are also on the clubfoot journey with their little one (hi!), so I'm writing these Clubfoot Files to share what we are going through and what we are learning.  I know I like reading other parents' blogs about it - the more info you can arm yourself with, the better!  It helps to hear what real people are going through.  
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Harper had her 2 year check up with the orthopaedist recently (spoiler: her feet look great!), and I wanted to update on where we stand at this point in the treatment process.  

The last time Harper went to the ortho was when she was about 16 months ish maybe?  I can't even remember now!  I do know that she wasn't walking yet at the time (**FYI - Harper took her first steps when she was 16 months, and wasn't truly "walking" until well into 17 months.  And guess what?  She's FINE!  She runs like a champ now!  If your little one is delayed with these movement milestones too - relax, it will happen!**).  But her foot looked so good, the doctor said not to come back until she was 2.  


So, we made our appointment and I wasn't too worried, even though it had been so long.  As she learned to walk (and then sprint - everywhere...) I watched for any warning signs and all looked good.  Sure enough, at her appointment, the doctor wasted no time in telling me that her feet looked perfect.  She said she wouldn't have been able to tell she even had clubfoot without looking at her chart.  She watched her walk and run around the room and was really positive about her movement.  Harper's feet are even roughly the same size, which the doctor said is not common by this point.


Such welcome news!  It's crazy that something that is such a Big Deal when the baby is first born turns into no big thing as they quickly get older.  Like I've said before, we are very diligent about the time she spends in the brace and I know this has helped.

We are ready to move up into the next size shoe (luckily she's slowed down some on growing and it's been awhile!), so I ordered a pair in size 4.  This time, we decided to buy directly through MD Orthopaedics again, instead of through insurance/Children's, since Harper hasn't gotten anywhere close to meeting her deductible and it's a much better deal to pay the $237 upfront than pay her full deductible, since buying the shoes through the doctor is ridiculously pricey.  I'm hoping this pair will last her through the end of the year. 



Currently, Harper's heels have red spots, and they pretty much have all summer.  I know it's from wearing sandals (even though I get the expensive stride rite ones!) and crocs that get wet and rub (cheap, but I didn't know what else to get for water table play, etc).  They never get worse, so I just keep an eye on them and hope they stay just minor irritations.  The spots don't seem to bother her, so I just chalk it up to life with clubfoot.

I haven't gotten the new shoes in yet, but I always dread a new pair a little bit.  No matter what, she always has some sort of issue with any new pair she gets.  Breaking them in, I suppose.  By this stage, I'm much more knowledgeable about how to correct issues that come up - and I'm armed with sheets of sticky foam to line problem areas of the shoes.  But like most aspects of parenting, it's trial and error until we find what works.

That's pretty much all there is to update on right now.  Life stays much the same - shoes on at night, check ups every 6 months.  Rinse repeat until she's 4 years old. 

Our next big hurdle is "big girl bed."  So far, she can't climb out of her crib during naps (when she's not wearing the brace).  Of course she won't be able to climb out with her brace on, but once the naps are escapable, we are going to have to commit to a real bed anyway.  I need to do more research on how to make this happen safely.  I've heard lots of people just use a mattress on the floor, that way if the kid falls out with the brace on, there's not far to go and they don't hurt themselves.  But that kind of weirds me out for some reason.

Harper is so stubborn and even though she's a good sleeper, I'm worried about this transition already.  I can see her crawling around her room with the brace on, getting into trouble.  And don't even start me on worrying about what happens when they are potty trained and need to go at night... but there's time to sort that out.  And don't worry, I'll be sure to blog about it along the way! ;)
((If you have any good blogs/resources on how to transition to a bed with cf, do share!!))


One last thing:  I get emails weekly from parents who read these little posts and have found them helpful or comforting.  I always reply to their awesome emails that this is exactly why I write these posts.  Not just to chronicle our own process, but to help share some positivity and tips and let others know that it's going to be ok.  Clubfoot is a big pain, but certainly not much more than that.  Your baby will be healed, pretty easily and quickly, and be a totally normal kid in no time!  How awesome is that???  So, if you've emailed - thank you.  Your emails make my heart happy.  And if you haven't or want to - I'd love to talk to you! :)

3 comments:

  1. I just wanted to thank you for your sweet posts. I found your blog when i was 5 months pregnant and found out baby River had unilateral CF. You were a great source of comfort and guidance to me then. Our little man is a little over a year now and it does indeed get better. I also wanted to share that there is a facebook group called Clubfoot Shoe Exchange that helps families all over the country to get donated shoes. We've gotten every pair of boots since the 00 from the shoe exchange and donated our size 0-2 boots as well. It's a great community for shoes, advice and support.
    Cheers to you.
    Heather Wells
    Atlanta, GA

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    1. thanks for the comment heather! i'm so glad i could be of some help! and thanks so much for the info on the fb page - i just joined it, and also added a link to it on my clubfoot files tab on the blog, so others can find it too. thanks!

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