WAG DD's coach mentioned "flat feet"..... not sure where to start

[gymmiemom]

So DD has been complaining of heel pain off and on for a few weeks now. We've been icing and giving Motrin when neded and her coach has been taking it easy on tumbling and vault. But this week her coach told me that she thinks her arches are falling or she is flat footed. Today she stood her up on a table and said that the back of her foot is pronating (i hope that is the right word!) because of it. She suggested that I buy some KT tape and perhaps some inserts for her shoes. I ordered the tape she recommended off of Amazon. I'm going to look and see if I can find some inserts small enough for her the next time I get to an actual town with a Walmart. Gotta love our small town!

She didn't seem to think I needed to rush her to the doctor, but I wanted a second (or several) opinions on that. Suggestions or thoughts on what to do?

DD is almost 8. Just a few weeks shy and has been in gymnastics for 2 years. She has just started more advanced tumbling regularly (back tucks, front tucks etc) so I assumed the pain was just from more intense tumbling.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

see a good sports podiatrist. and one that sees gymnasts.

 

[wsg13]

Go see a Podiatrist! They will most likely give her orthotics or something like that

 

[floppycat]

I would think a large number of gymnasts are flat footed as it's common if you are hypermobile. Go see a podiatrist but there may be other reasons for this pain.

 

[skschlag]

We had no luck with the KT tape, but we did get some simple heel cups for ds, and his heel pain got much better. We saw a PT for this, and it helped a lot.

 

[2G1B]

My youngest has very high arches and they were leading to heel pain (in the Achilles area). She has orthodics for her shoes and I mostly only have her wearing sneakers now. She is also doing physical therapy for 6 weeks and it seems to be helping.

 

[wallinbl]

Get several opinions - sports podiatrist, PT, etc. There are definitely differing opinions on how to deal with this, and you should inform yourself.

 

[gymnastmom38]

My dd, who has flat feet, deals with Severs and Achilles tendinitis. If that is what your dd ends up having, I would suggest the following (as we have been dealing with it off and on for over 2 years): The X Brace (google it and you can find them). They are flesh colored braces she can wear to gymnastics that lift up the arch and support the achilles. And when her Severs is acting up she switches to the Cheetah Heel Cup, which offers more support to her heel.

An ice bath after practice helps, as does stretching. It's a long, slow process, unfortunately. One that is like a roller coaster. Good luck to you and your dd! You're definitely not alone though...there are many of us out there.

 

[B&M's mom]

Definitely get it checked out. My DD has relatively flat feet and the ortho checked her out. Turns out that some people are just generally flat footed. She didn't prescribe orthodics and over time my DD's arches have grown. My DD also has had Sever's but the ortho said that there was no relationship as it's a different mechanism in the foot causing that problem.

 

[gymgymgymnast08]

I got painful shin splints from having flat feet. I posted a link that explains how to tape arches for support. My physical therapist preferred this method over any brace. I liked wearing a brace better initially but found the tape supported my arches a lot better and then I had less pain. Good luck!

http://www.athleticadvisor.com/Injuries/LE/Foot&Ankle/arch_tape.htm

 

[stillgotmyleotard]

I think flat feet should always be diagnosed by a podiatrist as they can tell you whether they are a concern or not. I wear inserts in my shoes after my own feet flattened which are actually to support my ankle and hip joints and protect them for the future (I have Elhers-Danlos Syndrome in its hypermobility form). The corrections they have made to my posture and gait is quite astounding.

 

[aileenmaryf]

We had no luck with the KT tape, but we did get some simple heel cups for ds, and his heel pain got much better. We saw a PT for this, and it helped a lot.

My sister was having problems with her heels when she was about that age too. She got heel cups too and she never had a problem with her heels again! But I would definitely go see a sports medicine doctor if things don't get better. In my experience normal doctors aren't always able to find problems that someone in Sports Medicine would.

Hope this helps!

 

[gymmiemom]

Thanks everyone! I made DD an appointment today with a podiatrist. When I told my husband he was like "why I thought her coach said to the try the tape." I told him that everyone on CB unanimously suggested a doctor. I got no argument after that

 

[GymnasticsIsLife]

I have the same exact problem except that if you painted the bottom of my foot the whole footprint would show up. In other words I have no arch at all. This actually caused me to break my ankle over the summer and that's when the doctor started taking about ankle support. Every day I have to get both ankles taped and wear a brace one the one I broke. I have to do exercises at home as well, they are when you hold the wall and lift your ankle up like you are going to do a full turn. Some great ones come up when you google ankle exercises. As for the kt tape that stuff is GREAT! I would get it for the arches rather than anyth

 

[GymnasticsIsLife]

Haha sorry accidentally hit post! What I was saying was get the kt for the arches, it comes with great directions. Also you can leave it on for a few days and shower with it! Hope I could help!

 

[thefellowsmom]

My dd where's x-braces and this has helped with her heel pain a lot. They are based on an arch taping technique.

I think she is on the other end of the spectrum though with very high arches.

Also, heel pain is often caused by tight calves. gymnastcare.com has some great articles on heel pain and treatment plans. Ice baths, stretching, massage, bracing, taping etc.

I agree with getting some opinions so you know the root of the problem. This will give you more info when going about coming up with a plan.

Good luck at the doctor. Keep us posted!

 

[Keno11]

we are in the process of dealing with this right now as well. DD has a follow up appt with her podiatrist on the 11th and no vault until then (will be 4 weeks) and we took last week off of gym and 2 weeks from P.E.
She over pronates and we got inserts from the drs office ($35) .. right now she has to figure 8 tape both ankles (bc of possible stress fracture)... I did buy the xbrace before we got into see the dr and it did help some. I am hoping it will help prevent as bad a of a "flare up' if you will,after we get this issue cleared up.

My suggestion is to go to the dr. It is better to be safe than sorry.