I took Hannah to her orthotics fitting this afternoon. Now that I am aware of her constantly rolling her ankles because of weakness (hypotonia), I can see why it will be a good idea for her. The procedure itself was incredibly easy. The orthotics specialist just took about 9 measurements on each foot and that was it. Hannah did great, and she only squirmed during the last measurement!
We still don’t know if the insurance company will cover it, but they will let us know when they process the paperwork. Keeping my fingers crossed there.
He gave me a choice of patterns, and I chose the “blossom” pattern. My reasoning? I thought Abigail would like it the best out of all of them. You know, my girly girl. Cute little pink and purple flowers with butterflies.
The orthotics specialist told us that he would probably give me a call in about 3 weeks to bring Hannah in to test the fit. Also, he made the comment that it is more difficult to find shoes that will fit over the orthotic braces at her age, but you know me, I will take on that challenge.
It is kind of bittersweet though. Until now, Hannah hasn’t needed any “outward” assistive devices. To everyone on the street, she just looks like a normal happy baby. This will be the first assistive device that she will have to have. I know, it is stupid because a lot of kids have these, and it could be SO much worse.
But it is nice being able to be in denial every once in a while…
The people still need to call and let me know when I can take B in to be fitted for his braces. I think it would’ve affected me too, but (a) my husband had to wear braces and (b) it’s not nearly as obvious as the stander and gait trainer they want him in (now, THAT was a shock). My window of denial is quickly coming to a close. 🙁
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Isn’t it funny, the things that get to you? Michaela has been wearing DAFO’s at night for the past year and I remember putting them on her thie first time and having to leave the room because I was tearing up. She’s being fitted for another set of braces this week, so now her whole legs will be braced at night….breaks my heart.
If you’re looking for shoes that will fit over orthotics, there is a great company called Hatchbacks that makes shoes for kids. I don’t know how small the sizes go, but I have heard nothing but good things about them!
Here’s a link for you: http://www.hatchbacksfootwear.com.
I also wanted to give you another link to Keeping Pace shoes: http://www.keepingpace.com/. They have shoes as small as size 4. I don’t have any experience with them, but they appear to have some good selections too.
Liv’s orthotics were a little different, but Striderite was a good fit for us.