2 Yr. Old with Foot Pain...

My son had this pain as well. I took him to the Dr. who refered me to a pediatric foot specialist at Children's hospital.

It was caused by his lack of muscle development in his arch and calves. It is completely normal (and often diagnosed as "growing pains") and once we got proper shoes with arches, he was MUCH better. We also had the option of getting insoles.

I had been buying the most expensive shoes and not paying attention to the arch support. Most often, it is the cheap shoes that have the best arch support, oddly enough.

Good luck!

J.

K.,

I don't know about broken bones in the womb, but if you feel it's more than growing pains then by all means, talk to your doc. We as parents are our kids' first, best advocate. Most of us have great instincts when it comes to our kids, follow what your gut says and don't take no for an answer.

Hope it's just little boys being little boys,
Supportively,
Melissa

When I went to a podiatrist 9 years ago, I found out that I had quite a few problems, and he informed me that I had many of my problems that were there right in the beginning (he said, "you were born with this"). I remembered that in highschool, my knees "gave out" on several occasions, and that my ankles would swell to twice their size oftentimes.

Anyways, who cares what the doctor thinks? Your job as a mother trumps caring about seeming "paranoid." Yeah, it could be growing pains, but what if it's something more? I would get the referral to go to a podiatrist, if the x-ray doesn't show any broken bones healed wrong (yes, getting an x-ray is a good idea).

Don't worry about being a paranoid mom. You know a lot more than you think you do. If you have a feeling about something being wrong - by all means follow it. Follow your intuition. Too many of us didn't follow our intuition and were sorry later. Trust your instincts. The unhappy baby thing can also be due to food allergies as well as what you think it is. We just never know until we get it checked out.

I hope that you find some solutions and that you will have a much happier son. God bless!

I would take him to your pediatrician and ask for a physical therapist. They have a wonderful clinic at marybridge. good luck

K., I think it's entirely reasonable to ask your pediatrician to have x-rays done. Something is going on, and you certainly are not crazy or paranoid. You are a mom, and clearly a good one. A pediatrician who makes you feel any differently shouldn't be a pediatrician.

This doesn't sound like growing pains to me. I'm sure all is fine, but ask the doctor. That's what he or she is there for. Good luck!

K.,
I can't speak to the injury itself, but if your pediatrician makes you feel crazy or paranoid, maybe you should find a new doctor! I work in the medical field with mothers and I cannot tell you how many times I have heard a mother express a concern that was not validated by her caregivers. The mothers are sometimes right, sometimes not right, but if you are concerned, that should be taken seriously!
What a great mom you are, to listen to your instincts on this.

HI K.! YOu know, it almost sounds like his foot might be cramping up. Mine do this and have since I was a little girl, and it almost always happens in the middle of the night! What stops the cramps is to stretch out the arch of the foot, by grabbing my toes and pulling them back or stretching my foot and arch by standing on my feet. maybe that's what's happening to your little guy? Good luck!

Hello,

Muscle pain can come from all kinds of factors. Mine is usally when my diet is off and I am over saturated with sugar. Something to consider is visiting a naturopath. :)
Many Blessings to you and your family.

K.S.

My second son had the same thing. If it happens in the night, I bet it's growing pains. He doesn't complain about it during the day when he's jumping, right? I think there is a supplement that will help that- go see your heath food lady. I would tell him that it's a part of growing up to be a big guy. In the morning I would say- "Look at those long legs- where did THEY come from?"

Our son used to have growing pains when he was that age and older--I think if it was a bone issue it wouldn't come and go like that. Lots of good advice here--it's easy for doctors to miss a broken bone in a toddler, even with x-rays--that happpened to my little brother, so if you still feel it could be that, get a second opinion, go with your instincts. Changing his diet, as suggested by someone else to include more potassium and protein will help if it is a muscle thing. We would massage my son's arch and give him tylenol in the night if massaging didn't help it go away.

My thought is that it could be muscle cramping. Try giving him a banana after jumping, since you don't know when he will jump, until he jumps. Maybe some protein as well, to accomodate the growing spurts. Peanut butter and banana sandwiches are very tasty and might be a great replenishing treat after jumping, and/or any other activity that might trigger this pain.

Also, you can feel around on his feet and see if the one feels different than the other. I don't think he would be jumping if it was a problem. It would already hurt too much. I think the jumping is overworking the one foot. Watch how he takes off and lands and compare the relationship to the foot that is hurting. Maybe he uses his feet differently, so the one hurts and the other one doesn't. Then give him the pbb sandwich and see how that goes.
Blessings,
J.

I would have it checked. It is possible that there is a hairline fracture that can not heal due to his continued jumping.

My heavenly days--- K. you are AMAZING ---. Your lamb is almost certainly landing a bit wrong on the foot he leads with- if it were damaged - it would be horribly painful and he wouldn't jump -. My now 9 year old grandsom ( who lived w/ me til he was 8 - sigh-- ) - did the same-- healthy, athletic little guys - just pushing the limits and trying to do what the BIG boys do. I am sure your doctor will assure you if he walks like a two year old and persists in jumping - there is very little chance that there's a bone issue- but good for you--- and

Many, many blessings,
J.

When I was a kid (although a little older than your lil' guy), I had a hairline fracture in my little toe from whatever antics I was up to at the time. It was a dull ache that slowly got worse. My mom still feels guilty for not taking me to the doctor for an x-ray sooner, I lived with it for several weeks. One of those hard to tell injuries. I think if he's complaining more after jumping around it could be something like that.

Good luck!

My son also had this right before he turned three and he is a constant jumper... chairs, beds, couch, stools. He couldn't be stopped and he would complain of foot pain. I took him to our chiropractor and he diagnosed his with shin splints and one of his ankles had become "out of place". It wasn't dislocated but the ankle is a joint that can be "out". He was able to adjust it with no pain to my son and we talked about not jumping as much to heal the shin splints and he never complained about his feet again. Good Luck!