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Autistic Daughter and painful feet

NAS86155

My 13 year old autistic daughter struggles with painful feet. She walks normally (she doesn't walk on tip toes). It is clear a large aspect of this is sensory - when she is stressed or tired her feet become painful much more quickly and the discomfort appears much greater also. However I suspect the pain is not just stress / tired related, as even on a good day she will complain her feet are sore much sooner than for a non-autistic person.

Is painful feet a common problem for autistic people? We are on a NHS waiting list to see a podiatrist, but besides trying to find footwear that is good for people with planta fasciitis, I wondered if there is anything else we can do that could help our daughter. The frustrating thing for us is it limits greatly her ability to exercise, and to control her anxiety (she can't relieve her anxiety easily through walking). Thanks for your help.

  • I have plantar fascitis, its horrible, I was sent to see a biometric podiatrist, the made me insoles that made my feet hurt worse than without them. I get my shoes from Moshulu as they have good soles and are very well made, they seem to be the only ones who make shoes for British shaped feet if that makes any sense? I have some gel based insoles that I use in my wellies and they're very good too.

  • One aspect which is a bit awkward is that different people experience their feet finishing growth at different age groups.

    When I was your daughter's age, I used to struggle with the school approved shoes.  Three main reasons: they did not necessarily match my foot shape, my family tend to have a high arch needing a more supportive shoe style and I was above average height for a girl and young woman.

    My GP at the time pointed out that as many adults in my family were above average height; it wasn't so surprising that the children-styled shoes were not working well for me.

    The GP said traditional data suggests females often might have reached their final shoe size by around age 14, whereas for males that might be much later - maybe around age 18, or even into their 20's.

    The GP's caveat included that there is no hard rule on these age guidances.  He wondered if, from a taller family, personally for me as a female - that might be quite a while beyond age 14.  He was correct about that (my adult shoe size turned out to be 2 sizes larger than my one of age 13 or 14).

    My GP suggested, at age 14, I should try a more supportive adult woman-intended shoe (he was happy to be quoted along those lines) - including when my mother wrote to the school: clarifying the school approved styles were no longer were available in my size and "x" more supportive adult woman range shoe would be what I wore from now onwards.

    In later adulthood a combined efforts by a podiatrist who had s clinic in our GP Practice and a sports physio helped me to discover the perfect-for-me out of the workplace footwear (as it turns out: a men's style trekking trainer - as it offers the footbed shape and lacing which works for active me) and their expert eyes suggested full insole to provide the level of arch support which suits me.  This combo, which I so wish I discovered decades sooner, means I can set my mind on walking somewhere - and being comfortable throughout.

    For workplace-suitable shoes their suggestion was to make use of a half insole.  It is OK and helps to some extent. 

    My compromise: is to drive a car in my trekking trainers, reserving the workplace shoes set up for the office environment only. 

    The trick, for me, is not to "put up with" the inappropriate shoe mode if my plan for the day changes from prior plan (so keep the other option available and be disciplined enough to change footwear if the plan now includes more walking on concrete or tarmac than expected - because if I cheat and use the office shoe - I will definitely pay for it later in the day / week).

    A tip: is to get into the habit of visually checking your bare feet daily - in case you don't get all the discomfort feedback from which you might have gained early warning of a problem arising.

    Another tip: every so often, look at the wear becoming visible on your socks and also on the internal footbed / insoles inside your shoes - as they too can show you early warning signs of discomfort for which you may experience suboptimal feedback.

  • good luck with NHS - we found them really helpful with arch insoles for my ND son which he used through to mid-teens.  He never mentioned pain with his feet though

  • I do not know if this is relevant. but I do two things to make my feet more comfortable - additional to autism I have feet that are broad and very high-arched, which makes finding comfortable shoes a challenge. Firstly, I tend to buy boots, the ability to tighten them around the ankle means I can get away with buying a size larger than my feet suggest, giving them more room. This allows the second thing I do, and that is to wear two pairs of socks, as the socks can slide one against the other it cuts down on the friction that the foot experiences - it is something that hikers often do.