shoes question for Marcia

January 27, 2006

Hi Marcia,

I hope you don't mind me asking but I was just wondering why you are

ordering the s if your daughter was doing okay with the Markells?

My daughter's Markells are coming in a week or so (the new model with

opening in the heel) and I am really hoping she'll do fine in them.

I wanted to go straight to the s but my husband thinks we ought to

try the Markells first since they do cost much less.

Anyway, I guess we mostly hear about problems with Markell shoes on this

site just because people tend to post mainly if they are frustrated with the

Markells or need suggestions on how to get the baby to tolerate them. I

guess that's why I wanted to avoid them altogether!

Thanks Marcia,

Halley

Re: Hayden in the Markells

Wow, what a journey for you guys. I don't know about the mitchells as we

just ordered our pair two days ago. However, I'm glad to hear the Markells

seem to be working for him for now! That's definitely great news. My dd was

in the Markells after her tenotomy and was very wimpery/whiney for a couple

of days, but then settled right into them and was totally fine with them, no

complaining ever. So hopefully that will be the case for you guys while you

wait for the s to come in. Heck, if you get the hang of the Markells

and they're working you may not want to switch to mitchells. Why change when

it's working, eh? Good luck either way!

Marcia

Hayden in the Markells

Sorry it has taken me so long to post about this - things have been a

little crazy around here! I took Hayden to see Dr. Pirani on Tuesday

after we had removed his right cast on Monday due to major skin

breakdown and actual maceration (where the flesh had split open in the

crease about a centimetre (1/8th of an inch). The back of his knee

was very rashy (eczema like), peeling, irritated, weeping and what I

would describe as " mushy " and smelled like nothing I can describe.

Interestingly enough, this cast had only been on for two weeks, but

prior to that the tenotomy casts were on for four and he was fine.

What the...?? Well, who knows anything anymore. Not me.

Since were still waiting for the s, hubby and I had decided

that we would put Hayden into the Markells temporarily until they

arrived and I called the orthotist the night before to give her the

heads up that she'd need to bring the " tiny shoes " for Hayden's little

feet.

On the way out I was very anxious and trying to keep it together

because I was just feeling so bad about his skin, but once I got to

the hospital, the staff there are all pretty jovial and I felt better

immediately. While we waited for Dr. Pirani to have a look at

Hayden's skin, we kept the left cast on and fitted his right foot and

the orthotist advised me that the s were at the border. Good

news!

Long story short, we removed the other cast (the back of that knee was

also quite sore looking), fitted the Markells on him and he got quite

fussy which eventually escalated to full on FREAKING OUT. He was so

upset that there was no way I could ride transit back to home and

called my hubby in a panic, bawling my eyes out. He said he'd finish

up and come get me and I waited in the hospital. The orthotist

wandered by and noticed I was still there - I told her he was NOT

HAPPY and she suggested that maybe the backs of his legs were hurting

and got me some special bandages to put over the sore parts and that

helped us make it home. He was fussy most of the night and then cried

ALL. NIGHT. His longest stretch of sleep was about an hour I think.

I took heart in the knowledge that many, many people have posted

about this exact same thing and there is just a transition period.

Plus I knew the shoes were not hurting him because I had removed them

and put them back on twice and he was cool with it. Did I say long

story short? Hmmm...

By five am hubby and I were at each others' throats due to extreme

sleep deprivation and I got up to watch t.v. or something. Hayden

went back to sleep after nursing. Later that day we got a call from

the orthotist saying the s were in and hubby could come get

them (his office is conveniently two doors down from their office),

but that there were some issues with them. I'll say. They are two

different sizes and none of the hardware was sent to attach them to

the bar. Quel disappointment. Big time. Has this ever happened to

anyone else? Now we have to send them back and start over. I was so

excited to get them on Hayden, too because they are so lovely and soft.

Anyway, Hayden is fine with the Markells for now and the next night

was completely okay - he slept just fine, which was a relief. I'm

just glad to have him out of casts.

P.S. His skin is healing up just fine!

January 28, 2006

Hi there. Well, her situation is a bit different than the average clubfoot baby.

She also had dislocated hips and had surgery for them, and as a result is in a

cast from her armpits to her ankles. The challenge is that her feet are at

slightly different heights and angles and with the Markells it was putting

pressure on the top of her one foot and her ankle. We're hoping with the

s (which are softer and more flexible) that the shoe will flex more and

not cause the pressure on her foot. HOWEVER, this is the only reason we are

switching. We were very happy with the Markells for about 6 months, until she

had the surgery for her hips. She had a couple of fussy days after she got them

and then was happy as could be and didn't seem to even notice the shoes. Oh, and

we're fortunate that our insurance company covers all this stuff 100% so we

figure it's worth trying the s. Good luck to you though. Most children

tolerate the Markells just fine!