[JillnChris]

DD has been walking now for almost 5 months. Just last week just started walking on her tip toes all the time! She rarely walks normally now and this has been going on for about a week.
Well, I work with small children and have heard that this is a red flag in children her age. So I looked it up on baby center and this is what it says...
" If your child is always tiptoeing, it's possible that she has a physical problem such as a short Achilles tendon that actually prevents her from standing flat-footed and limits her range of motion in the ankle. But consistent toe walking is more likely a sign of a motor disorder — most commonly, mild cerebral palsy. The most common form of cerebral palsy is "diplegia," which means it involves the bottom half of the body. This is the form of cerebral palsy most common in children who were born prematurely. If this is the case, your child is toe walking because her Achilles tendons and calf muscles are too tight, which means her heel is pulled up and her toes are pulled down.

If your child's doctor rules out cerebral palsy and other physical problems — if her muscle tone is fine, and she has a good range of motion in the ankle — then she'll likely be diagnosed with what's called idiopathic toe walking... Idiopathic toe walking may be associated with language delays and with certain forms of autism, so it's important to verify that your child's not having other problems with communication or socialization skills. You may want to schedule a development assessment to make sure."

Okay so now I am freaked out. She seems to be doing very well developmentally. She says about 10 words, she uses sign language, she climbs up stairs and pushes buttons. Also, her social skills seem very normal for her age. She goes to my sisters' in home daycare everyday and my neice is 2 weeks older than her and they are very similar in their skills.
Has anyone else's child done this and what was your experience?

[angelkisses0102]

Very common in kids with sensory issues. I think there was a very recent thread by one of the mods here...mommytoEli... about toe walking and her son being diagnosed with SPD/SID. My son has sensory issues but his does not manifest this way...just lots of other ways.

Don't panic! I suggest talking to your pedi and then having her evaluated by your early intervention program.

[mommytoEli]

welcome to my world. when i finally ended up in urgent care with eli bc he fell on his face and split open his tongue in three places, i called his doctor, who approved our visit to the physical therapist....his toe walking is apparently the result of sensory integration disorder. (he also likes to eat and lick non food items, but has trouble eating food, which is another sign...there is a whole list mindybeth6 posted a while back.) his toe walking also caused him to bust out his brother's tooth, get 2 black eyes, and he is bruised up and down his legs and typically at least one on his face....bc he just keeps falling. POOR BABY! the pt has me brushing his body, now 3 times per day......he likes it, i don't notice a difference...he is still COMPLETELY up on his toes...as in, the ball of his foot barely even touches the ground....he falls like every 5 -10 steps...and every time he changes direction. we go back soon....i think next week...i can't wait...i need some more help here!

we've been told about the links to autism....i am scared outta my mind!!!! i was also worried about it being cerebral palsy, but apparently it is just SID. let me see if i can find that old thread for you .....read it, and see if your child has any other issues.

here's my question...can she stand on her whole foot? eli can, but he just won't walk on it, that is how they decided he did not have CP....but dr also said if they don't get this fixed, his heel cords will tighten and he will always walk this way!

[mommytoEli]

hey angelkisses....your post wasn't here when i started typing...how funny....i agree with the pedi trip. most likey they will want to investigate or at least monitor!

i'm going to look for that old thread now. be back.

ok....here's my thread: make room for one more in the sensory integration disorder group :(

here is mindy's with a bunch of good info and lists: Sensory Integration Disorder anyone???

and from that thread, here is the post with the list: Sensory Integration Disorder anyone???

[JillnChris]

Thanks for the quick reply! See it is just so odd to me because she has been walking normally for the past 5 months. She is not on her tippy toes just the balls of her feet and she will walk flat maybe 10% of the time. And yes we have been have been having A LOT more accidents! I will schedule an appointment with her pediatrician.

[Mindybeth6]

I wouldn't worry....Mikayla has ALWAYS done this and for her, its a sensory thing:-)

[mommytoEli]

you know....i didn't notice it right away. i assumed he was walking normally, until we went to the beach, and he walked 1 mile on his toes...there in the sand i saw everyone else's feet, and only eli's toes...for a MILE! then i started noticing it more bc he was getting bigger and i couldn't carry him as much. then i thought it was his shoes, but i started making him be barefoot more, and then i saw it...the toe walking. i tried not to worry, thought it didn't happen all the time...but the taller he got, the harder he fell, and the more injured he got....the more i noticed it was ALL THE TIME! i think he had to have done it from the beginning, i just never noticed. also, when he is in shoes, you can barely tell bc he can not bend his foot up much. i think he was sneaking under my radar for several months. i asked the PT about this....bc she saw him last at 19 months (he is now 28 months), and watched him walk. she said for sure she knew he did not do it then, BUT he was a new walker (walked at 17.5 months), and new walkers tend to have a very wide gait.....you can not walk on your toes with a wide gait...so it is most likely that as soon as he began walking more steadily and his legs came in a little closer together, the toe walking started, and i missed it.

if you have her walking on tape...rollit back and see if her legs are farther apart than they are now....bc it might account for the fact that she didn't used to walk on her toes. just a thought.

either way....don't panic...i'm proud of you for noticing so quickly! go to the peds, don't let them write you off...if they try to tell you it is normal, ask how long it should continue before you get worried, or if you are VERY brave ask for a referral to a PT just to be sure. let us know what happens!!!!

[Mindybeth6]

OK I should re-phrase what I said. I said I wouldn't worry...but what I meant was, I wouldn't worry about it being something overly serious like CP. While I do think you should schedule an appointment to disucss it with your pedi, it may just be SID like Brook has talked about, or it could just be a stage she is going through. I am one to always error on the side of caution and have things looked at "just in case." Mikayla is now in therapy for her SID and laguage delay. Good luck and I hope that your pedi and can point you in the right direction:-)

[circap]

my niece does this all the time as well. Doctor has done different tests and has not found any issues.... all he can say now is that it has become a habit of hers. She is now a little over 2 and has done this since she was about 11 months old.

[CurlysGirly]

Devon just started toe walking about a week or so ago. You all know that I (mildly) FREAK about stuff like this knowing what I know about autism. Seeing your daughter's other dev. milestones it is probably more sensory orientated (if you are seeing some of those other cues). We are seeing the other sensory stuff in terms of food (gagging on food, trying to eat non-food items), sensory seeking behavior, etc so I am going to mention it tomorrow at her 18 month appointment. I am thankful that I just found a wonderful OT close to home that just started working with my son and is (GASP!) covered under insurance

[DPline]

I definetly would agree with the previous posters about having it checked out, but just to encourge you, a friend of mine has four children all of whom were toe walkers and outgrew it. And have no other issues. Her kids are now 9, 7, 5, and almost 3. Her youngest still does it on occasion, but less and less frequently.

Good luck!

[JillnChris]

Does anybody have a list of sensory issues and examples?

[Saya]

Anabel does this - it also seems to be related to some sensory issues she has (which seem pretty minor). She CAN walk normally, but she just prefers to be as off-balance as possible! Unlike Eli she hardly ever falls down though - I'm STILL not sure how she does it!

I mentioned it to her ped - he said not to worry as long as she was doing just fine in other ways. He also said if she wears high-tops it will be harder to do. Of course now it's sandal weather. Oh well. . .

I think it's a great idea to go to the doctor. But remember, the internet is NOT your friend with these type of things. Toe walking CAN be a sign of an underlying problem but it can also just be a habit that goes away in time.

[mommytoEli]

Originally Posted by JillnChris

Does anybody have a list of sensory issues and examples?

yes, it was in mindybeth6's thread. click here:

Sensory Integration Disorder anyone???

[tinaedmond]

FWIW, DD toe walked for the better part of a year, year and a half. She was a late walker at 17 months of age, is now 5 1/2 and is a happy, healthy little girl. No more toe walking. We mentioned the toe walking once or twice to our ped who said not to worry about it. The international adoption specialist we saw for a few months after she came home (just before beginning to walk) also said there was nothing to be concerned about. Like others have said, definitely get it checked out but if your child is developing well in other areas I think she's just fine (although not freaking about it is easier said than done, since it's not my daughter we're talking about here!)

Tina