Spasticity and Splints (Part 2)

As I mentioned in the first post, I have had three pairs of splints in the last few months. The original pair of new splints did not fit the shape of my feet at all… Something drastically went wrong with the mould. I think the Orthotist (the person who deals with Orthotics) forced my leg and foot into an unnatural position when they took the mould. It was painful too, which isn’t normal. When I looked at the mould, I thought that it looked weird (it didn’t look like my leg at all), but I just went with it because you would think that they know what they’re doing…

As I suspected, when I went to pick up my splints, they didn’t fit, so they adjusted them… I took them home because I was told that I needed to wear them like new shoes, but I don’t see how because they won’t change shape because they’re plastic, not leather… Is it really like wearing shoes in?

Anyway, they heated them and pulled the sides of the ankle out a bit. When I tried them on again at the hospital, they still weren’t right but they told me to take them home and try walking in them… When I went for a walk, it hurt a lot, so I stopped and told my mum. I then had to wear them again and take photos of the marks they left. (It was like a bruise on my heel.) Every step I took was agony! I sent an email with the photos attached, and I got an appointment to see the Orthotist the next day.

I went to the appointment and got plastered again. This time, the mould looked more like my foot, so I was more optimistic. Little did I know that these splints would be just as problematic. When I went to the appointment to collect my splints, I tried them on and everything appeared to be fine, so I took them home.

I went for a walk on 25 November 2024, and I got two very painful blisters on the left side of my right foot after walking 0.55Km. It started to hurt shortly after I started walking but I gave it a go and carried on because I wanted to show that I had given them a good go, but I was in agony and had to stop. I usually walk between 0.7Km and 1Km. When I got home, my foot was throbbing and I saw two very painful blisters on the inside of my right foot. I use my foot for every-day activities, like typing, and I could hardly do that because the dressing was getting in the way. I sit on the floor at home and go around the flat on my hands and knees, and I couldn’t even move without hurting my foot.

I had another appointment on 28 November and they put extra padding in the splints, which seemed comfy to start with, so I took them home again… It took a few weeks for the blisters to heal completely, so I didn’t walk for ages and it was horrible. The

whole debacle really messed with my mental health.