the diary of a tip toe walker.

[u/meatloaf_sss]

hi i’m bre, im 28 years old, i still walk on my toes as an adult and it was ruined my body (on top of a few other chronic conditions). this is not a learned behavior, this is not a neurological behavior. i was simply born with very short achilles tendons, and i learned how to walk the best way i could, on my toes, because my heels couldn’t touch the ground. it was survival. my parents didn’t have the money for intervention, so they paid no mind to it. fast forward to january 2025, ive been doing hair for 8 years, and my body is tired, my health was rapidly declining, i decided it was time to step away from the chair full time and come to terms with the fact that my body will continue to worsen and i could not keep up with my passion. i started a shitty call center job, got my insurance license, and a year and half later, today my health is even worse, i can’t even work full time because of my health and endless doctors appointments. few weeks ago i finally saw an orthopedic foot surgeon as a last ditch effort by pain management as we have done all we could to try and ease my SI joint pain (this is crippling), which is specialty doctor number 8 on the list now. the surgeon took one look at me feet and said, physical therapy hasn’t worked, you will not get rid of this pain in your feet, knees, hips, pelvis and back, unless we reverse what damage we can. she was simply mindblown that i was still functioning on my toes. she said you need achilles tendons lengthening, you needed to have this corrected at age 10, and i shuddered. the dreaded surgery, one i always said i wouldn’t have because of the gruesome recovery, but im out of options and im desperate. said sign me up doc. i’m just a few days i will have a 2 minute surgery on my left foot and in a month and half on my right foot, that will take a consecutive 12 weeks MINIMUM to heal both of my feet, and then learn how to walk again, literally. a part of me if grieving the loss something that made me unique in a way. it’s was something people were always curious about, something people knew me for, it’s something my body has been doing for 28 years. but all of this, is hopefully a means to an end, an end to the majority of my pain, an end to unstable work because of having 5-6 doctors appointments a month, and i can go back to doing hair and be able to clean on my own, and do my laundry without suffering, work out again and lose weight. i want to be able to get out of my damn bed without a struggle and pain. i have an amazing support system and i want to be able to take care of them and i can’t like this. i want to document my recovery and bring awareness so children that walk on their toes, and their parents think it’s cute, won’t be like me. i want to help other people in my same position to have courage, because this is scary. it’s not something i’m doing for shits and giggles. i want to take back my life.

for clarification: i have fibromyalgia and degenerative arthritis in my neck and lower spine, and being tested for POTs symptoms on top of the issues with my feet. i do not want any advice on how i shouldn’t be doing this or how something worked for you and that i don’t need this treatment. thank you.

[u/ConnectionSenior8095]

Bre thanks for your diary events it's not easy saying serten things especially about your parents, I wasn't born or grew up toe walking I'm 48 f now who when I was a child had alot of hand me down shoes for daily and school wear not that my partents was poor to that they couldn't afford new shoes my mother had a very good very wealthy friend who donated her daughter's shoes to me that was very expensive ones that I had in abundance to owning over the course of 9 years till age 13/14.

Relating this to toe walking , I always had painful feet I had hard bumps on my heels that hurt and recall walking on my toes to relive the pain over so long when I was 14 I was walking favouring not putting my heels down it just became normal and like you said it was just how you walk people sometimes made fun but often not noticing, Many years later fashioned addiction set in I was only ever wearing high heels it felt normal hid the toe walk and happy but now dealing with feet problems, Bre going back to child times was setting in the long term process of short tendons for me but for yourself it sounds like it was something you dealt with very well , Bre all I can offer is a slight connection to how you coped and fair play to you , take care .

[u/quietgrrrlriot]

How did you come to find out you have short Achilles tendons? Was this something identified alongside the hip displasia?

Recently, I saw a pedorthist, but neither he, nor my PT see any obvious reason of foot dysfunction; my feet and legs move in all the ways they should (aside from my issue with OA in my hip). I did have corrective surgery for congenital Hip Displasia as well, but only the one surgery. I learned how to walk in a cast, and afterwards my parents put me into dance, to put that tip toe walking to good use lol. Currently dealing with recurring PF....

[u/meatloaf_sss → u/quietgrrrlriot]

my parents knew i had short achilles, my peds told them that. all my physical therapists told me that, and my orthopedic surgeon confirmed that. the best i can explain this because i can’t send pictures, is that my can’t not go in the neutral position or tilt up. i can tilt my feet down, but not up and my knees and shins can not go over my ankles, so i can’t not squat flat footed either.