Toe walking

goldenleaves

My son is 3 and has always toe walked. I don't think he has any other signs of ASD other than he was a little late to talk which we think was due to a right frenulum that was surgically repaired at 2.

We're takin him to the pedi next week for it. I'm nervous. I'm nervous about how it can be fixed. I'm nervous about maybe getting the autism talk. He's a healthy kid so I'm nervous about taking him to the doctor. I'm just plain nervous.

Our daughter has Down syndrome so I'm not new to doctors appointments far from it!

Anyone else taken their kiddo to the pedi to specifically address toe walking? Please help me!

LALASEPT05

Both of my kids are toe walkers at times. We've been through lots of evaluations and I think its a sensory seeking behavior. I wouldn't necessarily be too concerned about it unless its linked to other things that you or the doctor notice. Good luck today.

birdie_1010

My middle son with ASD did a variation of toe walking, instead he walked on his heels. We were able to stop the behavior by providing him with a sensory diet.

If there are not any other red flags, I wouldn't be too worried about autism.  I would be prepared to answer the run down of autism related questions though.  You are smart to be prepared for that. Good luck!

Karma1969

My nephew was a toe walker with no other issues.  He's in his first year at University of Michigan and continues not to have any issues and walks like your average 18 year old. 

 

Somethings are just quirks and not a symptom of a bigger issue.

realisticdreams

P was a toe walker 90% of the time prior to her tethered cord release surgery.  It's not always a sign of something though, if you are truly worried about it and he has any other medical symptoms on par with a tethered cord a neurosurgeon is who you would see.

Good luck! 

goldenleaves

Thanks guys!

I've been putting it off for a while due to our daughters major medical needs. It just wasn't top priority because it doesn't bother him. He CAN walk normally and does when we remind him. I'm actually kind of excited to see what the ped says.

kcisthebombdotcom

If that's your only symptom I really wouldn't worry. That can be a sensory thing.  I'm guessing most NT kids present with some sensory behavior at some point (heck, I'm sure we know a lot of adults that need sensory input through biting nails or chewing gum frequently!). When they impact development that's when you have to intervene. It's wise to talk to your pedi since this has been going on for a while but I wouldn't be concerned if this is the sole symptom tbh.

My son has sensory issues and displayed some signs of autism when he was younger (hyperfocus on preferred activities with no attention to nonpreferred, no eye contact, lining stuff up). He definitely doesn't have autism--he does amazingly socially and grew out of those quirks. He has some remaining sensory issues but they're pretty minor in the grand scheme of things and he seems to self-regulates fairly well. Kids can definitely present with some quirks that are associated with autism that will just go away with time.

goldenleaves

Thanks so much for your responses!

Kristie330

One thing I would ask about is a Physical Therapy referral, and see a pediatric specialist. I am a pediatric PT and we see lots of kids who toe walk. As PP it doesn't necessarily mean anything. But working with a therapist can help provide some strategies to make sure he can grow up and walk "normally". Good luck!