Fracture Boot & DW...not a good combination

[hopelea]

DD (14) just returned from her orthopedic doctor. She has been in a fracture boot on her right leg for 2 weeks....looks like she will be in it until Dec. 6th!! Apparently, she has a hairline fracture in her little bone above the ankle....

We leave for DW in 9 days! For those of you that have been to the world with a fracture boot.....what were your challenges? The only thing I can think of that she can't do is Splash Mountian....but who wants to in November anyway

Any tips you can give me will be great appreciated!!!

TIA

 

[ArmandXG]

Not so much tips at WDW but for the boot in general. I blew my foot out (severe Plantar Fasciitis) in WDW and ended up finishing the trip on crutches. I didn't get my boot until I returned home.
I kept getting stuck on/ at counters where there is a small toe space near the floor. The tip of the boot would get hung up and I would get stuck as I tried to walk away. So, make sure the tip of the boot is not under the counter.
Also, find a shoe that is equal in height. I either wore my Dansko clog in winter or FitFlop in summer. I was more evenly balanced. If I wore the wrong shoe, I had a problem with falling over. Actually it wasn't much of a "problem"... I fell over quite well and quite frequently! It also helped with body alignment. If she is going to be walking a lot, her hips will be out of alignment and her whole body will begin to ache. So make sure she has an evenly matched shoe, height wise.

I hope this helps. I'm sorry she has to go through this. Hope she gets better soon. I have a lot of sympathy for her!

 

[hopelea]

Thanks! We were just talking about her shoes not matching up. She likes to wear Converse and they are FLAT. She runs cross country, this is how she fractured her leg....so maybe her running shoes will match a little better....If not, we will have to go shoe shopping!

 

[SnoWhiteRabbit]

Maybe get a wheelchair & definitely see about getting a pass...

Hope you have a great trip!

 

[ZoZo]

I have a great solution you might want to try, since your daughter is a teenager (I think this should work for her).

I just had heel/Achilles tendon surgery 10 weeks ago. Was not supposed to put any weight on my foot for 4 to 5 weeks. I rented a "knee scooter", one of those great inventions that make life so much easier when recovering from surgeries or bone breaks.

This is a scooter that you can rest one knee on, and push yourself around with the other foot. What a lifesaver! I never used crutches at all, and it was soooo easy to get around with it. I was able to rent it for about $120 a month from a medical supply place (and my insurance reimburses me for 80% of that expense, so it really only cost me $24/month!).

The brand I had was called a "Kneal Knee Scooter". Make sure you get the kind with the pivoting back wheels. It makes going around corners and in tight places really easy.

Hope this solution works for you! There is so much walking around WDW, it's a great way for her to take some weight off her feet. Even if she can put some weight on her foot, it would help to give her a break.

 

[KPeveler]

Maybe get a wheelchair & definitely see about getting a pass...

Hope you have a great trip!

Yes, you should get a wheelchair. Check out the disABILITIES board for more info!

You should know that there is no "pass" that would help in this situation. There is a Guest Assistance Card, which is meant to help alert CMs to invisible needs (ie, a need to avoid stairs for a person who can otherwise wait in regular lines, or a person who needs to wait out of the sun). A GAC does NOT shorten wait times, and can even make a wait longer.

Disney's response to a mobility or stamina concern is to rent a wheelchair, which would definitely help in this situation.

Most lines are mainstreamed, so even with a wheelchair, you will just go into the regular line. If anything is done differently, then the CM at the entrance will tell you,

 

[Sleeping Becca]

You may also consider renting a scooter from an offsite company for the week. While you would never dream of getting one at home, WDW is a ton of walking and even for really fit folks, throwing out your back because of even slight alignment issues is no joke. You don't want to add insult to injury, esp if she is a runner, you don't want to do anything that could possible cause her to loose more running time.Good Luck!

 

[KPeveler]

You may also consider renting a scooter from an offsite company for the week. While you would never dream of getting one at home, WDW is a ton of walking and even for really fit folks, throwing out your back because of even slight alignment issues is no joke. You don't want to add insult to injury, esp if she is a runner, you don't want to do anything that could possible cause her to loose more running time.Good Luck!

Unfortunately, no on-site or off-site company will rent to a 14 yr old. So it will have to be a wheelchair.

 

[Sleeping Becca]

OH Gosh, I saw the title and it said DW, so I thought it was a wife and not a daughter. Soooooo sorry! Yes, Kevin is correct no scooter, but a wheelchair or the knee scooter may work.

 

[hopelea]

Thanks for all the advice. She doesn't want any special attention drawn to her. She says she will manage just fine w/o a wheelchair. She says she will just go a little slower. That will be hard for me because I am at full speed at DW!!! I tried talking my DH into upgrading to a deluxe hotel so we wouldn't have so far to walk from the bus stops.....didn't work It would be $1000 more just to change from POP to AKL or WL!!

Thanks again...great suggestions!

 

[lovethattink]

DD (14) just returned from her orthopedic doctor. She has been in a fracture boot on her right leg for 2 weeks....looks like she will be in it until Dec. 6th!! Apparently, she has a hairline fracture in her little bone above the ankle....

We leave for DW in 9 days! For those of you that have been to the world with a fracture boot.....what were your challenges? The only thing I can think of that she can't do is Splash Mountian....but who wants to in November anyway

Any tips you can give me will be great appreciated!!!

TIA

My son didn't have any ride challenges when he had his fractured ankle. The orthopedic doctor put him in a cast from his foot to his knee cap. Crutches were a problem. They hurt his underarms using them all day. We ended up renting a wheel chair for the week from a local home health care store. It was much easier for him to get around all day, but it wasn't all that easy on us to push him, especially the monorail ramps at the TTC were a challenge to push him up, and keep him from running over people heading down the ramp.

 

[BethC1952]

A few summers ago, DH broke BOTH feet jumping rope with our DGD. He was still in one boot when we went to WDW. He wouldn't get a scooter or a chair, so we just took things at his pace. The tip about matching shoe height is the best one ever. Once he figured that out, he enjoyed the trip!

Good luck with your trip!

Beth

 

[ironz]

I clomped around WDW twice (2 visits) this winter in a boot I had for a stress fracture in my foot. I didn't have any real difficulties...anyone healthy such as a cross country runner probably wouldn't. It does get a little heavy, so you will just need to slow down a little. Wearing the same height shoe on the other foot helps a lot...don't want to be off kilter, for walking as well as to maintain normal biomechanics.

The only ride I had trouble on was Space Mountain. The boot doesn't really fit in the space next to the seat in front of you where your feet go on either side, so your leg is bent up more and it's hard to get the lap bar down. I suggest if you ride SM she get in the front of the car.

If it's cold, bring an extra sock for the toes on the boot side.

 

[hopelea]

Thanks for all the great tips!!! I am sharing all of them with my dd!! Space Mountain is something that can't be missed for her....so riding in the front is great advice....she will love that as well Extra socks are something that I didn't think about either!!! Will put those in the suitcase!

 

[wdvak]

My youngest daughter was in a boot for 5 months in 2004. She was lucky and got out of it the week we left for WDW. we did take the boot with us as the doctor wasn't sure that she would be able to manage all the walking right off, but she did

The main problem was shoe height and the extra socks. You need extra socks for warmth and if it gets wet she'll want to change it as it is uncomfortable. I hope everything goes well and that you have a good vacation.

 

[lovetoscrap]

Thanks for all the great tips!!! I am sharing all of them with my dd!! Space Mountain is something that can't be missed for her....so riding in the front is great advice....she will love that as well Extra socks are something that I didn't think about either!!! Will put those in the suitcase!

On the opposite side, if it is warm (and even when it is cold) that boot can be very uncomfortable and chafe. I would wrap a hand towel around my leg before I put my boot on. It was big enough to go all the way around and cover from my ankle to just below the knee. Just having that towel material to absorb sweat and keep the foam from rubbing helped a lot summer and winter (I was in one for almost 2 years). If the boot is an air cast then you probably can't do this since it needs to fit snugly. I was in a CamWalker.

Keep any eye on her. She may not want any special attention but at 14 she thinks she is young and invincible and may not want to tell you if she is in pain or overtired. You may need to insist on breaks and if it comes down to it a wheelchair. Even if she used it just to take a break and sit while in lines it may make her days much happier (and thus everyone's days!)

Because she is not an adult, you will find that an offsite rental wheelchair specifically for her size will be much more comfortable for her.