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  • Hi Everyone!
    It is so encouraging to hear from everyone and to believe that one day I will actually be able to reach my feet again (no more great excuses for pedicures!)! I have to tell you that I took all your advice and this morning for my walk I pre-tied my regular shoes and then used the long shoe horn and a hook thingie to put them on. I held the tongue in place with the hook and used the shoe horn and it worked great! I had been given that hook tool in the hospital and had never used it before, now it is invaluable! I had been using my slip on shoes, even walking 2-3 miles in flip flops (shame on me), but am now so excited to be back to my regular athletic shoes. Ed, it is so encouraging to hear you talk about fins and ski boots - I was very active before surgery and am anxious to resume some of those parts of my life. I know I am not even 3 months postOp, so I am tring to be patient with myself. I can tell that is going to be one of the hardest things for me! Again, thanks to everyone for the advice - you made my day!
    Suzanne

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    • Originally posted by titaniumed View Post

      A long shoe horn is good to have. They have them about 18 inches long. Pre-tie your shoes or sneakers and use the shoe horn.
      Ed,

      I do have a long shoe horn (hospital supplied me with one to take home), but it wouldn't help me with that task because even if I could figure out just how tight to pre-tie my shoes (a challenge in and of itself), I would never be able to pull the shoe tongue back out after jamming my foot into the shoe.

      How did you manage to get the shoe tongue back out after your foot pushes it into the shoe? That is the one thing that kept me from trying to use elastic shoe laces. I've tried trying to hold onto the shoe tongue with the grabber while putting my foot in the shoe, but that doesn't work long enough to keep the shoe tongue out. I've tried grabbing the shoe tongue with the grabber to pull it back out after putting my foot in the shoe, and that doesn't work either.

      -- Mary
      -- Mary D. Taffet
      Lumbar curve 27 degrees in 07/2007 > 34 degrees in 03/2009 > 38 degrees in 02/2011 > 42 degrees in 09/2011
      Laminectomy L2-L5, Fusion T9-S1 (sacrum) with pelvic fixation 01/23/2012 w/ Dr. Richard Tallarico, Upstate Orthopedics, Syracuse, NY

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      • Mary,
        The thing that worked for me is like a long stick with (literally) a hook at the end of it. I hooked it into the area where the laces pass through the tongue and held it there while I used the shoe horn. I think you could hook it anywhere on the tongue to hold it still. If you don't have one of those, maybe a medical supply store would have one or you could easily make one by screwing a cup hook into the end of a wooden dowel? Good luck!
        Suzanne

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        • Originally posted by twistedRN View Post
          I hooked it into the area where the laces pass through the tongue and held it there while I used the shoe horn.
          Suzanne,

          One of the first things I do when I get a new pair of tie-up shoes is remove the laces from the slots on the tongue, because I can't stand them to be laced up that way -- it drives me bonkers! I remove the laces from all pairs of new shoes, then relace them, bypassing the tongue slots. I won't even try on a new pair of shoes without doing that first.

          So I don't have the same type of anchor to hold on to that you do with that long hook. I only have the tongue itself to hold on to.

          -- Mary
          -- Mary D. Taffet
          Lumbar curve 27 degrees in 07/2007 > 34 degrees in 03/2009 > 38 degrees in 02/2011 > 42 degrees in 09/2011
          Laminectomy L2-L5, Fusion T9-S1 (sacrum) with pelvic fixation 01/23/2012 w/ Dr. Richard Tallarico, Upstate Orthopedics, Syracuse, NY

          Comment


          • Originally posted by mdtaffet View Post
            Suzanne,

            One of the first things I do when I get a new pair of tie-up shoes is remove the laces from the slots on the tongue, because I can't stand them to be laced up that way -- it drives me bonkers! I remove the laces from all pairs of new shoes, then relace them, bypassing the tongue slots. I won't even try on a new pair of shoes without doing that first.

            So I don't have the same type of anchor to hold on to that you do with that long hook. I only have the tongue itself to hold on to.

            -- Mary
            Hi Mary,

            When I was in the hospital the physical therapist suggested that I put the elastic shoelace under the tongue. This has allowed me to slip on my sneakers without the tongue moving forward - truly invaluable. Hope this helps.

            Comment


            • Originally posted by twistedRN View Post
              OK, quick question out there for all of you who are fused to the sacrum and/or have pelvic fixation....do you ever get to the point where you can tie your own shoes? After a particularly frustrating episode today trying to work with elastic shoelaces and a shoe horn in my athletic shoes, I about gave up and yanked out the shoelaces, put the regular ones back in and (with HUGE difficulty) attempted to tie my own shoes with a straight back. Please tell me that eventually we can squat or lift our feet up to a chair we are sitting on or something...?? Thanks for any advice and/or encouragement!
              Hi - see my reply to Mary. Put the elastic shoelaces under the tongue. This will allow you to put the sneaker on without the tongue moving. Good luck!

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