shoe lift

[kmaguire]

My chiropractor gave me a shoe lift to help out. I have left lumbar scoliosis of 30 degrees. My left hip is two centimeters lower than my right hip. The chiro told me to put the lift in my left shoe. My other doctor told me that I should put it in my right shoe since mey left hip is lower. The right shoe makes more sense to me. Anyone else have experience with this? What do you recommend?

Also, I just started wearing the lift today and my back has been very sore. Has anyone else had this experience?

[debigolebiwski]

Shoe Lift Problems

Well, I have been there myself. I was also given a shoe lift by my orthotist and told to wear it in my left shoe because my left hip and shoulder dropped lower than the right. But, when I consulted a doctor about my scoliosis, he told me that without the correct orthosis for my scoliosis, he was afraid that the lift would cause me to become "off balance" so I stopped wearing it. Mine made my back very sore, also. Don't just stop wearing yours though, because I am indeed no doctor. I just search for anything that will relieve my pain from my scoliosis. So far, I have had no luck.

[kmaguire]

Thanks for your reply. I have an appointment with a specialist in early march, so perhaps I will hold off wearing the lift until I see him.

I wonder if your doctor was right about making you "off balance" because yesterday, it wasn't just my back; by the end of the day I took it out of my shoe because my whole body hurt... it felt like my ribs were being compressed and it was even difficult to breathe. Within an hour or two of taking it out, I started to feel normal again.

[debigolebiwski]

So much the same........

WOW, you rcomplaints are so much like mine were. I do not wear it anymore. Like I said, though, I am just telling you what I was told and how I feel. It made sense to me, though. Right now, one curve compensates the other and I balance my body accordingly without realizing it. So anything added would throw me offbalance.

[harmoniesdj]

I have been back & forth on this lift and orthtoic idea. Most recently I was fitted by my podiatrist for orthotics as part of therapy for a broken ankle I had last year (getting out of a low chair torqued my foot....who would have thought I'd break my ankle). Oh my goodness, the pain in my ankle, leg, hip, back & neck from wearing the orthotics was horrendous.....I landed flat on my back on pain medication. So we decided that I would only wear the left one because that's the ankle I broke & needed the support. Well, today I am laid up again with the horrible pain because my body's muscles & tendons shifted again. Tommorrow at my Dr. app't I'll ask for better coordination w/ my orthopedic surgeon. I truly believe the orthotic is creating more problems for me. This same thing happened to me over the years when I was told to wear a lift(s) and/or orthotics by chiropractors and podiatrists...horrible pain throughout my body. Now I only rely on my orthopedist to make these decisions.

Think about it: if the foundation shifts under a house, you'll get cracks in the walls, etc. I work in bridge engineering.....if the bridge's pier, foundation & columns are strengthened too stiffly, then as soil shifts (or in the case of seismic movement) the upper deck suffers cracks & damage. Are our bodies much different?? If you lift one foot but not the other, then you are shifting all the muscles & tendons (and resulting bones) throughout the body. Even putting the solid foundation of orthotics under your feet will create strains & stress on the rest of your body. The body will eventually adjust but at what cost....will the curves increase? will the muscles & tendons create stresses that affect the spine surgery (maybe break a rod)? Are you prepared to wear them forever because when you stop another shift throughout the body will take place? I don't have the answers except by my experience.

I only wish the medical community would work together for us scoliosis patients. It has been my experience with 6 pairs of orthotics & 3 lifts thoughout the last 25 years, that they cause more problems for scoliosis patients than doctors realize. Your chiropractor will need to give you more frequent adjustments because the muscles, etc. will need to be forced into the new positions that the lifts create. Do you want that? Does the chiropractor consult with your orthopedist? These are questions I would ask myself before I started using something new. Good luck - Cynthia

[sewills]

Life

My chiropractor gave me a shoe lift to help out. I have left lumbar scoliosis of 30 degrees. My left hip is two centimeters lower than my right hip. The chiro told me to put the lift in my left shoe. My other doctor told me that I should put it in my right shoe since mey left hip is lower. The right shoe makes more sense to me. Anyone else have experience with this? What do you recommend?

Also, I just started wearing the lift today and my back has been very sore. Has anyone else had this experience?

Put the lift in the shoe that is on the side of the lower hip to raise it up so it's even with the other one. Hapad is a company that makes all kinds of shoe lifts. They are real soft felt and extremely comfortable. I glue them in all my shoes and boots with a couple drops of crazy glue. That way it stays in place. My lumbar curve is on my left side and I wear a small lift in my left shoe. Depending on the shoe, sometimes I have the shoemaker take a lift off the heel of my shoes and that works too and noone would ever know. Especially if I want to wear a shoe without a back.