toe walking

I have 2 girls, both are toe walkers 4 and 16 Our 16 year old has mostly out grown it, however at times still catches herself up on her toes. We took our 16 year old to the doctors and they suggested surgery right away. We felt there were more reasonable and sensible options. When we took her to the message therapist they said that in the womb these little ones develop tight muscles because of their positions and that with stretching they will stop. So we started to have deep muscles messages done and took her to yoga. What a difference. Now if she doesn't stretch she gets very tender and sore. Our 4 year old daughter is worse. She never walks flat foot, she runs in flip flops full speed. She doesn't complain of any pain or discomfort. I'm at a loss. The doctor is referring us back to a specialist for our youngest. Both girls show no signs of CB or autism, they are both very bright and advanced. Is there anyone who has been successful in their journey of toe walking that could give us advice on what worked?

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

In your daughters this condition is not symptomatic of autistic disorder, but rather a condition that is in the domain of pediatric orthopedics. Evaluation by such a specialist is in order.