WAG Severs duration?

[Eleven sol]

My daughter seems to be going through her major puberty growth spurt right as competition season begins. Heel pain is pretty significant, initially she was limping and there was swelling. She was diagnosed with Severs. We have completely rested- no gym, iced, stretched, for 2 weeks. Swelling is down but she still has a lot of pain walking barefoot. We have another appointment with the doctor soon.

I read a flare-up can last 2-8 weeks... I was hoping we would be on the shorter side of that but not looking great. What has been everyone’s experience with Severs duration? And at what age did it stop?

I’m just curious, as we will have her out until pain abates. Would be sad to miss the season.

 

[MAcastsalot]

My DD had her first major bout of Severs when she was 8, and it lasted around 3 months. She was booted for a week in the middle, which helped significantly for a week or so after, and then the pain returned. Over the past two years she's had 5 flares that last anywhere from 2-6 weeks. She hasn't had her big growth spurt yet, so we are just waiting for another big flare when that happens. We have found that massaging her calves before bed really helps (if you google gymnast severs massage videos will come up), in addition to all of the things you mentioned above. Good luck, and I hope that it's quick! My DD usually decides to just push (limp?) through the pain, since the worst flares are always during meet season.

 

[skschlag]

My son had a flare up a couple of seasons ago that lasted 2-3 months. Luckily he was never out, but had to dial back a lot. I have seen girls casted, etc for sever's so the severity can definitely vary

D never needed casting. He did a lot of stretching and I did some massages that helped a lot. I used deep blue with the massages. Just one more thing to try to help for her. Good luck!

 

[kimute]

We followed the protocol posted above and used heel cups and severs didn't slow my DD down ever for more than a week. She is 12 and has had maybe 3 flare ups. One recently as meets start but doesn't bother her too much.

 

[Eleven sol]

Thanks. We will try the massage. That’s something we haven’t tried yet.

My daughter is 13. We had one flare-up last spring but the 2 weeks of rest and the cheetah cups did the trick. The growth is much more this time though. She grew about 2 1/2 inches fairly quickly. She is about an inch and a half from her predicted height based on the trajectory she’s been following... but who knows? I’m just hoping the growth spurt is over soon because she misses gymnastics.

 

[Mish]

Major growth spurt just as she turned 11. Severs pain and Achilles tendinitis for at least 8 weeks.

 

[Amel2007]

My daughter is 11 years old and has been having flare-ups on and off for the last 3 years (every time she had a growth spurt, the pain would last for a few months). We have tried everything we could think of (the protocol, massage therapist, physio, podiatrist, cheetah) but what worked best for her was acupuncture.

 

[ProvB]

Coming up on a year on and off (mostly on). Have tried xbrace, massage, nsaids, and taping. Nothing makes a significant difference.

 

[mls529]

I know this is probably not what you want to hear, but my DD's had severs for over a year, perhaps even 18 months. It was not until recently, now at age 13, that she can tumble without cheetah cups and that I don't have to ice and massage after every practice. She did PT, ice, massage, cheetah cups and modified practices because the pain was pretty bad. Plus investing in really good supportive shoes and tell her no more flip flops and UGGs. But she only missed practices for a couple weeks during the worst flare ups. Without a doubt, rest is what alleviates the pain the best. Like others, it stopped when her foot stopped growing (she is now a size 8 women's, but isn't even 5 feet tall).

 

[Eleven sol]

Thanks. It’s not looking good for the season. I tried everything suggested plus rest and everything the sports doctor suggested and nothing has changed. I made an appointment with a physical therapist. I at least want her to be able to walk around school with less pain. It’s crazy.

 

[mommyof1]

Has the doctor suggested a boot? That did the trick for my daughter.

 

[Eleven sol]

Not yet. I think she is waiting to see if the 4-6 weeks of rest cures it.

 

[JBS]

Severs sucks. Very... very hard to work with. We have been dealing with it for 3+ years with two athletes... one of them is my daughter. Besides our highly modified training style... these are the best things that we have found...

https://www.bauerfeind.com/b2c/FOOT-SUPPORTS-BY-ACHILLOTRAIN-&-MALLEOTRAIN/AchilloTrain®/p/YPBF_BAF_ACHILLO

Both of our athletes are one size down from what the size chart shown. The one in the smallest size had to wrap it on with cohesive tape for the first 6 months as it was still a bit too big for her.

Let me know what questions you have about this product.

 

[Eleven sol]

Thank you. I will try that.

 

[Aero]

Severs sucks. Very... very hard to work with. We have been dealing with it for 3+ years with two athletes... one of them is my daughter. Besides our highly modified training style... these are the best things that we have found...

https://www.bauerfeind.com/b2c/FOOT-SUPPORTS-BY-ACHILLOTRAIN-&-MALLEOTRAIN/AchilloTrain®/p/YPBF_BAF_ACHILLO

Both of our athletes are one size down from what the size chart shown. The one in the smallest size had to wrap it on with cohesive tape for the first 6 months as it was still a bit too big for her.

That seems like a really awesome product! But, that’s quite a steep price. Personally, I totally wouldn’t mind paying that amount because the benefits are totally worth the price, especially for athletes who have to train every single day in pain. However, I know that price point would turn a lot of parents off.

 

[mommyof1]

However, I know that price point would turn a lot of parents off.

I would not mind paying that much for a solution that came with solid recommendations and would actually stay on. It’s a lot cheaper than endless doctor visits, PT, etc.

 

[Eleven sol]

If it works, it’ll be worth it!

 

[Madden3]

Hi. My son developed Severs this past October. He had stopped training gymnastics last summer, he was running cross country for his HS when he started having pretty bad heel pain. We took him to his doctor and he diagnosed Severs. So, I will tell you our experience.
Here is what we did and who recommended what:

Coach said: New training shoes (it was time anyway, they only last 3-4 months of heavy training!)

Doctor said: New inserts. He already wore inserts for pronation, but they were the hard kind (Superfeet.) Doctor suggested he needed more of a cushion under his heel, so we found a different insert with much more cushion called Sofsoul. Cheaper too.

I found out that he had not been wearing his inserts during school because he kept forgetting to switch them out of his running trainers. At his school there are no lockers and the kids walk around all day on concrete carrying super heavy back packs! We got him a second set of inserts for his school shoes. (Also- he wears a fairly good quality tie up athletic shoe for school- never vans or converse or sandals etc. without support, because of previous knee issues.)

Doctor said: He could keep training and not cause permanent damage, but it would heal faster with more rest. I wanted him to rest as rest has always worked wonders when he had knee issues previously. He was in too much pain to race or even train much, and only had two more weeks of the season to go anyway, so he stopped training and fully rested (aside everyday activities) for the rest of the season.

The heel pain lasted maybe 4 weeks after that. He loves basketball and works out regularly (a few times a week) at a basketball training gym and he was back to that well before Thanksgiving. And he has been training for track season for a month now, and so far so good.

Hope this helps.

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

It is very individual. My DD (now 14) has had two serious Severs flare-ups (during which she could not tumble or vault even with cheetah cups). Both lasted a few months, even with chiro/PT assistance and diligent massaging as described above.

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

Adding that her Severs pain lasted well over 18mo total, just the 2 major flare ups where she was really limited were a few months each. She wore the cheetah cups and did her regimen throughout, those were just the times it was so bad she needed to limit herself.She has had pretty much every growth related syndrome one can have, currently on the (hopefully) tail end of some pretty severe hormone/growth induced knee pain. She battled Osgood Shlatters (sp?) for about 2 years as well.