Toe Walking

Post Reply New Topic

So, my mom just recently told me that I apparently engaged in toe walking until around age 4, possibly later, though she can't quite remember. This certainly further strengthens my belief that I have AS. Did/does anyone else here toe walk? How common is it among aspies?

I did quite a lot until my gender awareness kicked in.
Apparently it is common but I would go so far as to say it's common in children especially girls, I suppose.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toe_walking

I still toe walk sometimes. And still put more weight on the front of my foot than people consider "normal", because people consider walking barefoot as walking "incorrectly".

I have, do and intend to continue doing so.

I'm not sure I have a clear understanding of the definition of "toe walking", but I have a quirk which might be related. I won't touch my toes to a hard floor while walking barefoot. I walk on my heels and the balls of my feet, which I'm sure is very bad posture and would do damage eventually. I seldom VERY SELDOM walk barefoot, as I most always get hurt by stepping on something sharp. When I'm barefoot on a rug or carpet, I walk normally. It's something about the hard surface of tile or concrete, which feels like a "funnybone sensation", or however unpleasant.

Charles

When i was younger i walked on my toes all the time and never noticed it. I'm 15 now and occasionally catch myself doing it. For some reason I feel more comfortable walking on my toes then on my feet.

I first remember toe walking at around age four. It probably continued until age 9 or so, though by then it was done completely in private. Somehow I think I wanted the sensation of being taller. Toe walking was pleasurable.

I can't remember ever doing this myself.

I read in an abstract that the gaits of autistic children and neurotypical children were compared using some kind of gait-measuring device. They found a big difference in "medial-lateral sway" and a small difference in "anterior-posterior sway". I am not entirely sure what these terms mean in Science Speak, but they seem to mean side-to-side movement and front-to-back movement while walking or starting to walk. If these sways are plotted as area of ground covered by swaying, then autistic children covered a much larger area of ground than neurotypical children. I don't know what this has to do with toe-walking, eggsacly, but this thread is an excuse for me to post this information that I read over the weekend.

I have had trouble walking all my life and this is a scan I had done in 1997 showing the extent of my gait and foot problems. Huge pressure at the front of my foot.

Sadly it took another 15 years to have autism diagnosed.
I have found orthopaedic insoles help as do Crocs.

I have no idea how long I have been "toe-walking," since I didn't notice it myself until the subject was posted here a few months ago, and apparently no one ever thought it important enough to point it out to me. When I walk, I don't roll my foot from heel to toe as is normal with most folks. I land flat-footed, then roll onto the ball of my foot and push off. When I run or jog, my heels never touch the ground at all. My toes are always pointed up, never in line with the rest of my foot, as this is "unnatural" and uncomfortable for me. I need a new pair of shoes, as I have been wearing my current pair for quite a while and the tread where the balls of my feet go are worn down to almost nothing. But the heels have almost no wear in them at all. Strange, huh?

The way I walk also causes a problem with the laces not staying tied. I will tie my shoes in the morning, then go about my day. After about fifteen minutes of walking, my left shoe comes untied. I will tighten and tie the laces again, and fifteen minutes later I'm kneeling on the ground to tie my shoe again. It doesn't matter what shoes or laces I'm wearing; it happens every time. My right shoe takes about an hour to come untied, but it eventually does. The only way I can keep them tied is to double-knot them, but then it takes me ten minutes or more to get the knot out when I want to take them off. This issue offers no end to my frustration. - LJS

I have one son who toe-walked as a toddler, and when I asked doctors about it, they said to relax -- it was nothing and would resolve itself. Well, it did resolve itself, but that was a clear indication of some kind of position on the spectrum -- although, having said that, this son is doing great now.

My other son, who did NOT do any toe-walking, struggles more on the spectrum.

I guess what I'm saying is that it is sometimes an indicator of a person being somewhere on the spectrum, as many people on the spectrum do seem to toe-walk -- but it isn't an absolute indicator...

I've done this off and on for most of my life, It's way more comfortable that normal walking. Sometimes I even just balance on my toes when I standing doing something else.

I do wear boots most of the time when I not barefoot, but even then you can see that the front portion is worn down much more than the heel.

It's never given me any medical problems.

I've toe-walked ever since I learned how to walk. I literally cannot walk flat-footed while barefoot. I run on my toes, I jump on my toes, I walk backwards on my toes. It is a great, springy feeling. The only time I don't toewalk is when I'm wearing shoes that have some sort of hard bottom, like boots, because that elevates my heel off the ground to begin with. I never knew toe-walking was an ASD thing until after I got diagnosed. That is what convinced my mother and I to look more into the diagnosis.

Yes, but I also have cerebral palsy so that is also a factor. It would explain why I still do this 11 years after my corrective surgery I had to lengthen my heel cords.