AFOs: helping with new job

[Guest guest]

Hi All!

I've been really busy with my new job and had 3 weeks of

posts to read through. I've really been putting my AFOs

through their paces and I'm happy to report that I keep up

with the demands of the job.

As you may remember, I got AFOs about a month and a half ago

and had to work at getting used to wearing them, working up

to 8+ hours a day. It took 3 adjustments and extra padding

here and there, oh and new knee length socks too.

Anyway- I am working as a Phlebotomist at the Blood Bank, so

it's crucial that I be able to stand and walk all day long.

I've been able to keep up with the load and I'm really happy

to be working again (I've been in school most of this year,

retraining for a medical career).

Most people have no idea that I have CMT, or that I wear AFOs.

I wear scrubs at work, covering them completely anyway. I

feel very confident about walking around too.

A few weird things have happened though: One happened the

first day, we took a tour of the main building and used the

stairs! I hadn't used my AFOs on stairs at all yet and I was

a little freaked! I took them one at a time and let the

others go ahead, but I walked up 2 sets, and later down 8

sets of stairs wearing my backpack full of notebooks and

stuff (I used the handrails and didn't skip any steps). I did

just fine, but it's a weird feeling (they don't have hinges,

so my toes can't " reach " down to the next step).

Another thing is that I have been using my disabled placard

for parking and people keep saying stuff like " hey your meter

is expired " or " that's a 2 hour zone " and I just say " thanks "

(I think it's cool that I can park so close to the building,

everyone else parks several blocks away). The other thing I

worry about is that I'm afraid that I might bump someone with

my AFOs and hurt *them*. These things are heavy-duty, they

might take a chunk out of someone that got too close!

I'm over-compensating for the last thing, and I'm super

careful about not bumping into people. I've had a few

co-workers notice them, and I use it as a teaching tool

to bring up CMT as most health professionals don't know

anything about it. The only other issue I have is the AFOs

squeak. I use foot powder in between them and the shoes, like

my Orthotist suggested, but they still make a lot of noise

on occasion. If anyone has any suggestions on this, I'm all

ears.

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