This is a question I am asked a lot in clinic so I thought I would write a little post on the topic.

Firstly, though I would like to reassure parents that it is normal for children to resist the kinds of shoes we want them to wear. And allowing them to express their free will and style choices is important (but sometimes frustrating for us parents!). Make your life easy, choose your battles and don’t worry too much if they end up wearing the same pair of shoes over and over again. Limit the number of shoes they have to 2 pairs or 3 pairs and give them the choice of 2 if they are in a situation where they’re not restricted by footwear type (i.e on a weekend).