Well, this is timely. I’ve got a bunion on my right foot and another developing on my left. To make matters worse, I also have Haglund’s deformities on both heels. I never wore high heels because I have genetically horrible feet, and am a runner. Well, now I just jobble (half jog/half hobble) and swim for exercise.
Am looking for shoes that I can wear to my daughter’s wedding in August. I am seriously going to buy the shoes first, then find a dress. I hate pain. I already have the stretcher thingies for my shoes, but will now look for the spacer things for my feet.
Marc Jacobs Women’s Lily Embellished Wedge Sandals
Amazon
Sorry my link did not work. I have wicked feet and these are the shoes I finally found for D’s wedding
last Sept. They were $$$ compared to what I usually buy but worth every penny. They are soft over the
bunion, the flatness of the platform distributes your weight, and the the platform made me tall!
It would seem that these would be difficult to walk in but they are so great that I would forget that I had
them on. And for me to forget about my feet is saying something!
Also, they are quite exciting and I received tons of notice for them.
I’ve had bunions and hammertoes for years and just have to luck into comfortable shoes. I claim that part of the reason for moving to a warm weather climate is so that I don’t have to wear closed shoes.
I prefer wide sizes but basically just go on hunting expeditions at DSW. I automatically rule out 90% of the styles, and of the 10% I try on, can only stand up in 10% of those! So then I walk around the store for 15-20 minutes in that last 1% of shoes. If I’m not feeling pressure on sore spots after that, the shoes go home with me.
I also like wedge platforms for dress, but only with cross cross straps. I can’t wear anything that pulls across the foot so either criss cross or the style @GRITS80 showed. Wish I could live in flip flops but they annoy the space between my toes.
I and my sister have bunions. My grandmother had bunions too.
Sometimes mine hurt. But mostly they do not because I wear wide shoes if necessary. If a shoe has a wide,I try it on first. Sometimes I need the wide, and other times the regular width will do. If shoes do not come in a wide,I have to try them on to make sure I can wear them.
Marilyn, I had surgery for hammertoes and a bunion on one foot and am doing everything possible to not require the surgery on the other foot.
Because pressure on the ball of the foot aggravates hammertoes, I look for platform shoes (like oregon101’s) and soles that do not flex. These are by far my favorite shoes and I wear them all summer long. They even work for biking. I wear wide width in other shoes but these work for me in standard width. I realize you’re offering information on this thread and not asking for advice, but I am a bit of an evangelist when it comes to the Naot Paris sandals, so I thought I’d mention them. They might work for people with bunions, too:
Morrismm, shipping and return shipping are free with Zappos (and Nordstrom) so there’s nothing lost by ordering something and then returning it (easy, just print the return label and give the package to UPS) as long as your credit card can handle it. Zappos is very quick to credit returns.
I have had bunions for years. They don’t cause me any pain, except if I were certain shoes and the bunion forces my big toe to rub against the next toe. I often wear lambs wool or other things to separate the toes. I do not want to have surgery if I don’t have any pain.
I have very flat feet and I think if I wore my custom orthotics more it would help. For now I only wear them with running shoes and sneakers.
I’ve had bunions my entire life even as a very small child. My favorite shoes are Ecco and Merrill. I always look for a wider toe box. I don’t wear heels. I like ballet flats when I need a dressier shoe. If the cut isn’t perfect for the bunion, I can generally stretch the opening, or it stretches naturally as I break the shoe in. Once I discovered a brand that worked, I tend to buy repeat brand purchases in their new styles. That saves a lot of frustrated shopping time.
A PSA folks: the vast majority of flat-flat ballet flats are just as bad for your feet as high heels. Ask a podiatrist. Probably even more damaging than heels because people equate those lousy support, foot-confining flats with comfort shoes and wear them for longer periods of time than heels.
@oregon101 those shoes are adorable! They may be real contenders if I decide to go with black. I do have one question though: do the jewel embellishments come through the strap or is the underside smooth? I have a lovely pair of Naots that I can’t wear because I can feel the jewels on top of my feet and they hurt.
Yes I am picky, but I really do have horrible skinny feet with no flesh to cushion them.
Same feet here Mmomm.
It is smooth.
I wore them standing for hours. A little red on my bunion but no biggie.
I do not drive in them…just change at event.
I went from 5ft 3 to 5 ft 6 .
If you have prime just try and return if they do not work
My daughter had her first bunion surgery the summer before senior year of hs and then the other one done last summer. First one was a terrible recovery because the nerve was involved, that’s what makes them so painful. I didn’t think she’d make it through spring semester with all the walking, she was practically crying in pain every day. Her second recovery was very easy. Some people get them from genetics, some from wearing the wrong shoes. Some people just get them and have ugly feet, some people find them very painful. After awhile when the pain gets unbearable, you get them surgically fixed.
She still has to be careful of her shoes and when she shops in the better shoe stores she has them stretch them for her and that seems to do the trick. That and wearing more supportive flip flops in summer and sneakers with support.
D2 was born with an awful bunion and her big toe is bent almost all the way under her foot. The little toe is also bent underneath. She is a marathon runner and also played college soccer so her feet hurt all of the time but she doesn’t want the surgery. She wears running shoes with mesh sides but the bunion rubs holes on the sides of the shoe before the tread wears out. Her favorite professional shoes are Cole Haan wedges that have the Nike Air cushioning in them. Ballet flats are a no go as they cut across the bunion. She has to be careful with strappy sandals, too, as they don’t fit over the bunion. At 26 she demands cute/pretty shoes. We will pay almost any price for shoes that are comfortable for herr.
Add me to the bunion list. Luckily, they don’t hurt too much but my sneakers always develop a hole there. I need shoes with a wider toe box, but wide width are too wide elsewhere. It is all genetic, as I rarely where heels and even when I do they are not very high. Most strappy sandals are not good for me as they hit the bunion. I will look at those Cole Haan wedges.
My newer fun foot problem is that I am developing a hammer toe. That can get painful as the joint rubs on the shoe. I have heard the surgery is not worth doing. Legacy of my mom, who also had these. I am not sure what to do on that front.
And my one heel hurts a bit so have to add a heel cushion to my shoes.
I developed bunions on both feet in my mid-20s, part heredity, part wearing shoes that exacerbated them. Initially, they hurt like crazy, but over the years (probably as I’ve moved into wide width and generally less appealing shoes) they have stopped hurting for the most part.
I generally wear Clark’s wide (double wide is too wide for me) and am wearing a pair with a 1-2 inch heel right now at work For walking I wear New Balance in wide. They seem to have a very wide, comfy toe box and my feet feel fine in them.
I have heard too many horror stories about bunion surgery gone wrong to consider it. I’d rather be somewhat constricted in my shoe choices.
I was doing PT for something else but my therapist recommended strengthening the arch to help with bunion pain. So she had me start doing arch lifts - a stronger arch will help keep the foot from rolling towards the bunion when walking and therefore less pressure and rubbing.
Surgery! Had it done on my right foot about 5 years ago. The bunion was starting to turn red and hurt when I hiked, and I can’t not hike (live in the CO mountains). I had no complications. All great now (though recovery was horrible - pain and loooooong).
Well, I am day 12 from bunion surgery. I personally have never heard any horror stories. Everyone I know who has had it has told me about the lengthy recovery period, pain, etc. They are so happy they had it done. None of them has pain or issues now.
I think I have a long few months ahead, but today was a good day as far as discomfort. Because it’s certainly not a cake walk these first 2 weeks. My heart goes out to those that live alone and don’t have live in support.
Is it worth it to me? I don’t know yet. I’ll let you know in a year when things should be 100% recovered, and if the pain I was experiencing is gone. The thing is, I wasn’t in a lot of pain, but I couldn’t walk more than 30 minutes, and when I put on any heeled shoes, the soft tissue ached with pains. The bone was growing up, not just out and doctor said it would continue to get worse…which I didn’t want. Crossing fingers…
@thumper1…do you already do the lions share of the inside housework? If so, things won’t change for you that much. But, He will need help those first few weeks by bringing him coffee or water and his meals to the couch. Have him sleep in a guest bedroom as he will be tossing and turning a lot the first couple weeks trying to get comfortable. But you will probably have to help him when he first gets in bed, make sure he has his meds and anything he needs.
@conmama I love my husband…but he is not particularly amenable to help…when he needs it. And he is a difficult sick person.
We share the indoor household tasks. But in addition…he does all the snow blowing, for example…and if he has this done in October 2018, I do not think this will be on his to do list for that winter.
It’s fine…but I’m sure others know what I mean…it’s going to be challenging.