The Need for Toe Socks

It's a sure sign of age when you start having body aches and pains and things just don't work like they used to.  One of those signs came to me about 1.5 years ago when I started experiencing some major pain when I walked.  Hard to ignore, ya know?  Turns out I have plantar fasciitis, a fancy way of saying my arches are flat and failing me.  I was born this way, they've always been this way, but after 40+ years, they were done.   Going barefoot is a thing of the past for me.  These ole dogs need support from the time I get up in the morning till when I climb back into bed at night.

One of the hardest parts of dealing with plantar fasciitis is finding shoes that are either comfortable or that can accommodate orthotics.   Neither has been an easy task.   No longer can I shoe shop as most of you can by stopping in a shoe store, trying on shoes and walking out with the cutest, latest fashions.  Most shoes have very little arch support or if they have it (think Birkies), the support is so hard and uncomfortable, it's a wonderment to me how anyone can wear them.  So I've ordered thousands of dollars worth of shoes and inserts from Zappos in various brands and of those thousands of dollars in shoes and inserts, I've found a total of one pair of orthotics that works for me, one pair of athletic shoes, and one pair of flip flops.  All the rest were returned.   I'm sorry, but for a woman, that's entirely unacceptable and depressing.  Oh I still cling to some of my old shoes, occasionally wear them (like for a wedding), but I always pay the price when I do.  I'm not talking pinched toes, I'm talking can't walk the next day without feeling pain in my feet with every step I take. 

I've gone back to the drawing board for winter shoes, as a pair of athletic shoes and flip flips will only get me so far this winter.....and the latest $700 order of shoes being yet another disappointing shipment, with all the shoes going back.  In the meantime, the weather is turning cold, and my toesies are getting cold.  I could wear the athletic shoes all day around the house, but that is a bit constricting, ya know?  All summer I wore these awesome Montrail flip flops that were sooooo comfortable.  I'm having a hard time giving them up.  So I did the unthinkable......

Oh my goodness, tell me I didn't put on white socks and wear them with flip flops.  Major fashion faux pas.   I didn't leave the house in them this way, I promise.  But I'm tellin' ya, these flip flops are so comfortable! 

So I thought, "Maybe what I need is some different socks...."

 Cute, right?  Right?  Hmmmm.....

OK, maybe not a great look.

I really need to find myself some new shoes and maybe even a pair of slippers for wearing around the house......both of which need to have ample arch support that isn't hard as a rock.   If you know of a brand that might work for me AND doesn't look like something my great-grandmother would wear, shout it out (btw, I've tried New Balance, Alegria, Klogs, Keens (these are a possibility, but style I tried was too loose in the heel), Earth, Orthoheel, Merrell, Mephisto, and I'm sure there are others.)   I'M running out of options, and if I can't find something soon, I may have to leave the house in my flip flops and toe socks.