https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Sat, 04 Apr 2026 07:14:14 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1550279 Wed, 02 Sep 2015 15:45:44 +0000 Beth 1550279@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I suspect my bunion is a combination of heredity and too many years of pointe shoes as a teen and high heels as an adult. It doesn't hurt, but I can see that it's only going to get worse over time. </p> <p>That said, I've been slowly gravitating towards lower heels over the last year or so. High heels don't exactly hurt my feet, but lower heels are just easier to walk in and more comfortable in general these days. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1550134 Wed, 02 Sep 2015 12:58:35 +0000 Anonymous 1550134@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>From what my podiatrist told me, my bunions were inherited. I was comfortable in heels until I developed OA in my toes and ankles. Now I have to buy certain types of shoes that accommodate my feet; Dansko sandals, Alegria clogs and boots. I must have arch support, and rocker soles are best (anything that keeps my toes from bending). Lastly, my doctor told me never to go barefoot. I just started yoga a little while ago; it's too early to tell if it's helping or not. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1550108 Wed, 02 Sep 2015 11:06:36 +0000 viva 1550108@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This is really helpful. Another hereditary bunion sufferer here. Not too bad (yet) but I am most comfortable in heels and now I know why. Yoga helps too. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1550094 Wed, 02 Sep 2015 10:05:22 +0000 Style Fan 1550094@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My poor DH has started getting a bunion that is causing him a lot of foot pain.&nbsp; He is a very active person.&nbsp; He has always worn reasonable shoes.&nbsp; No high heels!!&nbsp; <br />He put Ice gel on it when it is inflamed and aching (I love that stuff).&nbsp; It seemed to help. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1550046 Wed, 02 Sep 2015 05:34:38 +0000 Amy2000 1550046@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My feet constantly hurt and make me want to stay seated, but doing that makes my knees far worse. I always try the shoe out to make sure it doesn't rub the bunion. My only comfort to rid the pain was when I started to wear soft bunion pads. I put it on and put my sock over it, and I do feel it positions my foot with the big toe out more so that my foot is more supported.<br />&nbsp;There is a new quality pad on Amazon, free for a limited amount of time. All I ask for in return is an honest review. Message me if you're interested.</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1440304 Tue, 10 Feb 2015 14:12:25 +0000 Anonymous 1440304@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My mother never wore heels, either, yet she had bunions. So yes, this thing about bunions being caused by high heels is bunk. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1440145 Tue, 10 Feb 2015 04:54:41 +0000 Nebraskim 1440145@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Another hereditary bunion person here. I do wear the stiffer soles and have few issues. I can't wear heels due to unstable ankles, though. My brother has terrible bunions due to extremely flat feet. He's never ever worn high heels AFAIK. So when you see articles blaming high-heels, I think that's just a way to blame/shame women as say "it's your own fault for wearing cruel shoes!" </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1440112 Tue, 10 Feb 2015 02:48:20 +0000 Anonymous 1440112@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I alleviated my bunion pain by choosing a wider width shoe. The only problem is that it's difficult to find D width shoes that aren't too wide in the heel--and I only went from a C width to a D.</p> <p>My arthritis, on the other hand, is even harder. During flareups I experience pain in my big toe and sometimes pain shoots up from the bottom of my foot. I'm not sure what causes that, but it's awful.</p> <p>I do well in slight heels and moderate arch support. Totally flat shoes hurt my feet, as do high heels. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1440107 Tue, 10 Feb 2015 02:41:49 +0000 frannieb 1440107@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Yes - for my surgery - broke my foot, cut out a chunK of bone and pinned in two places. Would do all over again in a heartbeat because I reached the point of constant pain and couldn't even walk.&nbsp;<br />Love my heals and stacked shoes. Funny I have one pair of flats I wore them to work today - made it from the parking lot to my office and had to change out of my flats and into two inch heels. Happily spent the day running all around with happy feet. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1440085 Tue, 10 Feb 2015 01:51:18 +0000 gradfashionista 1440085@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>The cases where it is most likely to succeed or exactly those: women who got them from wearing high heels. Not all women who wear heels get bunions, so musculoskeletal structure still matters, but not as much. Even with the easy cases, such as those, there is still a relatively high risk of the bunion returning, or of&nbsp;having a stiffer toe joint (more often than not) and early onset arthritis. Nevermind the issues of delays in healing or bone infections. So yes, lots of reasons not to go under the knife...love heels, but not more than arthritis. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1440064 Tue, 10 Feb 2015 00:55:56 +0000 K.M. 1440064@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I'm following this thread with a lot of interest. My bunion is also hereditary. And until I read your post, gradfashionista, I had never learned about the proper shoes for my case. That explains why I always have pain with shoes that are completely flat! A little bit of a lift is enough to help (or a shoe with great arch support, or a shoe with thick soles). </p> <p>Interesting about the surgery too. I know someone who had it, but her bunion was from wearing heels. She's doing great post-surgery but it was a long recovery time (two months or so)? Her main reason for the surgery was... to be able to wear heels again without pain!!! Can you believe it?</p> <p>I agree with the thinking of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" with surgery, but I am squeamish about these things. Not just because of the pain and recovery but also the risk of something going wrong, even if the risk is small. </p> <p> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1439917 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 21:27:41 +0000 gradfashionista 1439917@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Pr<span>egnancy, particularly the last few months, would be a time of non-compromise for me, because of the stretching of various ligaments caused by hormonal changes. Toe spacers with arch supports as much as possible it is.</p> <p>I have thought about surgery, but the surgeons I saw in both CAN and the US were against it. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," they said. Unless you have constant pain, they don't want to operate. </p> <p>My PT and orthotocist said most surgeons &nbsp;don't factor in&nbsp;the mechanics of the foot. They'll chop off the bunion, which in hereditary cases,&nbsp;fixes a symptom, not the cause.&nbsp;In these cases, it's only a matter of time before the bunions reappear. The one method for preventing that from happening involves breaking the main bones in the foot, and tightening the ligaments in order to give you an arch. But ugh.</span> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1439884 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 20:33:44 +0000 frannieb 1439884@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My bunion was hereditary and I had surgery it got much worse with pregnancy. A flat shoe is a nightmare for me - I need a heel, or can get away with a stacked heel.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1439865 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 20:14:45 +0000 runner805 1439865@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Sad to say my heel wearing days are gone.&nbsp; They've officially been donated to non bunion sufferers via the local Salvation Army :(<br />Now I wear wide toe box shoes like BOC to prevent my pants from dragging on the floor (I hemmed them but I'm 5'3"...I'm trying to maintain some element of length and the BOC's I have are like clogs with a thick sole. Oh and I don't go a day in shoes without my Bunion Bootie.&nbsp; It keeps my big toe straight when my foot flexes forward during walking.&nbsp; I'm not sure if it's helping but makes me feel better that my toes are heading in an unnatural direction (outward).&nbsp; I wish I was taller, I'd be more satisfied with my ballet flats.. such is life! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1437179 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 16:32:50 +0000 shiny 1437179@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My bunion is due to a slight leg length discrepancy, caused by crossing my legs, and also compounded by the fact I was born pigeon toed and had that corrected as a toddler, meaning I have wonky hips.&nbsp;High heels don't help because I am apt to wear them with skirts and dresses and then cross my legs! But yoga helps tremendously -- enough that my bunion can actually come and go. Stretch out my legs so they are even in length, it disappears.&nbsp;</p> <p>Flat shoes - even sneakers - can give me bunions if I'm always walking on the same side of the street and not keeping up with the stretches. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1437157 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 15:52:58 +0000 karymk 1437157@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I hear your pain!! I am signed up for surgery in June for "hallux something or other" --a bone spur that prohibits the big toe joint from flexing normally. It's like I have a locked toe. </p> <p>For work I found a pair of kitten heel loafers that are pretty darn good. Mostly it's flats now but hope I can wear heels again after the surgery. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1437106 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 14:44:22 +0000 always trying 1437106@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have a little bunion on only one foot. It just developed about a year ago.&nbsp; this is after I retired so only had been wearing heels less than once a month.&nbsp; Before that I only wore heels 3" or less.&nbsp; So my one small bunion is a mystery as to cause.&nbsp; But I can tell you it is very painful if the shoe cuts into it even with flats.&nbsp; as long as the vamp is high enough to go smoothly over it everything is fine.. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1437104 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 14:39:59 +0000 Anonymous 1437104@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My one bunion (man i even hate typing that word) is hereditary. &nbsp;I didn't know much of what you shared here, and I thank you for sharing it. &nbsp;What I cannot find though, are shoes with heels that have a wide enough toe box to accommodate my new foot - and that don't&nbsp;scrunch the toes up together . &nbsp;I swear it's the new bane of my existence. I'm even contemplating looking into surgical options - it is so unattractive,and now starts to hurt . &nbsp;The way I now walk and put weight on that foot is causing my second toe to do weird things to compensate . &nbsp;Has anyone here had experience with surgical interventions on bunions and second toes? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1437095 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 14:32:51 +0000 Anonymous 1437095@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My bunions are hereditary, and I wore heels until I started having osteoarthritis pain in my big toe. I then had to switch to lower heels. That said, I never wore heels over 2.5 to 3 inches on a regular basis, and preferred to wear platform shoes so that the actual heel height wasn't that high. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1437000 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 06:27:54 +0000 rachylou 1437000@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I did not know. That makes total sense. Dang. Been totally wearing the wrong shoes... </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/thoughts-on-conventional-bunion-advice#post-1436974 Wed, 04 Feb 2015 05:30:32 +0000 gradfashionista 1436974@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I'm in the midst of shoe shopping for a list of special events, and when I began the search, I started off my searching for bunion-friendly stilettos. Not many contenders, and those that were, were the usual suspects.</p> <p>Women with bunions are generally told to choose low heeled, flexible shoes with soft leathers; the thicker the heel, and the higher the vamp, the better.</p> <p>That advice may be fine and dandy if you developed bunions from wearing heels, but if you have hereditary bunions, i.e. bunions caused by the musculoskeletal structure of your foot, these suggestions are not helpful at best, and counterproductive at worst.</p> <p>While soft leathers feel nice against the skin and bone, the most important aspect of the shoe should be its stability, which helps limit the overpronation that caused the bunion in the first place.&nbsp;This means that&nbsp;an *inflexible* sole and stiffer leathers are actually preferable because they&nbsp;keep your foot in place. </p> <p>High-heeled shoes often fit the bill because the soles are rigid.&nbsp;If you can find a shoe with a good heel cup, and the right kind of arch support for you--meaning that your feet aren't sliding into the toe box--you might be more comfortable and be doing your bunion a favour.</p> <p>This has been a public service announcement by your flat-footed bunion specialist.</p>