Leave Foot Pain Behind - Tips for Happy Feet as We Age!

Like many people in their 60s and 70s, I suffered from foot pain a few years ago. My doctor diagnosed me with Plantar Fasciitis and sent me to an orthopedic doctor who fit me for a shoe insert.  When the custom inserts left me limping around, I went to a shoe store which promoted their own shoe inserts.  Even after going through breaking-in periods and trying my best to make the inserts work, I was still in terrible pain.  I felt as if I was walking gingerly and painfully everywhere I went.

After another consultation with my doctor, she suggested that most foot problems were due to poor shoe choices.  I realized that prior to my diagnosis with Plantar Fasciitis, I had been wearing a variety of slip-on shoes with little or no arch support.  I began a quest to find shoes which gave me better support and, within a few months of buying a selection of supportive, comfortable shoes with wider bases, lower heels, and better arch support, my foot pain gradually disappeared. (Ad)  

Today, I belong to a group which walks at least 100 miles a month, and my Plantar Fasciitis seems to have faded into the distant past.  I now understand how important it is to wear quality shoes which are designed to cushion, support and protect my feet.

In addition to conditions like Plantar Fasciitis, some of my friends have complained about a variety of different foot problems including ingrown toenails, bunions, blisters and swollen feet.  Several of them have had foot surgery, with varying degrees of success.  Personally, I wish all of us had been choosing better shoes when we were young so we were not experiencing sore feet, painful inserts, and surgeries as retirees.

Consequently, when I was approached by the Pandere Shoe Company to include a guest post on my blog about their attractive, sporty orthopedic shoes, I thought the information they are providing would be beneficial to those readers who may need to take a fresh look at how they are treating their feet.  I am not connected with the company and I do not receive any commissions or other benefit from the purchase of their shoes.  I just hope that readers will take a hard look at the shoes in their own closets and decide whether they need to make some changes in order to have happier feet! 

Check out the helpful information they have provided about common foot problems and what to look for in a shoe, in the post below.

How to Keep Retired Feet Happy

by Pandere Shoes

Now that you have finally reached the long-awaited milestone of retirement, nothing stands between you and everything you never had enough free time for – travel, golf, gardening, maybe even ballroom dancing.

Nothing, that is, except your tired, aching feet.

Foot problems are a common complaint among retirees. Like every other part of the body, our feet suffer from the effects of aging too:

·        Weakened tendons and ligaments cause the arch to drop, making feet wider and flatter.

·        Medical conditions like diabetes and arthritis, or poor circulation, can cause feet to swell, making it difficult to find supportive, comfortable shoes.

·        Corns, calluses, hammertoes, heel spurs, and bunions caused by years of squeezing feet into ill-fitting shoes make getting through the day difficult.

Wearing ill-fitting or overly tight shoes is all too common among retirees. Hot spots, blisters, abrasions, or ingrown toenails can occur where the shoe rubs against the skin or pinches the toes or heel. Many find themselves trying to remedy the situation by buying shoes a size or two too big. But that can cause a cascade of other problems, including balance problems as your feet slide around the large shoe.

The result? Pain and discomfort, which make participating in even the simplest activities unpleasant.

The best thing you can do to keep your feet happy is to pay attention to the aches and pains and give your feet the care they need. Regular visits with your healthcare provider, especially if you’ve been diagnosed with a medical condition that makes you more prone to foot issues, can help identify potential problems early. Exercises that stretch your feet and leg muscles are excellent for overall foot health.

Investing in comfortable, supportive shoes specifically designed to accommodate your feet can also be an important step in the battle to keep aching feet happy. 

Key features to look for when choosing shoes to accommodate aging feet include:

·        Adjustability and expandability

·        Removable insoles

·        Support

·        Non-slip bottoms

·        High-quality, durable materials

A host of orthopedic shoes on the market offer many of these features, but a new shoe company launched in 2018 has revolutionized the comfort shoe for retirees.

Pandere, a woman-owned shoe company based in Alaska, has developed the world’s first stylish, expandable shoe carefully engineered to accommodate a wide range of foot issues. Each of Pandere’s styles integrate a revolutionary expansion system, including adjustable toggles and Velcro closures, which allow the shoe to expand up to three width sizes. Available in both men’s and women’s styles, Pandere’s shoes work hard to keep you safe and keep your feet happy with:

·        A patented expansion system that expands with your foot throughout the day

·        No-tie toggle system for adjustability in key areas

·        A contoured, removable footbed that offers comfort, arch support and heel cushion

·        A wider shoe base for a roomier fit that won’t pinch, squeeze or rub

·        Anti-slip, recycled natural rubber latex bottoms

·        Supportive durable nubuk leather and neoprene

·        High-quality European craftsmanship

A few of the conditions Pandere shoes are specifically designed for include:

Foot Swelling

If you have a medical condition which makes your feet swell, such as lymphedema or diabetes, or if your feet have grown flatter and wider with age, try the Saturday shoe. Built on a wider last and bottom for an even roomier toe box and midfoot, the Saturday shoe expands to an EEE width size for women and EE for men. Available in sizes 4-13 for men or 6-15 for women. For ankle swelling, try the Rodeo shoe - available in women’s sizes 6-12, with expansion from a B up to an E width. 

(Disclosure: Some of the articles in this blog may contain Amazon affiliate links. If you decide to make a purchase, I'll make a small commission at no extra cost to you. However, the author does NOT receive a commission from the Pandere Shoe Company.)

Bunions

Pandere worked intensively with customers to design a shoe specifically for those suffering from bunions. The Rodeo shoe offers soft, supportive neoprene panels at the big toe joint that expand and provide extra wiggle room for those with bunions. Available in women’s sizes 6-12, the Rodeo expands from a B up to an E width. 

Extra Wide Feet

All of Pandere’s styles expand up to three width sizes and are perfect for anyone with wide feet. Consult the Pandere sizing chart or try the Fit Finder to determine which style is right for you. While the Saturday is the widest shoe Pandere offers, expanding up to an EEE width size for women and EE for men, all of Pandere’s styles cater to wide feet.

If your feet are slowing you down, there is hope! To learn more about Pandere Shoes, visit them online or reach out to them anytime at hello@pandereshoes.com. 

(The links in the above four paragraphs are ads for the Pandere Shoe Company).

If you are interested in learning more about solutions to common medical issues as we age, Medicare, Social Security, where to retire, financial planning and more, use the tabs or pull down menu at the top of the page to find links to hundreds of additional helpful articles.

You are reading from the blog:  http://www.baby-boomer-retirement.com

Photo credit:  Pandere Shoes

Healing Your Plantar Fasciitis

Now that I am in my 60's, it seems as if at least a quarter of the women and ten percent of the men I know suffer from Plantar Fasciitis.  According to the Mayo Clinic, it is the most common cause of heel pain.  It's an inflammation of the plantar fascia, which is the band of tissue that runs across the arch of your foot from your heel to your toes.  Plantar Fasciitis is the name of the condition you develop when your plantar fascia begins to tear away from the heelbone and becomes inflamed.  It can be extremely painful.

Some people only experience the pain when they first stand up in the morning.  As the plantar fascia warms up, the pain goes away.  Other people suffer from it whenever they have been seated for a long time, or if they have been standing or walking a lot.

It is a very common ailment for people who have been runners or dancers, those who have to stand up on their jobs, those who are overweight, and people who wear shoes that do not provide a lot of support.  It also becomes more common as we get older. In my case, my doctor suspected that the sandals and flats that I typically wore were probably the cause of the problem, along with the fact that I was getting older and I had worked for years at a high school where I spent a lot of time on my feet.

Once you are experiencing pain, it is possible to heal your injured foot.  However, it can take months for the pain to go away, even when you immediately begin a treatment plan.  Despite this fact, it is important that you begin treatment as quickly as possible.  If you try to ignore the pain, believing that it will eventually go away on its own, it will only get worse and you could develop foot, knee, hip and/or back problems.

Treatments vary.  In my case, my podiatrist gave me a shot in my heel to reduce the inflammation and pain.  Then, he created a mold of my foot and had custom orthotics made to fit in my shoes.  Unfortunately, even though they were custom made, I did not use the orthotics very often because I did not think they were comfortable.

When I discussed this with my internist, she said that frequently a patient just needs a change in shoes in order to heal the foot.  Both my internist and podiatrist told me that I should wear shoes that were slightly more elevated in the heal than the toe, and my podiatrist gave me the names of some shoe brands to try.

Much to my delight, I have found several attractive, stylish and comfortable brands of shoes that I am able to wear.  Best of all, I haven't felt any pain in my heal in over six months.

While I was experimenting with the different brands, I wrote a series of articles for the online magazine, Squidoo, where I am their "Retired and Loving It Contributor."  These articles were about the different brands of shoes I tried out in an attempt to find the styles that were most comfortable for me, personally.  I am including links to those articles later in this article, so that you can learn more about these brands and see photos of the shoes they offer.

Since I live in Southern California, I particularly wanted to find some flip-flops that I could comfortably wear to the beach in the summer without further inflaming my feet.  Rainbow flip-flops were the ones that worked for me, and there is an article about them below, too.  Both Rainbow flip-flops and Birkenstocks have styles that are also designed for men.

I own at least one pair of every type of shoe mentioned in the list below ... and several pair of the Easy Spirit Travelers that turned out to be the style that was most healing for me.  If you suffer from this common problem, the articles below could be very helpful to you.

Links to Articles about Shoes for Sore Feet:

Easy Spirit Shoes for Women with Sore Feet
Rainbow Sandals for Sore Feet
Comfortable Mephisto Shoes for Women with Sore Feet
Dansko Shoes for Women with Sore Feet
New Balance Walking Shoes for Women with Sore Feet 
Birkenstock Shoes for Men and Women with Sore Feet


Source of information about Plantar Fasciitis:

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/plantar-fasciitis/basics/definition/con-20025664

If you are interested in information about other health problems that could affect you as you age, be sure to check out the tab on Medical Concerns at the top of this blog.  It contains links to a number of other interesting articles.  In addition, you may want to check out the tabs on great places to retire in the U.S. and abroad, financial issues, and other topics of interest to people who are retired or planning to retire.

You are reading from the blog:  http://www.baby-boomer-retirement.com

Photo credit: www.morguefile.com