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I can never wear shoes like these pink heels! | Source: Shutterstock
I was fifteen and walking around barefoot when my boyfriend looked down, was startled, then exclaimed, “You never told me you had flat feet!” Prior to this, I hadn’t been aware that anyone needed to be alerted to this detail about me, but soon after that, it actually started becoming an issue (although the boyfriend learned to deal with it).
My feet started to hurt. A lot. I went on vacation with my family and my feet started hurting so much when we were walking around that I’d have to be left on a bench. I had to go to a doctor and had custom insoles for my shoes made – which made me feel like an old lady. They helped, but since I had to wear them all the time, I couldn’t wear high heels or strappy sandals like other girls, even some sneakers were off limits.
And when my friends wanted to go shoe shopping for fun, I’d be the only one not to take home an amazing pair of new kicks. Basically? I was wearing orthopedic shoes in high school. In college, I wore Converse a lot because I was dying to look at least a smidge cooler, but standing for lengths of time in them was painful, not just to my feet, but aching would spread up my legs and back.
Are these really worth the pain?! | Source: Shutterstock
Finding shoes became – and still is – an ordeal. It’s not just high heel shoes I can’t wear. I walk sadly past sneakers, flats, boots, even plain old sandals, knowing that they aren’t wide enough and I’ll end up with blisters. I frequently try on a shoe and remove it as soon as it’s on because I know I’m going to end up in pain after a few steps. Buy shoes online without trying them on? Yeah right! Sometimes I’ll find a cute, seemingly-harmless flat that fits, and upon checking myself out in the mirror, see it’s stretched out wide, reminding me of my grandma’s feet. Back on the shelf it goes. I have to admit, there are moments when I envy girls who can pick out the cutest, highest shoes from Zappos and call it a day.
That said, there are some days I’m kind of glad I have an excuse not to wear crazy torture devices on my feet like some girls do. I often see this one girl I know practically limping, with Band-Aids on the backs of her ankles. When I ask what happened, she always says she went dancing (or did something else) in sky-high heels. When I’d ask why on earth she wore such debilitating shoes, she’d answer that they were cute. Well … ok, sure, but me being able to walk around comfortably beats your poor injured feet, despite my lack of fashion! I was forced to give up on heels eons ago, and while some of my outfits might look cuter with ‘em, I also never find myself with cuts on my feet or having to carry around my shoes because I couldn’t stand in them anymore. Plus? It’s so hard to find a pair of shoes that I like and that fit that I’m guaranteed to never blow all my cash on new shoes like some of my friends. I’ll keep my flats and you can keep your blisters. These crazy flat feet may not be pretty but who cares how good you look when you can’t even walk?!
Do you wear high heels? Are your feet wide, long, flat, or weird like mine? Tell me all about it in the comments!
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So…. yeah. I just turned thirteen and I’d like to think that I’m not alone in this world.
No, I don’t have flat feet, but God, they sound horrible! I can relate to foot problems and many other things as well, girl.
I was born Asian and raised in a religiously strict family, but being in the US for seven years has, how do you say, lazed me a bit. I never worried about my feet when I was young; I was a child, trying to fit in and get rid of my horrible accent, get rid of all that chubby baby fat…Yes, Asians are chubby children too. Blame overfeeding mom.
Okay, cut to the chase- I was getting lazy as hell. I’m tall for my age and started puberty early, at nine or ten (shudder). Extremely painful cycles. So, I was glad to see that my feet remained dainty and delicate despite all the changes I went through – sorta wide, but small, like Mum.
I occasionally got blisters and stuff, like, a few times a year. Regular crap. Then, recently during my thirteenth birthday while I went barefoot around the house, I noticed a bony bruise on my big toe.
“What the heck,” I thought, rolling my eyes. I faintly remembered knocking my foot on the side of the bedstand, so yeah.
But…. that morning, when I took my first step, I immediately felt shooting pain. And that was the second time I had a horrible feeling something was jacked. I was a sneaker sort of girl who wore small heels (1 or 1/2 in) only, like, a few times a year (on special occasions. I only once wore narrow-toed shoes for eight hours. Gave me hell, never did that again after fifth grade). I was never a fashionista (thank you, mum, for your genetic personality!), so I didn’t worship fashion. After the pain, the next day, my right foot’s toe was sore all around. So, I googled my symptoms.
I will always hate Google for this.
Hell started. I discovered the possibility of bunions. I freaked out and started fingering my toes, excessively worrying, bending it, and just FREAKING OUT. I don’t care about my looks as much as my health.
I told my Mom about it, she gave me some lotion stuff and the next day said it was better. I was not convinced. I fingered my joints and tendons hard, and it seemed normal, except for the visible toe bump that my left foot DID NOT HAVE. WHY WERE MY FEET DISPROPORTIONAL? STUPID RIGHT FOOT!
I then realized I had Morton’s toe. My Mom had webbed toes, and my grandma had Morton’s toe as well, though they were bunion-free. I looked at my other grandma. Bunion-free. Dad? Some sort of blackened feet disease, no bunion.
No. I didn’t even wear anything. Just a bruise, right? I didn’t want a deformity, especially since surgery was the only correction.
I wanted to go see doc on the third day. Dad shook his head at me. Mom snorted. I felt alone. Could they not understand the severity of the situation? There was no pain, but a little bulge on the SIDE-BACK of my big toe.
I then showed my Mom a bunion on Google Images. She freaked out. “IS THIS WHY YOU WERE SO WORRIED? God, Naya! No wonder! Even my head is spinning be looking at this stuff!”
Dad smacked me. “Stop worrying.”
Later that night, my dad showed me his disease – strange, baggy beansack feeling bumps over his body, especially on his feet. Mom sighed, relieved “So that’s what you have. Quit worrying and just let it go.”
I called my BFF. She had Polydectes, an extra thumb. No pain, though. I wasn’t prejudice, so she and I got along. She told me it was just a bruise. If anything, my anxiety causes too much cold, sweaty limbs.
WAS EVERYBODY IGNORING MY OPINION? WTF?
Today, I pulled back the skin of my feet to have a better angle. Now, they WERE “pretty” proportional, and a bunion was a bone, so it couldn’t be pulled back. But I keep worrying. Is this an early stage? My bunions are not genetic. I hate heels. I don’t have flat feet, but Morton’s toe, but my grandmas both have that (ages 50-60) pretty active, nothing.
Yeah. I hate you, Dr. Google. I’m going to the doc at the end of this month.
Hopefully no bunion. I’m such a worry-wart.
No pain, but I think my excessive fingering left damages. Lol.
My feet are probably fine. But that rush of panic when you realize something abnormal is wrong with you will happen once. Unavoidable. And it sucks when something IS wrong.
Best of luck.
I’m not alone. Besides, I’m chill. Mild bunions can be managed. And…. I hear surgery is quite relaxing. If I DO have some deformity (which I prolly don’t), I’ll later post…………
Till then, hasta la vista sister!
im 20 and I’ve been suffering with my feet for years , i started off as a toe walker, was f**kin hell, i was in alot of pain plus my balanced let me down a lot, during my school years i could never find shoes that would fit my feet snug, i always would wear summerrunners cos that’s the only thing i was comfortable in at the time, i was told by many doctors i had flat feet which i thought was ironic considering my heels were off the ground most of the time! so i went through hell as a kid and teenager, until i got surgery to fix that, now that’s perfect
but now im stuck with a new problem .. flat feet!! i got some ankle brace thing over a weakness in my foot and could only wear runners with them 
it sucked! all i could wear was track suits cos i wouldn’t wear runners with anything else cos it looked rotten, as Im petit and had to wear a bigger sized over the brace?it made my confidence shoot down i mean i hated runners and track suit i wasn’t able to be me! but thankfully i got mediation to sort that out so i no longer wear it or my insoles. right now im able to wear most things a part from high heels! i so badly wanna wear them! my bf is keen for me to get into them to but im too embarrassed to tell him i might never be able to walk in them 
i really think they should make heels with a built in insole thats not bulky or anything just a lil arch for our feet? my balance sucks with my flat feet and i feel like im walking on the outside of my feet so annoying i also feel self conscious walking cos i keep thinkin about it! my feet still do hurtat times when i walk far especially in flats but im gettin there? my main concern is heels! i wanna be able to go clubin or parties with them on i mean im only 5ft one with a 6ft 3 guy i need help 
ha my back hurts too at times. its affects so much of my life?i compare myself to much to other girls too,i heard of surgery you can get to fix it but it seems severe. as for not bein able to get shoes for your wide feet you can always take your shoes to a shoe mender! they can stretch your shoes! not a ridiculous amount like just enough for it to be comfortable I’ve got it done and its great you wouldn’t even notice the difference! although i dont have wide feet my are more the opposite actually ha but yeah im hoping to buy a pair of heels and train myself to walk in them! wish me luck 
I am 27 and have flat feet that have become super flat from working on my feet for years. I will tell those girls that like wedges- they are the only heels I can stand. For sneaker heels, spend the money and Ash wedges are amazing. I could- and have- worn mine all day without any problem.
What I am wondering about is work shoes? I’ve gotten past that pumps and flats do not support my orthopedics enough for more than brief wear, but I am a restaurant professional and need shoes that support my feet but also look fashion forward.
I heard about this one thing on tv that actually stretches out your shoes… i don’t remember what its called but i know that you can make your shoes wider…..
Didn’t know flat feet can cause so much problem and discomfort. I’m a 5’0 ft girl with a 6’0 ft boyfriend. You would think that to balance my short height I can just wear high heels. But the problem is, that I have flat feet. There’s no way I can wear fancy high heels to a fancy party and dance face to face with my bf cuz I can only wear flat shoes without feeling pain within 10 minutes of wearing them. Or shoes with tiny wedges at most.
I found that Crocs work for my poor flat feet. I wear the almost everywhere. They are even making dress shoes, and since I’ve discovered Crocs, my feet and knees rarely hurt.
I’m 41 years old, and yes its hell sometimes not being able to wear certain shoes. I found the wedge shoe and certain boots to be comfortable. At the end of the day, any other shoe if its not a flat would literally kill my feet. Inserts do not work at all, I will no longer spend money on inserts. Get use to it gang, unless someone comes out with something new for our feet, we are domed.
I feel your pain. My feet kept growing as I got older. By the time I was 9 yrs old, I wore a size 10. I was able to wear my babysitter’s shoes! I envy women with small feet because high heels are made for them. Now, I have been an 11W for a few years and I can’t walk into a store and purchase a pair of shoes because many stores don’t carry wide. If they do, the shoes look like it was made for grandma. I have ordered high heel shoes (3 to 4 in) on zappos but they never worked out. Some of them claim to be 11W but aren’t. As soon as I put them on, it feels like a narrow and they hurt my feet and toes so I just gave up. When it’s summer time, I wear sneakers since sandals don’t really work for me. It sucks and I hope just one day I’ll be able to find a pair of heels that are comfortable and fashion forward.
I’M 18 AND I HAVE VERY SMALL FEET AND FOR THOSE WHO ARE LIKE “I WISH I HAD SMALL FEET” YOU GUESS WRONG BECAUSE MY FEET ARE NOT ONLY VERY SMALL BUT THEY’RE SORT OF WIDE TOO SO IT MAKES FINDING A GOOD QUALITY SHOE A TASK. MANY STORES DON’T EVEN ACCEPT SIZE 5. ANYWAY THAT’S WHY I LIKE SHOPPING AT ALDO BECAUSE ALL THEIR SHOES RUN ABOUT A SIZE SMALLER AND IT MAKES ME FEEL TREMENDOUSLY BETTER LOL. I HAVE MANY PAIRS OF SNEAKERS BUT MY FEET ARE WIDE SO THE SIDES ARE SQUISHED ON BOTH SIDES, EX. MY VANS, KEDS, CONVERSE AND BASICALLY ANY SANDAL THAT HAS A STRAP THAT GOES ACCROS BECAUSE IT LEAVES RED MARKS. ONE LAST THING IS THAT I HAVE A HIGH ARCH SO WHEN I’M “TRYING” TO WEAR HEELS NOT ONLY ARE THEY SMALL SO THE HEEL BASICALLY LOOKS LIKE 6INCHES THE WAY IM STANDING AND THE FACT THAT IM ON MY TIPPY TOES WITH THEM SQUISHED INTO THE “ALMOND TOE” OR WHATEVER SHAPE THE SHOE IS
OMG YES I’m 19 and my feet are small but wide too! It’s so hard to find shoes, and heels just make my feet cry. I wear a converse size 2 and the first question I ask when shopping for shoes is “what’s the smallest size you have?” I HATE my wide feet they look like a duck’s feet. Plus I have flat feet so I usually just wear flats.
I’m so glad I’m not the only one who deals with these issues!! I am 27 years old and I get so frustrated that I can’t get beautiful sparkly high heels because of my lovely flat feet (not!). If I do get heels, I can barely walk in them, and when I do, I end up falling over because I wasn’t concentrating at that moment! I wear flats, but ones that can stretch out. I constantly stare at other people’s shoes and am amazed that they haven’t stretched out their flats! My feet constantly hurt and I can’t stand for long period of times without being in agony, which makes me feel inadequate. Even the most padded soles don’t help. Well, I’m glad I’m not the only one going through this!!
I’m sixteen. I didn’t know I had flat feet until about the middle of sixth grade; in gym be had to run the mile every class and I would ask to stop after a 1/4 of it becaue my feet hurt. She never let me, until I finally went to my doctor and I was told I had flat feet. So I’ve had to wear my insoles for… almost five years now. It really suck because I LOVE some of the wedge heels I see. I don’t like the strappy or stiletto heels, but I really like wedges. I wear Converse and Nikes, and shoes that have removable insoles because I need my insoles in them. For a while, I didn’t wear my insoles at all, because at first they hurt more then helped, and I’d get home after school and cry myself into a nap with ice packs on my feet and legs.
Now, I just wish I could stick my insoles into a pair of those wedge sneakers… I seriously want to just buy a pair and make it work, but it’d end up hurting, and being a waste of money.