Mrs. Hillbilly Mom's Feet Stink

There. I said it. My feet stink. Not stink, as in, they don't do the job I expect of them. Stink, as in they smell really bad! Now that I think of it, they also are not doing the job I expect of them. But it's not really their fault.

You may recall that I always have some sort of major malady befall me when I least expect it. And since we returned from The Pony visit, my left ankle has been giving me fits. It seems to be a continuing problem from last December, when we went to Genius's graduation, and I traipsed all over blacktop campus to take pictures with him, in shoes that were not designed for traipsing.

NOW I KNOW WHAT IS WRONG!

I have posterior tibial tendinitis! No, I didn't go to the doctor nurse practitioner. Are you crazy? I found out on the innernets! I have every symptom! Pain. Swelling. Lack of stability. Trouble lifting my heel. And I fit most the checklist items for people who commonly develop it. I'm old, female, overweight, have high blood pressure, and wore shoes without arch support.

Anyhoo...since the prognosis is not very promising, I've been trying to follow some of the self-treatment tactics. I don't have a walking boot like a doctor nurse practitioner might prescribe, but I AM being careful not to walk around barefoot. Do you know how hard that is for me? The only time I ever wear shoes is when I go to town. But now, I'm trying to always wear shoes, unless sleeping.

Therein lies the problem.

The pair of shoes that makes my foot feel best is probably about 10 years old. I daresay it might predate my ratty old baby blue sweatshirt. This pair of shoes used to be my walking shoes. They are wide and stable, and I've replaced the insoles a couple of times due to wear. They have very little okay NO cushioning left. BUT there seems to be really good arch support for my left foot. I kind of clomp around in it like it's a Frankenstein boot. A normal stride is not possible as yet. But I'm virtually pain-free as long as I clomp around in that shoe.

I confess to keeping that left shoe on, but taking off the right shoe. Because it's really not that comfortable on my good foot, since while I was favoring the left foot, my right knee got out of whack. So I sometimes wear a different shoe on the right foot. Around the Mansion, of course. Not out in public. Yet.

Anyhoo...here's the deal. Those shoes are very old, and they STINK! I swear I can smell my feet when I'm just sitting around. It's not pleasant, but it is virtually pain free. Seems like my innernets told me that a walking boot is usually recommended for 3 weeks. So I figure I'm going to have stinky feet for a while longer.