Wearing high heels can be terribly painful, and often is when worn for extended periods. Women who love high heels most likely have multiple pairs of them, in some cases dozens of pairs or even more. Due to all of the alternative materials used in making shoes and heels today, it is usually not very difficult for vegan women to find a pair of one hundred percent cruelty-free (and/or animal free) heels. Twenty years ago, or even ten, this was likely much harder to accomplish because of the high volume of leather that was used in shoe and heel making.
Problems Caused by High Heels
High heels might be gorgeous but, they can cause problems with your feet directly or they can exacerbate already existing issues. These problems vary in severity from person to person and also depend on how often you wear heels and their height. When you wear a pair of shoes that constrict your foot’s natural shape, pain will most likely be caused. Now you add height to that from heels and that pain may rapidly turn into damage.
Think about it like this, when you wear high heels not only are your feet being restricted from their normal form but you are also putting all of your weight on that same region that is being bound by the shoe. With high heels, this area is most commonly your toes, so you are squeezing your toes and crushing them all at the same time. When you do this on a consistent basis large and irritating bunions are often one result. Bunions are the hard bulges that often form right where your big toe and the ball of your foot meet, these might even cause changes in the shape of your feet.
If you have a special pair of heels that you love but don’t completely fit, you may want to think twice before wearing them very much. Wearing shoes that are the wrong size, especially heels, you might increase your chances of having ingrown toenails, calluses, or corns. All of this can be caused by wearing that beautiful pair of heels that do not fit correctly.
Increase Your Comfort
Something that is probably very important to you is that you are comfortable wearing high heels. There are a few things you can try that just might make those gorgeous pain machines slightly more tolerable to wear. One option that could provide you with some relief is shoe insoles or metatarsal pads, these can aid in absorbing the shock on your feet with each step.
Try to get the best fitting pair of heels that you possibly can, this might sound like common sense but ask yourself how many pairs of heels you own that are slightly too large or too tight. Whether they are too big or small they still most likely cause more pressure on your toes and that translates to more pain.
Also, try to move away from those super skinny heels that can be increasingly difficult to wear all day long. Think about getting a pair that has a slightly thicker heel which could make it easier to keep your balance after long hours. Lastly, if you would like to take some pressure off of your toes specifically, try wearing a pair of open-toed high heels. The open toe may help to remove some of the pressure on the tips of your toes from the weight of your body.
It’s Up to You
It is more than likely that you are not going to forgo wearing another pair of high heels for the rest of your life, but you might be able to reduce some of the pain from wearing them. It is up to you to attempt the things that might make your life in heels a little bit more comfortable. If you do decide to keep wearing high heels, it is up to you to do the things to avoid suffering from the more severe side effect that they cause.
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