Footwear for arthritis.

Cowdenpostie · Post by **Cowdenpostie** » 04 Sep 2019, 17:08

Hi folks - i have arthritis in both my big toe joints and had a toe fusion on my right foot back in 2011 - my left foot is now at the point where it needs fused now - are there any posties on here who have similar problems and what footwear are you wearing as the royal mail issue footwear are killing me - i need something with a rocker sole - thanks folks...

compostcorner · Post by **compostcorner** » 04 Sep 2019, 22:27

while not having the same problem as you i do have plantar fasciitus in one foot and mortons neuroma in the other, both can be very painful, i went to my manager and said i cannot carry on doing deliveries unless the post office provided me with the correct footwear and insoles, so eventually they did provide me with extra width shoes and paid for my custom made insoles, so my advice is see you rmanager and hopefully he will sort you out

chuckychucks · Post by **chuckychucks** » 05 Sep 2019, 16:27

You sound like me in many ways, i had foot fusion about 9 years ago because of Arthritis and couldn't tolerate any ordinary shoes from then on, if you are under any specialist care like Rheumatology or are seeing an occupational therapist then they can refer you to a specialist NHS clinic that actually makes custom shoes that suit your needs.

I have had my footwear custom made for the last 8 years and it is something i heavily rely on because of pain levels, they will cast your feet and do things like a rocker sole/heal flair etc and you even get a choice of shoes or trainers in different styles and colours, you initially get two pairs and then a pair every year from then on.

The only downside is that you may have to wait to be seen by the specialist because of the current NHS waiting list situation but i can honestly say it's been a godsend for me.

Cowdenpostie · Post by **Cowdenpostie** » 05 Sep 2019, 19:03

That's interesting, I wasn't aware of that - I was getting my Royal Mail footwear modified by the orthotics department at hospital with rocker soles for a while, but, they started complaining about the footwear being hard to modify so got fed up with that and stopped - I have an appointment with podiatry to see about insoles so will ask about the custom made shoes - thanks for that...

chuckychucks · Post by **chuckychucks** » 05 Sep 2019, 19:28

I'm not sure about being referred by podiatry, my Rheumatologist seemed to be very knowledgeable when it came to the referral compared to anyone else i saw, i hope it works out for you because from my own experience without these shoes i would be in a much worse situation,,,good luck, let me know if you have success with it.

Cowdenpostie · Post by **Cowdenpostie** » 05 Sep 2019, 21:30

Thanks pal, would it be something Royal Mail occupational health could deal with? my feet have thrown my back out and because I'm walking funny my Achilles are screaming aswell, as you will have experienced...

deucepost · Post by **deucepost** » 07 Sep 2019, 02:39

I thought I was the only one with this problem, the pain lead me to IHR. Left the job two months ago because of this and other aches and pains was relining on co-codamol to get me through the day.
I am 56 with 23 years in the job enough was enough.