When I bought a pair of Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports, I was skeptical. The thought of sticking something under my foot inside my shoe did not appeal to me. It seemed counterintuitive that the Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports could promote comfort. I have used the Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports for several months now, and my initial worries have been alleviated. The Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports are not only comfortable, they’ve dispensed with the worst of my foot pain and challenged my “barefoot girl” ways.
My feet have always been labor intensive. When I first learned to walk, our family doctor advised my mother that my high arches were a problem. This led to many years of tears over black patent leather Mary Janes and later penny loafers. Instead of these pretty and popular shoes, my feet were forced into leather lace up shoes with design features appealing only to women over 90 who were legally blind to boot. Thus, shoes were a source of shame and humiliation long before my feet ever started bothering me.
Besides high arches, I have been saddled with duck feet. You know, wide up by the toes and skinny back by the heels? Just try stuffing a pair of high arched duck feet into pointy toed stilettos and you’ll develop an instant appreciation for the meaning of the words “foot pain.” So, not surprisingly, I took to going barefoot whenever possible. I never wore shoes in the house or in an office or anywhere else that I could find a way to ditch them.
Then, in the blink of an eye (I still don’t know how it happened), I was in my late forties. The foot pain snuck up on me. First, it was happening occasionally and usually at night. I would wake up in agonizing pain, but after a little walking around, the pain would ease up. When it started happening daily, I started doing some research. For the first time, I learned that I had something called plantar faciitis. Visions of surgery terrorized me, and I vainly hoped that something pleasant like foot massage might be the recommended treatment.
The actual recommended treatment was something in between: arch supports. My husband once paid over $400 for a pair of custom-made orthotics to put in his shoes and was not pleased with them in the least. So I decided to check out cheapo options at the local Target store to see if I could get any relief at all from arch supports, before considering any major investments. That’s where I found my Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports. They cost me about $7.99. I chose the Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports because they were a pretty blue color and full of gel stuff that looked more comfortable than the solid arch supports. It was a pretty uninformed selection process, I must admit, but I lucked out.
When I started using Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports, both of my feet were in pain all day every day. Getting up in the morning, I was limping. It was excruciating to walk for that first half hour or so every morning. Within a couple of days of using Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports, the pain in my right foot was completely gone… except when I took my shoes off. Then that foot would ache a little, but just a little. My left foot has been a little crankier, but the Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports have drastically reduced the pain in that foot. Now I feel a regular, slight to moderate discomfort instead of excruciating pain.
When I bought these Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports, I was a bit worried because they only cover half the shoe. Would I feel that line where the arch support stops? At least with high arches like mine, that line is not noticeable when using the Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports.
Buying such a cheap pair of arch supports also made me wonder if the costlier ones were higher quality. I don’t yet know the answer to that question, but I do think that, for the money, the arch supports I bought are a fabulous buy.
I guess I should mention that my favored form of exercise is walking, and I often walk 5 miles or more per day. I can walk to my heart’s content with Dr. Scholl’s Massaging Gel Arch Supports in my sneakers and not feel pain.
