I’ve had foot pain since I was about eight years old. My mom took me to a doctor who put hard plastic orange orthotics in my shoes (I can still picture them). For many years, I wore cheap shoes with no arch support, along with another of my favorite habits at the time — going barefoot! Then, at the age of 14, I was diagnosed with 45-degree S-curve scoliosis. Using custom orthotics and wearing more supportive shoes made a world of difference in pain relief.
Fast forward to 2022, I’m 42 years old and a chiropractor. I’ve made aligning the body by supporting the three arches of the foot with custom orthotics an important part of my care. For more than 10 years, I’ve worn the same orthotics. They’re created from a 3D laser foot scan, with a unique prescription for each of my feet (that’s important).
When I opened my solo practice in 2017, I ordered a 3D kiosk. From the beginning, I scanned every patient, explaining the need for 24/7 custom stabilization. I recommended multiple pairs of custom orthotics for all their activities, so their bodies were continually supported and aligned year-round.
A patient once took his custom orthotics with him on a flight. He thought he wouldn’t need to wear them for a quick trip, so he packed them in his suitcase. His flight was delayed by four hours, and he couldn’t get them out of his checked luggage. He never made that mistake again. Because his feet hurt? No! Because his whole body hurt — feet, lower back, hips, and knees. That’s what makes the difference for me too. I can walk/stand/ sit/adjust/ clean house from morning to night with constant support and not have hip and lower back pain when I wear custom footwear and orthotics.
Staying cool, comfortable, and balanced
In many places, especially the South, the heat can be extreme in the spring and summer. For warmer temperatures, I advise custom sandals and flip-flops with the prescription built right in. In my home state of Arkansas, I wear waterproof custom flip-flops 12 months of the year. I call them my house shoes and tell my patients to make them their “new barefoot.”
Round-the-clock alignment makes a difference. When patients are far from your practice or travel a lot and can’t come see you often, they still have their custom orthotics for stabilization.
So let’s go back to hot weather when patients spend their time at pools, on boats, on beaches, and in the outdoors in the heat. What are they wearing to keep their feet comfortable? A lot of bad options, such as thin generic flip-flops and cheap sandals, don’t support the feet. A bigger concern is what does the unsupportive footwear do to the rest of their bodies?
Think about a house with a faulty, cracked, worn-out foundation. How’s that going to hold up the structure? Not good. Going to need some repair work fast, right? Well, that’s what poorly fitting footwear with no arch support does to the body. Many patients may not know there’s an affordable option that can keep those toes cool and looking stylish at the same time — custom sandals and flip-flops (a favorite of my office staff and of mine. I have them in multiple colors!)
I recommend that your patients use custom stabilization 24/7.1 do, my staff does, and that’s what I advise my patients. Your whole practice can benefit from educating patients about the importance of foot alignment and custom stabilizing footwear.
I scan all of my patients’ feet as part of their initial visit and explain the connection between their feet and the rest of their bodies. They are so comforted to understand why they hurt. They see the link between their feet, hips, knees, and shoulders.
Then you tell them how they can make a different choice for their health by investing in multiple pairs of custom orthotics and custom footwear to keep their bodies continually stabilized. Help your patients decide what’s best for them. I tell them it’s my due diligence as their doctor to let them know when they’ve lost proper function of their arches. Most patients don’t know that the feet have three arches, and if they have flat feet, they will get up off the adjusting table on those same unhealthy, imbalanced feet. Unless you address foot dysfunction in your care, it will affect your adjustments and the effectiveness of your treatments.
Get your team stabilized
At my practice, we scan the feet of every team member, and buy every one of them a pair of custom orthotics after they’ve been with us for 90 days. Then we invite them to invest in additional pairs, such as flip-flops and sandals, at a discount or by earning them as prizes/raffles. We allow the team to wear open-toed shoes on Fridays and Saturdays if they are sandals with custom stabilization. Cheap knockoff sandals are a no-go! Patients see us wearing custom footwear, and it opens conversations about the importance of foot stabilization. They see we believe in what we say and sell — literally walking our talk.
Start the stabilization conversation
Start the healthy summer-footwear conversation in early spring (if not year-round). This gets patients thinking about purchasing custom sandals and flip-flops before it’s hot and they’ve already purchased cheap, unsupportive footwear. To spread the word about custom stabilization and healthy footwear, use marketing materials, brochures, and posters to catch your patients’ attention.
I keep a sample pair of custom black rubber waterproof flip-flops and my favorite custom brown leather sandals on my consult desks. When I review a foot scan with my patient and recommend 24/7 orthotics, I point to or take mine off to show them right then. I also encourage multiple pair purchases with special discount pricing for my patients. I show patients a list with pictures of the different shoes and flip-flops that I recommend.
I truly believe we all want what’s best for our patients. We love people and want them to have success with our efforts. Wearing custom orthotics and custom flip-flops 24/7 is a great option for your patients to consider. So I’ll end with some borrowed wisdom —just do it!
Dr. Amanda Bledsoe is a 2005 graduate of Cleveland Chiropractic College in Kansas City, Kansas. She also earned a B.S. in Science from the University of Central Arkansas. She is the owner of Bledsoe Chiropractic Clinic of Conway, Arkansas, which she founded in 2017.
