negot
07-29-2008, 02:43 AM
I have bunions on both feet. The right one is not that bad, but my left bunion is large and sometimes it hurts. My toes on my left foot are crowded and it is getting worse than it used to be. I have not had a surgery for this. My chiropractor told me to do exercises where I pull my big toe away from the other toes. I rarely think of doing this though. I though that maybe I should wear a spacer at night and see if it helps. My question is, does a spacer help to make a bunion smaller and the toes less crowded? Second, where do I buy a spacer?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Sponsor
dancergal19
07-29-2008, 11:24 AM
A spacer or bunion splint can help reduce the pain by putting your big toe in proper alignment. Neither will make your bunion go away but they will help with toe crowding when you're wearing them. I had bunion surgery last year and wear a toe spacer in my sneakers and wear a bunion splint at night to help prevent the bunion from coming back. The only way to get rid of a bunion is with surgery. I get most of my foot products from Foot Smart.
wakkochic17
07-29-2008, 01:13 PM
like dancergal said, they won't make your bunion go away, they just help reduce the pressure and crowding of your toes and can help ease discomfort. I don't wear a splint, but I wear the toe spacers. I got mine at the local drug store. I already had surgery on my left foot, but I still need to have the bunion on my right foot operated on. In fact I go to the doc next week to discuss whether I'm going to get my right foot operated on (eeks!)
debbie g
07-29-2008, 01:42 PM
i think you should try all of the products. if it doesnt get better, surgery might be the answer.
Dancinboots
07-29-2008, 02:33 PM
You can get a toe spacer and also bunion cushions at any drugstore.
badfeet51
07-29-2008, 03:11 PM
I agree with DebbieG please try all products first. I would wait on surgery until I had pain that the foot products did not help.
cosmic1
07-29-2008, 09:32 PM
I waited and waited and waited UNTIL the bone in my second toe was being ejected from it's socket because of the great toe displacing it.
Even at that point with the pain of being able to feel the second toe bone at the bottom of the foot, did I take the problem seriously.
I had suffered with severe bunions for 40 years and had gone through sooo many pain issues that none of them seemed important.
However, in retrospect I SHOULD HAVE HAD MY FEET CORRECTED MUCH SOONER.
My POD first words were "You waited too long". My corrections would have been so much easier if I had taken this problem seriously.
Foot one great toe and second toe corrections.
Second foot great toe, second toe and third toe corrections.
I have faired very well but it was a huge ordeal.
Everytime I see people with bunions like mine I want to shout "Get them fixed"!
Even at that point with the pain of being able to feel the second toe bone at the bottom of the foot, did I take the problem seriously.
I had suffered with severe bunions for 40 years and had gone through sooo many pain issues that none of them seemed important.
However, in retrospect I SHOULD HAVE HAD MY FEET CORRECTED MUCH SOONER.
My POD first words were "You waited too long". My corrections would have been so much easier if I had taken this problem seriously.
Foot one great toe and second toe corrections.
Second foot great toe, second toe and third toe corrections.
I have faired very well but it was a huge ordeal.
Everytime I see people with bunions like mine I want to shout "Get them fixed"!
donna 77
07-30-2008, 10:49 AM
Getting your bunions fixed is a good idea. I too shop at Footsmart and I've been using different orthotics, spacers, splints etc. for 10 years. I was lucky and I only needed 3 pins to fix my big toe. My second toes were crowded but they didn't need pins. I guess what I am saying is that bunions only get worse. The longer you wait the worse your problems get...like your other toes being involved. That means more pins more extensive surgery.
Surgery in my experience wasn't painful. It is the inconvienience of not being able to do normal every day things. It is also tough if your an overachiever and have a hard time putting up with the messes around you and being dependent on someone else to drive you, or clean for you etc.
My 2 sons and husband certainly have different ideas than I do about cleanliness!
Surgery in my experience wasn't painful. It is the inconvienience of not being able to do normal every day things. It is also tough if your an overachiever and have a hard time putting up with the messes around you and being dependent on someone else to drive you, or clean for you etc.
My 2 sons and husband certainly have different ideas than I do about cleanliness!
dncergrl53
07-30-2008, 11:55 AM
I had (past tense!) one dorsal (on top) bunion of the great toe (hallux limitus), that was preventing me from bending my toe. I managed it conservatively so that it would not hurt, but I was prevented from doing most of my favorite activities. I had surgery 8 weeks ago and kept my foot way up in the air for most of that time, and had no pain and swelling only when the foot was lower than my waist. I can now bend my toe, get into a pair of 2" heels and sneakers, walk normally and I fully expect to resume my dance activities from 5-7 years ago when this whole thing started. My advice is to get the surgery, but first structure your life so that you can lie around for as long as needed to keep the swelling down and get the best outcome you can (up to 8 weeks). I wasted all those years, when I could have been having fun. Oh well, better late than never. I know of at least one other dance who went ahead and got her bunions repaired and she is really happy with the outcome. The trick is to give yourself time to recover and keep that swelling down at all costs by elevating the foot high.