In our last blog, we discussed the top considerations when bunion surgery is necessary. Today, our podiatry experts are back to share what we, in our professional opinion, believe to be the best shoes for after bunion surgery.
If you or someone you know has had bunion surgery or is planning to have it soon, keep reading to learn more about the best shoes for after bunion surgery.
Why Footwear After Bunion Surgery Matters
As we mentioned in the previous blog, one common way a patient can develop bunions on their feet—or worsen an already existing bunion—is by wearing tight, ill-fitting shoes.
After bunion surgery, it’s crucial to wear supportive, properly fitting, and comfortable shoes. When choosing post-operative footwear, you should also consider your activity level, post-op symptoms, such as swelling, soreness, and sensitivity, and the types of terrain you will be walking on.
Best Shoes for After Bunion Surgery
The best shoes for after bunion surgery will vary depending on what phase of post-op you’re in. Let’s take a look at what footwear is most suitable for each phase:
1–6 Weeks Post-Op
Immediately following surgery, you’ll feel a lot of soreness and sensitivity, and your podiatrist will instruct you to elevate your feet for a portion of every hour, get plenty of rest, and stay well-hydrated. For the first two weeks, you’ll take pain medicine when needed. You will also experience some swelling and have to properly care for the wound where the bunion once was.
At this phase, the best shoes for after bunion surgery are… no shoes, or (temporary) slide-on house shoes that don’t touch the surgical wound. During these first few weeks, you must be very careful not to reopen the surgical wound or put too much weight on your feet, as this will lead to pain. Putting on or taking off shoes or even walking can impede your recovery.
Your podiatrist may give you a special post-op shoe to wear, like a boot you’ve probably seen someone with a broken foot wearing. However, even then, you cannot switch to regular footwear until you have approval.
6–8 Weeks Post-Op
After about 6–8 weeks of recovery, your podiatrist will give you clearance to transition to a shoe without any added height (no wedges, platforms, or high heels) and with good arch support.
Again, you also want to ensure that your shoes fit properly, so discuss proper foot measurements with your podiatrist. Even if there’s a discrepancy between the sizes of your two feet, there are online programs that allow you to send them the shoe that’s too small or big for one of your feet from a same-sized pair and trade it out for another size that fits your foot without having to buy two pairs of shoes.
Good arch support means you can’t wear a flat-soled, skater-type sneaker or a flip-flop; instead, you need a shoe with a supportive insole for your foot arch height. Examples of rigidly structured shoes that you can wear include supportive sandals with multiple straps for stability (at least one over the ankle and one over the toe area) or running shoes.
You may think that the best shoes for after-bunion surgery would be comfy shoes with cushy memory foam, but the opposite is true. Although memory foam feels great on aching feet in the short term, it can cause pain by not providing the arch support your feet truly need for the best possible post-op outcomes.
Experts on Bunions & Other Foot Conditions
Thanks for reading today’s blog! Our goal for this guide is to give patients like you the specific factors to look for when choosing the best shoes after bunion surgery.
If you’re looking for a podiatrist in Birmingham for bunions, arch pain, hammertoes, or other conditions related to the feet, please contact our staff at Foot Specialists of Birmingham today! We’ll gladly help you set up an appointment with our incredible team of podiatry experts and nursing assistants with certifications from the American Society of Podiatric Medical Assistants.
