Tag Archives: fitness

If the Shoe Doesn’t Fit… Send It Back!

14 Tuesday Jul 2026

Posted by in Diabetic, Disability

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Going to the shoe store has become one of my worst nightmares. Not everyone sells the shoes in the width that I need. In fact, there are only two stores in the Birmingham metro area that sell shoes in my size.

For those who are new here, I have Charcot. Charcot is a condition that makes my bones brittle. Two years ago, I unknowingly broke my right foot. It couldn’t be a normal break; it had to be broken in several places. What makes it worse, I didn’t know that it was broken for a couple of weeks. I have neuropathy in both feet, so I have no feeling. I only noticed when my foot was swollen so bad that my foot no longer fit in the shoe.

To make a long story short, I was in a splint for 3 weeks, a cast for eight weeks, and a boot for another ten weeks. My right foot is a 10.5 6E, and my left foot is a 9.5 3E. No, I don’t purchase two separate shoe sizes. I just purchase the larger size, and the orthotics take care of the fitting in my left foot.

So far, I’ve only found one store that sells the shoe that really fits me. It’s a New Balance style 907. They only make that shoe in one color: white. After about a month, the shoes are no longer white but a dingy gray.

Last year we tried to purchase a different-style shoe, same size and width, only to find that it caused massive blisters. I had to send the shoes back.

I went to the shoe store yesterday to purchase some new shoes because the others were falling apart. I purchased another style of shoe because I wanted a color other than white. I finally got around to putting them on a couple of hours ago, and I already know that these will be going back because they hurt my feet.

After spending nearly $200 on these shoes, I expect them to fit a little better and not hurt my feet. They act like they are simply not wide enough. I’m not sure if they make a 7E or not.

I guess I’ll be finding out tomorrow when I take these shoes back.

B

January 28th A Huge Setback

28 Sunday Jan 2024

Posted by in Photography

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I’ve had neuropathy in both of my feet for several years. I can stump my toe and never know it.  It is a blessing and a curse.  I’ve had blisters on my toes and feet so bad that it would take months to heal. The bad part is that I never knew I had these blisters until it was too late.  I have tried to check my feet several times a day since then.  I wasn’t too surprised when they told me that I had broken a bone in my foot as well as having several fractures on the top of my foot.  The scary part is that I don’t know how I did it.

Two weeks ago, I woke up to get ready to go to church and noticed my right foot had swelled badly. I first thought of gout.  I treated my foot for gout for a couple of days and when it didn’t get any better, I made an appointment to see a doctor.

The doctor took X-rays and took bloodwork. The doctor told me that I had osteomyelitis, an infection in the bones of my foot, and that I needed to go straight to the ER.  Fortunately, I live on the way to my hospital, so I stopped and packed a bag grabbed my wife, and went to the ER. Nine hours later I was finally seen by a doctor. A CAT scan and more bloodwork were performed.  I was seen by no less than five different doctors, and all speculated the same thing. It all depended on a scheduled MRI that didn’t happen for another two days.  Yes, I was finally admitted and had to wait until an MRI was performed.

I had an orthopedic surgeon come see me and he was the only one who offered another scenario.  All the other doctors were saying the only way to stop the infection was to amputate my leg. The orthopedic surgeon suggested that I had Charcot Midfoot, a rare occurrence that diabetics with severe neuropathy can get.  Basically, it makes your bones brittle and if not treated can cause amputation of a limb or two. If the MRI showed infection that would mean several months of heavy antibiotics with the possibility of amputation of my foot to start off with.  If the MRI showed no infection, my foot would be put in a splint and I could go home and schedule an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for follow-up appointments.

At approximately 11 am I was wheeled off for my MRI.  At approximately 2 pm I was told that there was no infection, and I was cleared to go home once my foot was put in a brace. At that time I was told that transport had been called and should be there within the hour. At 8:15 pm the transport finally arrived but not after my daughter called the hospital and complained.

Once home there had to be several changes.  A knee scooter, a shower stool, and a toilet rail had to be ordered to make my life a little easier.  I’ll be laid up for at least six weeks, maybe longer.  I’ve called and left a message with one of the doctors.  Hopefully, they’ll call me tomorrow to set up a follow-up appointment.  I’ve also got several other doctors to call tomorrow to reschedule appointments.  Oh, one other thing.  I live in a house with stairs leading to my living area.  I’ll have to call the fire department to get me in and out of my house.  This should be fun.