BOOTS ARE A B!TCH

A Foot-Challenged Girl’s Attempt To Find Mr. Right Pair

Shoe shopping sucks in general. It’s a ton of work and rarely satisfying.

My girlfriends (the ones with perfect arches and no cankles) appear to love shoe shopping as much (or maybe even more) than sex. Some women get a visible flushed face high from finding the perfect pair. They sound like giddy teenagers revealing the brand name “They are Stuart Weitzman” of their newest love.

I am always happy for them but can’t relate. My love for shoes is unrequited; they have never loved me back. Like choosing the guy who is nice, and supportive, but not so attractive; women with foot issues often settle for shoes because they fit.

Boot shopping is for sure the most difficult.

My list of must-haves is long.

LAINIE’S AFO BOOT REQUIREMENTS

Are my standards too high?

Should women with foot challenges give up good looks for function?

Be grateful, I tell myself. There are many people who can’t even walk.

Why Should I Settle?

I don’t want to slip on ice and I don’t want to wear ugly boots if I do slip on ice.

Superficial or not, I need both fashion AND function.

So, I spent (no joke) 5 hours+ at two different malls. Seemingly endless hours, scouring every corner of the internet to find boots that would fit and that I would feel good wearing.

After several Amazon returns, I finally found him…

The boots of my disabled girl dreams!

I bought these boots two sizes larger than my regular foot size to allow more depth. They have a stretchy back making it easier to stretch over my AFO’s. Most importantly, the outside zipper goes all the way down to the footbed.

These are the Bromley boot by Michael Kors.

They were kind of expensive but given how hard I worked to find them, worth it to me.

Us foot-challenged girls need to stick together and share great finds.