Pax, I'm glad your tendon problems are improving. Thanks for mentioning Olukai. I've seen some styles of their thongs at a few stores; I can't wear thongs without getting blisters on top of my feet but I may order one or two of their other styles. Some other sandals I've found with arch support are Vionic and Sole. Rockport has some but they all seem to have high heels. Also there's a store near me called Abeo that sells sandals and other shoes with three different insole/arch shapes. You walk and stand on a special mat in their store and from that they determine if your arch is high, neutral or low. I bought some sandals from them, haven't worn them yet.

So. I went back to Dr #1 about 3 weeks ago. He said that the inflammation he had felt in the tendon prior to my wearing the boot was no longer there, and that I needed a few more weeks to adjust to walking without the boot. Gave me a handout with stretches and exercises to. I bought a Theraband for the exercises.

He also recommended custom orthotics. Long story short*, I didn't get them and I'm not going back to Dr #1.

A couple of weeks have passed since then, I've been using the Theraband, things are better. But there's still some pain in the same tendon, especially after I tried a 20-minute walk last week. I have researched different doctors, was about to make an appointment with one in Baltimore, but then I did a bike ride with someone who recommended a surgeon in DC who treated her broken foot a few years ago. I went to see him yesterday. I was told he tends to keep his appointments very short but if you tell him you have questions he will stay and answer them. I found this to be true. Overall it went well. He said that my foot looks good on the x-ray, did not think there is anything seriously wrong, and recommended PT and 30 days of Celebrex to get the inflamed tendon to calm down. I have a follow-up scheduled in 5 weeks and he gave me a script for an MRI if it's not better in 3-4 weeks. He works with a medical assistant who gave me her card so I can contact her if I have any questions.

First PT appointment is scheduled for late next week. Just took the first Celebrex with my lunch. Am cautiously optimistic.

Oh and Dr #2 said "cycling is good." He is the foot and ankle specialist at an "orthopedic surgery and sports medicine" practice. They don't participate in any insurance plans so they're not the least expensive option, but so far I like them better than the first place I went.


*Custom orthotics, long story long: Dr #1 is at an all-in-one foot and ankle practice. Surgeons, podiatrist, PT, custom orthotics, small shoe store in the waiting room. On the surface this seems convenient, but..... For orthotics, they don't give you a prescription, they give you a form with specific insurance questions that must be filled out before you can see the orthotics person. Does your insurance cover them, if so what percent, is there a deductible, etc. Because they expect you pay up front before you get the orthotics. Combine this with the shoe store in the waiting area, and you feel more like a credit card than a patient. But wait, there's more. If you go through insurance they charge $1500 for the orthotics. Under my plan my out of pocket would be almost $1000. If you don't go through insurance they charge $530. And they repeatedly encourage you to go through your insurance. Holy crap. So I said, I really need to talk to the orthotics person, I am not even sure I want to get them. Amazingly, they did not make me pay to talk to her. She was very helpful and nice. I was very upset. I told her that I tried custom orthotics years ago and still ended up on the operating table. So for the time being she recommended OTC orthotics from Sole, for $50. They can be heat-molded using your oven or worn as-is. And Sole has a 90-day return policy if you wear them but don't like them. They felt like better support than the SuperFeet so I bought them. So far I like them. And BTW they are available from various stores including REI. And Sole also has various styles of shoes and sandals on their website.