Bunions can be a very painful situation. They can make it painful for you to stand for long periods of time and even to wear certain shoes. Bunions are actually a bone problem and the almost always happen at the base of your big toe. They cause your toe to point sideways so that it points toward your other toes and not straight ahead. Then there will be a bony growth around the base of your toe. That bump will be tender and sore to the touch, and the more severe the problem is, the bigger that growth will be and the more to the side your toe will point. If you have a bunion, or you think you have one, you might want to know what you can do in order to help treat your bunion or keep it from getting worse

Wide Shoes

One thing you can do is to look for shoes that have a wide toebox on them. That's the area right where your toes go. You want to make sure that your toes have plenty of space and don't feel cramped anywhere. That extra space will let your toes all have plenty of room and will make sure that you aren't putting any more pressure on your bunions than you have to put on them. If you have to wear narrow shoes or high heels, try to limit how long you are wearing them and try to take them off to rest your feet every so often, if you can. 

Pads/Splints

Another option that you have is to get bunion pads or splints that you can use on your feet. The pads are generally over-the-counter products that you can get at a pharmacy. You can just put them on your feet before you put your shoes on. When it comes to splinting your toes, you may have to get a splint from your doctor and they will show you how to wear it or how to tape your toe to the rest of your toes so that it gets the support that it needs so that you can get the relief that you are looking for. 

If you think you have bunions, you should go to the doctor and have them diagnose it. It may be severe enough that you have to have surgery, but there are other options you can try before it gets to that point. Contact a medical provider, like Richard Moy DPM INC, for more help.