My Experience With Custom Orthotics – Sarah H

Oakville foot clinic, foot care, Palermo, walk-in

As administrative staff at our Oakville Foot Care (Chiropody), Physiotherapy and Massage Therapy Clinic I see many people come through the door with running injuries, foot pain and other aches and pains. As an avid runner I know how important a good pair of running shoes are and I learned the hard way that to perform injury free and at my best I need both a proper pair of running shoes as well as a proper pair of custom made orthotics.

At the age of 12 I was prescribed custom orthotics for a running injury. They were helpful for awhile but the irritation in my hips began again. When I began working at Palermo Physiotherapy and Wellness, I met Chiropodist (foot care specialist), Brittney Wirtz. I learned from her that my 10 year old orthotics were made using outdated technology and they were way too old, on average you should be looking to replace orthotics every 2 years… who knew?!

I decided (and my hips decided) it was time to update my old orthotics. I made an appointment with Brittney to have her take a cast of my foot and do a proper biomechanical assessment. She looked at how I stand, how I walk and distribute my weight. She checked the mobility of my joints and customized my orthotics for me. This included discussing how the process works and what materials would be used. The orthotics wouldn’t just be a “best fit” option that gets chosen at a distributor but rather made from a mold taken from my casting. It would be a 3 dimensional representation of my foot taken from a position of ideal alignment. The Chiropodist spoke about the shoes I would be wearing them in, the activity I would be wearing them for as well as the materials best suited for these.Running shoes with Orthotics on bridge in Oakville to prevent foot pain and injury at foot clinic

I waited around a week and finally my orthotics came in! I was very anxious and excited to see how they felt and if they would make a difference… AND BOY DID THEY! I was so excited to receive my new Orthotics. Not only do they fit my feet perfectly but they are designed to distribute my weight and make sure that I am weight bearing ideally on my joints from the bottom up. Although Brittney the Chiropodist advised a weaning on period to allow my muscles to get used to them, I went for my usual 5 km run and for the first time in years my hips were not sore after my run and I had no pain or discomfort when I woke up the next day. I was able to run faster, better and even longer! I feel like the Orthotics allowed my muscles to work more efficiently. Also, I never knew how much discomfort my feet were causing me until I had the problem fixed! By fixing the issues in my feet it helped fix issues in my ankles, knees, hips and even lower back! Everything is connected and even the smallest misalignment can throw everything out of whack, especially with a repetitive activity like running.

It was a pleasure working with the Chiropodist Brittney as she is extremely passionate and knowledgeable about foot health and if it were not for her I would still be walking around with old, outdated and worn out orthotics that weren’t really helping me.

My feet and hips are thanking me for taking the step to get proper, well made and well-fit Orthotics. ~Sarah H

Massage in Oakville, Physiotherapy Oakville, Oakville foot clinic
We are located on the second floor of North Oakville’s Palermo Professional Centre.