At 59, I should be enjoying life. Travelling with my husband. Playing with my grandkids.
Taking long walks along the beach like we used to.
Instead, I'd become a prisoner in my own body.
Every morning started the same way: I'd swing my legs out of bed, place my feet on the floor, and the moment I tried to stand...
shooting, stabbing pain through both heels that made me gasp out loud.
For the first few minutes of every single day, I hobbled around like a little old lady.
I ignored the warning signs for too long.
It started small, maybe two years ago. A bit of tenderness in my heel after a long day at work.
Then it got worse.
The tenderness became achiness. The achiness became pain. The pain became agony.
I bought new shoes. Expensive ones with "extra support." They didn't help.
I tried gel inserts from the chemist. Made it worse.
I even went to the doctor. He barely looked at my feet, told me it was "probably just your age" and "maybe lose some weight."
That was the moment I felt truly defeated.
it was what the pain was taking from me.
I cancelled our beach holiday. I stopped going to my book club. My entire life was shrinking.
And then came the moment I'll never forget.
Three months ago, my grandkids burst through the door begging, "Nana, can we go to the park? Please, please, please?"
I looked at my daughter Emma. She could see it in my face.
"Mum, are your feet still bad?"
Emma took the kids to the park herself. I stayed home, sitting on the couch, feeling older and more useless than I'd ever felt in my life.
That night, I decided enough was enough.
I got online and started searching desperately: "heel pain won't go away," "chronic foot pain," "too painful to walk."
I found forums full of women describing the exact same pain I had. Some had been suffering for years.
But then I saw a comment that changed everything.
A woman from the Gold Coast wrote:
"After 18 months of hell with plantar fasciitis, I finally found relief. My physio told me about these Australian-designed arch support thongs.
Now I can walk on the beach again.
I kept reading. More comments poured in about the same product: Dr Arch's Support Thongs.
I'll be honest: I was skeptical. How could thongs do what $200 orthotics couldn't?
But I was desperate.
So I ordered a pair.
They arrived two days later. I slipped them on that morning—and within seconds, I felt the difference.
The arch support cradled my foot in a way no shoe ever had. The cushioning absorbed the impact that usually sent shockwaves through my heel.
I walked around my kitchen. Then down the hallway. Then outside to get the mail.
No stabbing pain. No hobbling. Just... walking.
I actually started crying.
Three weeks later, I took my grandkids to the park.
We walked there together—a 15-minute walk I hadn't been able to do in over a year. When we got there, I didn't have to sit on the bench in pain. I actually played with them.
Last month, we finally took that Byron Bay trip we'd cancelled. I wore my Dr Arch's thongs every single day—on the beach, walking into town, even to dinner at night.
If you're reading this and you recognize yourself in my story—the morning pain, the hobbling, the cancelled plans, the feeling of your life shrinking—please don't wait like I did.I spent two years suffering because I thought this was just "part of getting older." It's not. You don't have to live like this. Do yourself a favour: get them today. Your feet and your family will thank you.