Professional Foot Health and Care

Singing The Hand-Me-Down Shoes Blues

"I've got the hand-me-down blues, 'cause I wear hand-me-down shoes."
"Where ever I go, the shoe hurts my big toe."
"I wouldn't have this rash that I caught, if only the shoes had been bought, for me."

The practice that many families have, where they pass down clothing and shoes to the next sibling in line, in an effort to save money, may work if the clothes fit. However that is not the case for the shoes. The old saying, "If the shoe fits wear it," really should not pertain to the children next in line in the family. There are many reasons why this is so. These reasons vary from the psychological effect of wearing second hand shoes to the negative effects pre-driven shoes can have on foot health.

There is a very positive effect that new clothing, in this case new shoes, has on an individual. There are self-esteem issues that are involved. Children especially need to feel good about themselves. Memories of second hand clothing (shoes) can affect how the child feels about himself for the rest of the child's life. Many times, patients mention that they believe that their foot problems are a direct result of the hand-me-down shoes they wore when they were children. These adults express how much they hated that practice during their childhood. They have never gotten over it...