my "shoe solution" is not what you would expect.
right from the beginning, i noticed that my feet were better barefoot than in a lot of shoes (which flies in the face of logic from everything anyone will tell you). and when i'd try to add in any kind of orthodic, that forced the foot to pronate even more, then my feet would really flare. i even had $300 custom orthodics fitted and made thinking "i'm just not wearing the right orthodics" bu they were the worst. i even tried breaking them in slowly.

at first the podiatrist told me i was pronating in too much and the orthodics would help that. but after a few times of seeing me over the months, she too saw that what i needed were perfectly flat shoes. and she told me a few things i need to go track down.

but so far, what i've found to work the best:

barefoot on a kneeling pad if i have to stand to do dishes or food prep in the kitchen.

my flat keds for exercise: biking, serious walks.

my flat Huaraches (mexican sandals) for most of my walking needs in the summer. i even walked 10 miles on concrete sidewalks in boston one day and at the end of the day my feet were normal tired sore but not inflamed at all. i was a bit shocked myself.

at first the crocs were terrible, pronating my feet the way the orthodics did, but i've broken them in and now they are pretty flat and pretty comfortable.

my shoe boots and snow boots also seem to work well.

wish i could find a flat sneaker that had cushioned support but didn't have an arch that forced (pronated) my foot in a position it didn't want to be in. the podiatrist told me there was a model of asics that might work.

she also told me that clarks makes a flat shoe, need to track those down as well.

we have a shoe store with serious shoes that i need to visit. been saying that for months.

but what works for me seems extremely atypical.

i'd say try things out, see what works and doesn't work and see if you can see any trends, that's what i had to do.

since i don't have well cushioned flat shoes, i have to avoid hard surfaces as much as possible, especially standing on them. thus i don't go shopping much anymore. this pleases my husband greatly it is a unique way to save money. there are even times i can't go to the grocery store, though the crocs have a little more cushioning and i've found i can do the grocery store again with these. thank goodness.

good luck,

sue