Shoe size, pregnancy, and footwear question ....

[Circe]

Okay, a weird question: I know a lot of women experience changes in shoe-size post-pregnancy, which is attributed to the hormone relaxin, which allows bones to soften/shift. Just out of curiousity, those of you whose feet changed (or, for that matter, didn't change) ... what sorts of shoes did you wear during pregnancy?

I was reading about vintage clothing again (I'm consistent!) and one author pointed out that, when buying vintage shoes, wide-footed ladies were flat out of luck. Now, this could be part of the same syndrome which makes it appear as though women 40, 60, 100 years ago were all teeny-tiny if you look at the vintage clothing that's available (which, in point of fact, is partially due to the fact that they were smaller, but not by all that much, and partially due to the fact that the bigger garments fit more of the population over the passage of time and have been worn out). But part of me is wondering if it isn't also the shoes we wear - if, during pregnancy, you wear structured dress shoes rather than soft shoes like sneakers, Uggs, etc., are your feet likelier to retain their original size and shape?

Like I said, weird question. This is the sort of stuff I think about when I'm procrastinating!

 

[Logan Sapphire]

I wore the same shoes during pregnancy that I always do...a combo of running shoes, crocs (at home), and some low heels and loafers. My shoe size never changed at all, either during or post-pregnancy. I did get some swollen feet/ankles (my husband said they looked like baked potatoes) but oddly enough, no changes in shoe size.

 

[somethingshiny]

At around 24 weeks or so, my feet wouldn't fit into anything I owned. (I didn't have tennis shoes) In the past I would need wides in different brands. Then I needed wides in everything. My feet never swelled too much, and I've retained the larger size after pregnancy. Although, luckily, they didn't get bigger with the second baby! I was preggo with the oldest in the fall and winter, I wore wide snowboots for most of that. I needed the traction and warmth anyway. With the baby, I was preggo in the summer and I lived in those soft cushy Nike flip-flops. I also had a pair of wide dressy sandals for when I needed to look presentable.

Prior to pregnancy I wore a 7-8. Now I wear 9- 9W. I also use lots of inserts in my shoes to give me the support. For some reason my feet became very sensitive to the ball and arch support. Maybe because they've flattened?

 

[Dreamer_D]

My feet did not change size permanently, but in both my pregnancies in the third trimester I needed a size larger and could no longer wear a heel of any sort.

My go-to pregnancy shoes are Birkenstocks. Good support, wide, comfortable. You need it when you carry extra weight and you have swollen feet from extra fluids. ETA: Plus you really need slip on shoes late in pregnancy as bending over is terribly hard.

 

[lbbaber]

My feet got so swollen during my pregnancies that by the 3rd trimester, the only shoes I could wear was those Adidas slip on shoes (that look like slippers) with the velcro--the one's soccer players wear..they went up 2 sizes at 1 point and I had to keep the velcro holding by barely a mm...

After my 1st pregnancy my foot stayed an entire size larger, and never went back. My 2nd pregnancy it was an extra half size larger until very recentlt--my baby is 11 months.

It all depends if your feet swell or not. Crocs would have helped me too but I just can bring myself to wear them. I worked in a hospital and used Danskos for comfort until I had to switch to the Adidas.Thank GOD my boss let me wear the Adidas bc it is a NO-NO in a hospital setting. She felt bad for me---and I worked 16 hours the day my water broke. It broke while I was at work getting ready to clock out! My 2nd baby I didnt work.

 

[tiffanytwisted]

When I for to about 28 weeks my feet were so swollen that there was only one pair of tennis shoes I could get on them, and by the end of the pregnancy I couldn't tie them! ( they were new balance, which I've been told is a wider brand) by about three weeks post datum my feet had returned to their original size. Until this point I had been working in danskos, but I couldnt get my feet in them anymore
I do think that feet are wider than they were 40 or 50 year ago.

 

[Circe]

I do think that feet are wider than they were 40 or 50 year ago.

I do too, but I'm wondering why - I wonder if it's the case for men, too, only theirs stay the same through life? Conundrums ....

 

[fieryred33143]

My feet got wider so I had to find wide pumps. The only place I could find was in footwear, USA a random store in one of our outlet malls.

My feet are not wide now but they did go up half a size.

 

[somethingshiny]

Feet in general have become much larger. We're taller and heavier than ever before. Even when I was a kid, I remember my mom had trouble finding 8's at times and 5-6 was on display. Now, 7-8 are on display and 10's are readily available.
Supposedly, feet continue to grow just like ears. They never stop but grow very slowly.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I do think that feet are wider than they were 40 or 50 year ago.

I do too, but I'm wondering why - I wonder if it's the case for men, too, only theirs stay the same through life? Conundrums ....

We are also heavier and taller and have denser bones from better (and excessive) nutrition. That could explain our big ol' feets.

 

[Laila619]

My pregnancy was from March to December, so I basically wore flip flops/sandals for most of it, since they are open-toed. When it got too cold for that the last two months, I had to wear my one pair of gym shoes that are bigger than my normal size. No other shoes would fit!

 

[iheartscience]

I'm not pregnant and I have no kids, but if I decide to have kids and my feet get bigger I will lose my shit. It is already next to impossible to find shoes that fit my feet that I also like, and if I bump up a size or even a half size I will be seriously distraught.

As for your question, I see what you're saying...if you keep wearing the same size shoes that are more structured, will your feet actually get bigger or will the growth be restricted by the shoes? It seems like they wouldn't get bigger if they couldn't, but I imagine wearing shoes that are too small could cause other issues, like bunions and such. Hmm...I guess long term foot problems could be worse than losing my amazing shoe wardrobe.

 

[emeralddreams]

I remember, with my first pregnancy, I would put my shoes on in the morning and wouldn't take them off until bedtime, because my feet would actually swell throughout the day. If I took them off then I may not have been able to get them back on! Oddly enough, it went away as soon as I had her and, after 3 kids, I wear a smaller shoe size. I'm not sure if they are vanity sizing shoes now, or if I finally learned how to properly fit shoes. I have slightly wide feet, high insteps, and short toes. There are some things that will never fit comfortably.

 

[Circe]

I'm not pregnant and I have no kids, but if I decide to have kids and my feet get bigger I will lose my shit. It is already next to impossible to find shoes that fit my feet that I also like, and if I bump up a size or even a half size I will be seriously distraught.

As for your question, I see what you're saying...if you keep wearing the same size shoes that are more structured, will your feet actually get bigger or will the growth be restricted by the shoes? It seems like they wouldn't get bigger if they couldn't, but I imagine wearing shoes that are too small could cause other issues, like bunions and such. Hmm...I guess long term foot problems could be worse than losing my amazing shoe wardrobe.

See, this is what concerns me: I'm a 9.5 now, and if those suckers get any bigger, I'm going to have to shop the specialty shops! I'll admit, I've sort of been hoping that if I wear structured boots it will all be okay ... but from the sound of the thread, it sounds like that might not be the case. I was also wondering just because I have notoriously narrow feet, and I've never worn any kinds of soft shoes in my life. I can see the length being dependent on overall height, size, nutrition, etc., as per DD's statement, but I do find the generational shift to wider feet to be interesting ....

I remember, with my first pregnancy, I would put my shoes on in the morning and wouldn't take them off until bedtime, because my feet would actually swell throughout the day. If I took them off then I may not have been able to get them back on! Oddly enough, it went away as soon as I had her and, after 3 kids, I wear a smaller shoe size. I'm not sure if they are vanity sizing shoes now, or if I finally learned how to properly fit shoes. I have slightly wide feet, high insteps, and short toes. There are some things that will never fit comfortably.

I think they're starting to. I've been a 9.5 with my favorite shoe company for over a decade now, and the last time I bought boots from them, they were an 8.5. I know my feet haven't shrunken, so ....

 

[Dreamer_D]

Wider feet is probably a side effect of us being heavier -- causing a spreading of the bones from carrying more weight. And I was thinking denser bones in the feet would mean wider feet perhaps too.

I wear a 9.5 or 10, and when pregnant still wore a 10, they were just tighter I think you will be fine Circe. Do you have good news to share BTW?

 

[Sabine]

I wore old navy flip flops throughout most of my 2nd and all of my 3rd trimester with my first pregnancy (I was a teacher on summer break and delivered in late July), and other than swollen feet at times, my foot size didn't change at all. I had wide feet to begin with though.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

My mom's foot went from a 7 to 8 over the course of three pregnancies. My foot size went up half a size in the last trimester but once I lost the pregnancy weight, they went back.

 

[Bliss]

Good question! Hmmm, now that has me wondering! During the 2nd and 3rd trimesters I wore Birkenstocks (people joke that Birks are birth control - because your husband won't want to sleep with you when you wear them!)....Sexxxxay! When it got colder, I wore Uggs. I kind of have to wear heels for work but I substituted heels for high end ballet slippers and loafers that looked dressy. Just could not bear to wear heels in my third tri because I felt as big and as heavy as a house!

After pregnancy, I freaked out and thought my feet grew. It turned out I was wearing boots a size too small. I'm a 7.5 and the boots were a 6.5 - my mom's boots that she left here on her last visit! Here I was, walking around grimacing in pain only to find out that they weren't even mine! I did read that feet get bigger after pregnancy and I was soooo looking forward to getting all new shoes! My OB told my DH at my last visit before birth that it happened to his wife so she got a truckload of new shoes! Lucky woman!!!

 

[phoenixgirl]

My mom and my sister both had their size change permanently (1.5 sizes for my mom -- half a size per pregnancy -- and a half or whole size for my sister after three pregnancies). Mine didn't change and I can still wear all of my old shoes (I've only had one pregnancy, though, so maybe the total number matters). Also, my mom and sister both started out at a 5.5 and I am a 7, so maybe their feet just wanted to be bigger? At the end I wore crocs and sandals for comfort, but I don't remember being unable to get my shoes on.

 

[Circe]

Wider feet is probably a side effect of us being heavier -- causing a spreading of the bones from carrying more weight. And I was thinking denser bones in the feet would mean wider feet perhaps too.

I wear a 9.5 or 10, and when pregnant still wore a 10, they were just tighter I think you will be fine Circe. Do you have good news to share BTW?

Heh, yep - I'm 15 weeks along, due in November. I have a history of complications, so I've been, a) keeping it under my hat, and, b) trying hard not to think about any heavy stuff, hence distracting myself with fluff about footwear and the other fun, silly bits.

But since I'm hitting the point, silhouette-wise, where I can't really hide it from anybody in RL ... seems like the right time to share with PS friends! Heck, y'all are a better community for these sorts of things than most of my decidedly non-maternal circle of acquaintances ....

 

[lliang_chi]

Congrats Circe!!! I'm hoping wishing you a happy healthy 20+ more weeks ! (Sorry, I'm kinda new the the pregnancy stuff... )

~LC

 

[Circe]

Thanks, Lliang-Chi! I know just what you mean.

 

[nfowife]

I have horrible feet (bunions) so I can't really wear very structured shoes at all anymore. Anyhow I wear a size 7.5 but can be anything from a 7-8 depending on the shoe. I mostly wore flip flops, croc mammoths (my house shoe), privo slip-ons, and occasionally sneakers. My shoe size did not change during or after pregnancy. I also didn't swell at all and my finger size didn't change. And I'm not a teeny person either.