How do I straighten my big toes?!

[Tufuehehsf]

I don't have bunions.
My big toes bend slightly at the first joint but it is the second joint where they really start looking off-kilter. I would love to have some kind of a contraption that can straighten them out but when I Google all I get is adverts for bunions. Which I don't have! I would love to straighten them as I think my feet look quite nice apart from this. Has anyone got any ideas? Thank you 🙏

You can buy toe straighteners on Amazon but the only thing that will really fix things long-term is surgery - and even that isn't guaranteed. I have bent second toes and have been told my only option is surgery but as I'm not in any pain I'm not going to bother.

I bought some toe straighteners , but they didn’t work that well and im annoyed that I’ve managed to lose a few over the years ( goodness knows how !)
I really dislike my weird toes and feet. It’s probably hereditary, but I envy people with nice normal toes and feet and surgery would be ok if I win the lottery ( but could I deal with the six weeks recovery ?)

You’ve lost a few toes but don’t know how?!?!?

Sorry! I meant that I lost the toe straighteners! I still have my toes , luckily ..

You need to find someone who can teach you exercises to align and strengthen your feet, knees and hips so that your feet and instep and arches work correctly and don't put pressure on your joints.

I don't know if this would be a personal trainer with special interest of physiotherapist - I learned a lot through knowledgeable dance teachers.

Try wearing barefoot shoes with a wide toe box. They can transform your feet once your toes have enough room to splay properly.

I am going to a chiropodist next week. How do you know if its actual bunions? My foot is sore in certain shoes and toe looks a little out of shape but nothing major. I did bang it off a dresser on holidays a few weeks ago. Don't know if badly bruised or even fractured 🙈

I am pretty sure that it's not bunions as the toes only start to bend sideways at their "join" and not at the bit where the bunions would be.

I am attaching a photo of my toes to kind of show what I'm talking about - the toes start to lean at the knuckle point. Excuse the horrible nail varnish 🫣

Have they always leaned inwards?

Maybe you have shorter muscles on the inside of the toes so they pull the toe inwards? No idea and am not a chiropodist!

What kind of shoes do you wear? If they haven't always looked like this, coul it be to too small/narrow shoes?

Mine look like that, including the crappy nail varnish but in green 🙄

I've always thought it was from squashing my feet into trendy shoes as a teen. In my defense, I have size 8 feet and back in the day most styles would go up to a 7 at most.

I go barefoot a lot or have worn trainers for the last 20/30 years and it hasn't made a difference.

Arthritis (hereditary) can do that. Before you all shout im not old enough according to the surgeon I saw recently about my hand arthritis in fingers and toes starts in your 30s and just gets worse over time.

Are you wearing barefoot or normal shoes? So long as you’re wearing tapered (normal) shoes this is unlikely to fix. A combination of barefoot shoes and toe spacers are probably your best bet, but with no guarantees.

Are you wearing barefoot or normal shoes? So long as you’re wearing tapered (normal) shoes this is unlikely to fix. A combination of barefoot shoes and toe spacers are probably your best bet, but with no guarantees.

I have major problems with my big toes. They bend where yours do but they also have little movement in them. I got dry needling done to release the tendons and that helped but I've not bothered going back and they've went back to normal.

It looks like it's from too narrow shoes. Look at how normal shoes make your big toe squish inwards to fit as it cannot lie straight.

I have found birkenstocks and toe separators helpful when it comes to proper alignment of joints in the feet and toes.

Hi thanks for all the messages
My parents were absolutely fanatical about me only wearing Clarks or Start-Rite shoes when I was younger; I don't think it's from wearing too-small shoes.

Yes @Chewbecca they have always been like this; i first noticed it when I was doing gymnastics when I was about 10. My mum asked in the shoe shop and they said maybe it was because I had quite narrow feet and the shoes I was wearing had rounded toes. So my toes had too much space?! This sounds ludicrous typing it out but back then I think before Google people were more likely to believe 'experts'.

Arthritis in feet does run in my family and I do get pain on the top of my feet so I wouldn't be surprised if I do have the beginnings of it.