the soles of my feet have been very painful for over a year. less painful for several years. i am not a diabetic. several years ago i visited a podiatrist and had custom insoles made. that helps some. the question that i have is: has anyone had any help from wearing orthopedic shoes?? the shoes that work best for me are ones with a flexible sole. anything with a hard sole such as leather is awful. i have always spent a lot of $ for shoes, but that doesn't help any longer.