I ordered the Rachel Slip-on Mule mainly to wear inside for cooking and unpacking my household, both of which require a lot of time standing up, because I have been having major heel and arch pain after practically killing myself moving across the country on short notice. This shoe has the structure I was looking for, great arch support and a heel cup that is neither squishy nor rock-hard, and I can tell that they are having an effect on my feet, all the way up my legs and into my sacroiliac (yep, that's messed up, too). After wearing them (for limited break-in hours)for the last 3 days, I am not cured, but I can stand up long enough to make bread without crippling myself, and I think things will get better still with time. I also ordered the "Elgin Archxerciser Foot Strengthening Device" which another reviewer brought up, and THAT is really useful. I had no idea how much my foot had weakened until I first tried pulling that bar back with my toes! If you are having plantar fasciitis issues, take a look at that. The arch can be re-strengthened and rebuilt with exercise and persistence, and this is a great tool for the job, much better than trying to gather up a towel with your toes.

The down side of this shoe is that it is, well, an ugly elf shoe--you know the type, flat, graceless, with a big clunky toe box--and maybe if I were a willowy 5'9" with long legs i could get away with this look, but with my potato-farmer heredity it's just sad. BUT i think when the weather gets cool enough to wear long pants again (probably around Thanksgiving here on the Mississippi gulf coast), they will be fine with jeans (jeans long enough to mostly cover them completely, that is). And until then, I will wear them inside for my standing jobs, rotating them out with my other strong support shoe, because, let's face it, when you have foot pain you need to dial through more than one pair of shoes in a day to keep going.

I have also ordered the Orthaheel Tide thong, but haven't received it yet, and the Moszkito Archy thong, as I have had Moszkitos in the past that I loved for their good arch support (I killed my last pair dead packing for the move; they were more than a year old, and just got too trashed). In the meantime (yes, I am a flip-flop diehard) I swear by my Olukais; I haven't heard anyone mention them as orthotic, and my ancestral grandmothers were probably rolling over in their graves when I paid $100 for a pair of flip-flops, but I am so glad I did! They have been worth every penny in foot support, and they look great, too. I'd put in the name of the particular Olukai thong that I'm talking about, but have forgotten it, and I can't find them online. They have a higher, wedge-type profile, and gold straps.

I'll update this review as the foot saga goes on, but I am doing my foot exercises and stretches and hope to report that not only the shoes but the feet are coming up to five stars. And if you really need foot help and are not afraid of elf shoes, these might just do the trick.