ok I am only 25, yes am overweight (working on that) and yes I have poor posture (working on that as well). I know god made us all a little asymmetrical, but when he was making my feet, he must've had his eyes closed., either that or something occurred during my development.

I have feet that look like they came from two different people. there is a whole size difference bet. my L and R but that is not the issue here. The issue (I think) is my arches, one of them is as high as the grand canyon and the other is as flat as a washboard. I don't know how they got this way, but I only recently discovered it when Dr. oz did that wet feet test thing on his show and I decided to do it. I also way overpronate on the flat foot and severely oversupinate on the high arch, to a degree that I severely fractured my 5th metatarsal last year and it was deemed a true jones fx b/c it was up high on the metatarsal. two month in the fracture was widening, turns out a $4500 bone stimulator by Exogen was the only thing that saved me from surgery.

My point is, is this as much a cause of my back pain as I believe it is? and if so what is the best type of orthotic (either OTC or prescription) to suit my problem. The problem with most OTC orthotics is they are made under the assumption that BOTH your feet have the same issue lol. I did find these ones made my ProFoot called the 2 ounce miracle where they mold to the shape of your feet in about 24 hours with pressure from normal walking. Problem is they are just not substantial enough.

Also I want to bring up the issue of a slipped/herniated disc. Should I get checked for this before pursuing orthotics? Only becuase my brother is 28 and has had a slipped disc for a few years now which hasn't herniated but he also weight a little less than half of what I weight and is 5 inches taller, hence he is not overweight at all. I have never been checked for disc issues and if I am having constant pain maybe I should get checked? my mom began to develop osteoarthritis of the spine very young at about 23 or 24, & I will turn 25 in a month.

also, does anyone have any good products to relieve or help everyday back pain. I currently do stretches heat, joint/muscle creams and ibuprofen, but there are products out there that I have seen in the media and I would love to know if they are legit or ****, like back2life, those acushakti accupressure mats and special shoes like sketchers shape-ups. Has anyone tried any of these? Also I am going to buy a homedics back massage cushion (I have a foot one of these and have tried them in the store and they are really nice) But I am confused about what kind to get. They have the shiatsu style ones, the sweedish style massage ones and then just the plain vibrate ones. I was wondering if any of these might be helpful or even harmful to my back, like sometimes when I would use the shiatsu ones in the store, they felt good for a few minutes, but then OUCH! the pressure was to much and it hurt (but kinda felt good at the same time if you know what I meal lol).

If anyone can give me some suggestions on why I may have such different arches and what I could do to help the back pain (ironically my feet themselves don't hurt at all lol) and if any of the suggestions above or which ones make the most sense, I would really appreciate it.

thanks in advance,
Carlie