K.B.
Hi L.!
Okay, first I am not by any means an expert on foot problems, but, at about 18 months my aunt was putting my shoe on (a sandal) and my toe was left in a strap all day- no one noticed it until bedtime. In all that time, walking as an 18 month old does, I was limping, and everyone I came in contact with thought it was normal. No amount of discomfort is normal and her condition sounds a lot like what my mother said I went through. It turned out that after seeing a pediatrician, having my tendons checked, and so on my toe had broken and because iit took literally months for my mother to insist on xrays my toe healed in an overlapped position. Now, at 35 my foot is disfigured (overlapped and dented toes) and there is always some degree of pain in that foot. I never thought to have surgery because I've lived with it so long.
If you haven't already done so, please take her to get xrays or an MRI and see a specialist. Insist on it. It shouldn't keep her up at night.