Recovering From Weeks Of Foot Pain
It has been almost a month since I was declared “healed” from the right fibula fracture I suffered earlier this year.
I have continued to work with the physical therapist to strengthen my range of motion in both feet and to help recover not only from the break but from the bout of plantar fascitis that has been bugging me.
So I have been working on foot pain exercises as well as plantar fasciitis exercises over the past four weeks and I can really tell a difference.
My favorite foot exercise to work on range of motion is using my big toe to “Draw the alphabet”.
I do this exercise every single night and do it with both feet. I try to work through the alphabet slowly and really concentrate on “drawing” the letter just how it appears in the alphabet.
Another good tip that I learned from the physical therapist is while sitting in a chair or on the couch, with one foot on the floor, to gently hold the other foot by the ball of the foot and encircling the toes and then to gently pull the toes down towards the floor and then up towards the ceiling and then to gently rotate the ankle from side to side.
This foot exercise has definitely helped to reduce some of my foot pain and has helped me to have more range of motion by the gentle stretching this foot exercise provides. The orthopedic and podiatrist I have been seeing believes strongly in physical therapy and I can tell for me it has made a difference.
The easiest and most delightful of all the tips I have learned from my physical therapist is her recommendation to soak my feet each night in a warm tub of Epsom salts to help not only with the foot pain but with the inflammation as well. I don’t have to tell you how wonderful this feels!
I usually end up soaking my feet more than the 10-15 minutes the physical therapist has suggested.
So I continue on my journey to find a complete resolution to the foot pain I have continued to experience even after coming out of the walking cast and being declared “healed” from the fibula fracture.
I have had to learn to be patient. The plantar fascitis and the fracture have not been quick to heal for me… and since I am not really a patient person, this has been a huge challenge.
But as long as I can see some progress I am happy.
Oh, I think I hear a warm bath of Epsom salts calling my name.
My Foot Pain – A Long Journey
It seems I have spent the better part of the last few months dealing with foot pain after a bout of plantar fasciitis in my left foot and a broken fibula in the right foot.
I have visited my family doctor, a podiatrist, got a second opinion from on orthopedic physician and have spent the last several weeks with a physical therapist.
All of those visits were in search of relief from my foot pain. At first it seemed that everyone had a different idea but finally it has started to come together.
I am having less foot pain now and the fracture fibula has finally healed.
I am so relieved!
With that piece of good news, I was able to come out of the walking cast!
Yeah!
My right foot is still a little tender and I think I am a little protective since I have been in the cast for so long, but each day gets better.
I am getting better every day with the plantar fasciitis exercises that my physical therapist prescribed. The range of motion in both feet is much better.
Rolling the frozen golf ball along the bottom of my foot each night to stretch out the plantar fascia has helped a lot. The frozen part not only helps the inflammation but the rolling part also helps the plantar fascia to stretch.
Drawing the ABCs with my toes in order to get full range of motion in both feet seemed a bit ridiculous at first but once I got over that I realized that the movements really were great feet exercises. So I have kept it up.
So even though I wouldn’t say that I am back at 100% I would say that I am really happy to be out of the walking cast and to be out of the acute foot pain I was experiencing. When every step hurts then it seems everything hurts.
I am going to keep up the exercises, make sure that I have great shoes for support and keep looking ahead to the day when I am back at 100%.
There’s nothing like happy feet!
next… Recovering From Weeks Of Foot Pain
Sore Foot Physical Therapy 101
I saw a physical therapist today at the referral of my podiatrist after way too many weeks spent in a walking cast.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much my feet hurt and have continued to hurt for weeks on end.
From the plantar fascitis in my left foot to the high sprain, tendonitis and fractured fibula in my right foot every step has been painful for so long that I feel that I don’t even walk normally any more.
It continues to amaze me how much having pain in my foot impacts my whole body! Foot pain, foot pain, go away…
The physical therapist I saw today seemed very caring and kind.
She also seemed to really know her stuff and I am grateful that she seemed confident that she could get me back to walking normally again sooner rather than later. I am not sure I am as hopeful as she is.
After a full hour of her measuring my legs, checking my foot strength and range of motion, manually stretching my feet (ok, that wasn’t all that fun!) and teaching me a variety of exercises I was in even more pain than when I walked in her office!
She explained that was to be expected. Meanwhile I was trying not to get discouraged.
She showed me how to do calf stretches to help to loosen up my very tight calf muscles.
She also told me to use my toes to “draw” the alphabet with every night to allow the feet the have a full range of motion.
She also showed me how to use a frozen golf ball to place on the floor and roll my foot over it from the heel to the toe to stretch the plantar fascia for plantar fascitis exercises. At first that hurt but it really did begin to feel pretty good as the plantar fascia began to stretch.
My physical therapist also recommended that I soak my aching feet in Epsom salts every night for twenty minutes. Now, that was my favorite piece of advice!
So at this point I am scheduled to see my physical therapist twice a week for three to four weeks.
She is hopeful that she can get me feeling better and back to my happy healthy self.
Here’s to happy feet!
next… My Foot Pain – A Long Journey
Orthotics And Now Physical Therapy
So it’s been a week on the latest round of steroids and my feet hurt!
At my follow up appointment with my podiatrist today, she discovered a new cause for the pain in my foot.
On the right foot, the one with the high sprain and fractured fibula, I have now developed tendonitis.
You have got to be kidding!
I can’t believe it and yet I am relieved to learn that there is an explanation for the continued pain.
I am going to finish up the latest round of steroids and keep taking the new anti-inflammatory medication she has asked me to try.
The heel pain from plantar fascitis seems at times to be showing very slow improvement but I am almost too afraid to hope. By the end of my work day, I am simply exhausted just from trying to get around.
My back and legs continue to ache and I am sure that is from the weird way I am walking… I walk so gingerly trying to avoid completely stepping down fully with the foot with plantar fascitis and trying to lug around the right foot with the walking cast. Wow, it gets heavy by the end of the day.
In two weeks at my doctor’s prescription I am going to begin physical therapy. I have to say though… I am worried. I am not sure I can stand it. I am definitely nervous. But I know that I need to do everything I can to get some relief from the pain in my feet.
Lessons learned… listen to your body.
I am frustrated that I went so many weeks without answers, even though my body was still screaming in pain. If only I had listened to my foot pain earlier and pushed harder for more aggressive treatment then I would be that much further down the path to feeling better than I am at right now.
I ended up with an additional injury, the fractured fibula, from lack of treatment to the original complaint of plantar fascitis.
Foot pain, I have learned, impacts every area of your body… and for me… my life. I am still on the sidelines… I want to get back in the game… but I need relief from foot pain.
Will physical therapy be the answer… who knows… my aching feet sure hope so!
next… Sore Foot Physical Therapy 101
Orthotics & Relieving Foot Pain
It took a little over a week for me to really get used to wearing the foot orthotics. Each day was a little less painful.
It was one of those things that I couldn’t decide if the pain from the orthotics was worse that the pain I was having from the foot pain before.
But not one to give up I am going to keep wearing the orthotics and see how it goes.
I saw my podiatrist again today and she decided to start me on another round of steroids to see if that would help, especially since the first time I was the steroids I was still walking around on the broken fibula without it being immobilized.
My feet hurt! They really hurt… with every step… I so need something to really work. I am definitely getting a lesson in patience and I am really learned that I am not all that good at being patient!
So I stopped by the pharmacy to pick up the steroids right after my appointment. I will start taking them in the morning.
I am worried though… the last time I took them I had trouble sleeping and felt like I had a constant headache. But if it will help with the foot pain, the high sprain, the plantar fascitis… well then I will take the medicine.
I’ve continued with the foot stretching exercises my podiatrist suggested and I’ve continued to ice and elevate my feet.
Time will tell if this next round of steroids will help.
next… Orthotics And Now Physical Therapy
Rising Foot Pain – Rising Frustration
It has been eight weeks now and my foot pain is no better.
My frustration is climbing and my patience is long gone.
I called my podiatrist and ask for an earlier appointment than the one I have scheduled a week from now.
I am really glad she was able to work me in.
When I saw my podiatrist today I told her that neither foot was any better… I was terribly frustrated.
Of course, she reminded me that she had told me early on that this was going to take a long time to heal… I remembered but it doesn’t make it any easier to get through the days.
I am staying off my feet as best as I can.
I do better at home than at work that’s for sure.
When I get home I do elevate and ice my feet. The pain from plantar fascitis continues to feel like someone is driving a nail through my heel… the pain is so awful with that first step trying to get out of bed every morning.
I would rather stay in bed!
The pain from the fibula fracture and high sprain on the right foot also continues. The right ankle is still swollen and red, with not much improvement at all.
At today’s visit, my podiatrist decided to add orthotics to my treatment. We decided on over the counter foot orthotics that she had at her office. If these don’t work we will look into custom orthotics.
So I left today’s visit with a set of orthotics.
One was placed in my left shoe and one inside the walking cast on the right foot.
All I can say is ouch!
Who knew that getting used to orthotics would add a whole other level of pain!
Good grief!
Oh well, I will keep at it in the outside hope that orthotics will ultimately give me some relief.
Still hunting for relief from foot pain…
next… Orthotics & Relieving Foot Pain
My Foot Pain – No Good Foot To Walk On
My Foot Pain – No Good Foot To Walk On
At least now I know what is causing the heel pain in my left foot and the foot pain in my right foot.
Plantar fascitis in the left foot and a fracture of the right fibula, along with a high sprain seem to be the cause of all the foot pain.
Well, the good news is at least we know.
My podiatrist has been very helpful with trying to work through the different challenges of healing. It has been three weeks since I have been in the cast and neither foot is any better. I do admit I am getting frustrated with the pain… I think it is wearing me out.
Every step is so painful… I am finding myself more frustrated and less patient each day. I just want to be able to sleep without being awakened by foot pain! Is that too much to ask!
At my appointment today with my podiatrist, she explained that these types of injury take months to heal and that I am going to have to be patient.
Being patient is definitely not my strength.
We decided to try another type of anti-inflammatory medication just to see if one would work better than the other. She also gave me a mild pain medication to see if it would help me to be able to sleep at night.
At this point I am willing to try anything to get some relief from the pain in my feet.
As soon as I get home from work I ice and elevate both feet. I also make sure that I do the foot stretching exercises that my doctor gave me for the plantar fascitis.
I think they are helping but I am worried that my left foot is not going to get any better since it is carrying all the weight from me hobbling around with a broken foot.
I am also finding that my back and legs just ache overall… I think it is because I am walking funny from the pain… plantar fascitis in the left foot, and a fracture of the right fibula… well it just doesn’t make it too easy to walk!!
Still looking for healthy and happy feet!
next… Rising Foot Pain – Rising Frustration
Plantar Fasciitis & A Fracture
Almost eight weeks of heel pain in the left foot, almost two weeks of ankle and lower leg pain in the right foot… what’s a girl to do?
Following my doctor’s advice, after getting no relief from my foot pain after a round of steroids and anti-inflammatory medications, I called to make an appointment with a podiatrist.
Fortunately the podiatrist was able to get me in two days later. I was hopeful.
After listening to my story and looking at my feet and taking x-rays of both feet, she diagnosed plantar fascitis in my left foot and a fracture in the right foot.
Wow! Didn’t see that one coming!
To treat the plantar fascitis she changed the anti-inflammatory medications I was taking to twice a day, she injected my foot with steroids (that was unbelievably painful!!) and prescribed plantar fascitis exercise and rest. Of course, rest is easier said than done.
For the fracture, she ordered an MRI to look for additional damage… since by now I had been walking around like this for almost three weeks!! Now that’s frustrating!! She also immediately put me in a walking cast to protect the foot and allow for healing. This foot also got a prescription of rest.
Four days later I had an MRI of the right foot which showed a very obvious fracture, and lots of fluid surrounding the ankle joint.
I went back to see the podiatrist two days later and we reviewed the MRI together. She explained that the injury would take 12-16 weeks to heel and said that I was going to have to be patient.
Not an easy thing for me.
She said both feet needed rest to heel… the challenge being that with both feet being painful that staying off my feet would be the biggest challenge of all.
Plantar fascitis in one foot and a fracture of the other… heel pain that won’t go away and ankle pain that throbs all night long… I am looking for relief…
next… My Foot Pain – No Good Foot To Walk On
My Heel Pain Just Won't Stop
Well, it has been a full week of following my doctor’s advice and taking the prescription strength anti-inflammatory medications and steroids that she prescribed…
and I am no better at all.
In fact, I am worse. Every step is painful… the pain in my heel feels like I am stepping on a nail with every step…
it feels like I am walking on glass, the heel pain is so awful in the morning that I just don’t want to even get out of bed.
Those first few steps are agonizing!
Plus my “good foot” has continued to swell… it looks like a tennis ball on the side of my foot.
The pain in my ankle and my lower leg are worse every day. I have also developed a pain on the top of my foot as well and both feet are tingling and numb in places… I dread taking a step with either foot!
Plus, with the steroids that I am taking I just want to scream! I am having head aches and having a tough time sleeping because of the buzz in my body and the pain in my feet…
After a week of following my doctor’s advice, taking the medication just like it was ordered, I felt like the biggest baby ever… I have a fairly high pain tolerance and I just can’t take it any more.
I called my doctor back to ask for an appointment for follow up since the current plan wasn’t working and she felt like it would be best if I saw a podiatrist for another opinion.
This left me hopeful and yet a little frustrated too.
It has been a full week since I saw my doctor and a six full weeks since I first started having heel pain, which turned out to be plantar fascitis.
It has also been almost ten days since I first started having pain in my “good foot”.
So, needless to say, every step continues to be steps of agony. I am frustrated because even at night I cannot get any relief from the pain, especially in my “good foot”.
The good foot just aches and throbs all night long… there are times that even the sheets resting on my foot seem to cause pain.
Everything seems more hypersensitive to pain right now… and I think I am actually lying awake at night worried about that painful first step out of bed in the morning.
What do you do when both feet are painful? I am so used to being really active and yet I am on the sidelines…
No need to give up yet though… I will call and try to get an appointment with the podiatrist recommended by my doctor.
I need healthy feet…
I’ll Keep you posted.
next… Plantar Fasciitis & A Fracture
My Sore Foot Saga
Well today I finally gave in and went to see my doctor because of the unbelievable pain in my foot that I have had for the past six weeks.
Specifically the heel pain in my left foot that simply will not go away!
I noticed about two months ago that my feet were really hurting when I got home from work every night.
Since I have a job where I am on my feet most of the day, I thought it might just be that I needed new shoes.
So off I went to the shoe store, selecting a store that specializes in running shoes, and after telling my story to the sales rep, and trying on countless pairs of shoes I settled on a new pair of Asics, a brand I had never tried before. Wow… those shoes really did feel a lot different than my old ones.
But unfortunately my heel pain did not get any better.
In fact, it got worse. It got so bad, in fact, that every step was painful, and especially those first few steps after getting out of bed every morning or those first few steps after I had been sitting for any amount of time.
I did some research and decided that it sounded like I had plantar fascitis, so I started treating myself in hopes that my foot pain would get better. I did the foot stretching exercises that I found on line, I started wearing my new more supportive shoes, and I even started to ice my foot every night after being on my feet all day. Based on my research I learned that the icing was supposed to help with the inflammation of plantar fascitis and it felt pretty good, so I figured it wasn’t hurting anything.
For a few days I was hopeful and it seemed things were getting better, but then the strangest thing happened. One day while walking to my car from work, my opposite foot, the “good one” began to hurt, especially around my ankle and the lower part of my leg.
It seemed strange and I just chalked it up to having had a long day at work. But within a few days I could hardly walk on either foot. And to make matters worse, the ankle of my “good foot” was getting more tender and swollen. There was even an area about the size of a fifty cent piece that was red and warm.
Good grief!
I need my feet… and putting up with heel pain of self-described plantar fascitis and now an increasingly painful “good foot”… well enough treating myself and that is what finally caused me to go to my primary physician. Six weeks of painful feet… six weeks of a pain in the heel that wouldn’t go away… six weeks of one foot hurting followed by the other foot joining in on the fun!
I needed help!
So at today’s visit, I was happy to hear that my doctor agreed that the pain in my left foot was plantar fascitis. She agreed that I should continue all the things I was doing for my plantar fascitis and the incredible heel pain it was causing.
Well that made me feel better about my self-diagnosing! She prescribed a packet of steroids to help with the inflammation and some prescription strength anti-inflammatory medication which should also help out. I am excited to finally have something that will help.
My doctor felt like we should just keep watching my “good foot”. She thought maybe it was just strained since I’ve been babying the bad foot so much and the “good foot” has had to take all the pressure.
Since I had no specific injury to the “good foot” my doctor decided that x-rays weren’t necessary since it sounded most like a strain.
What a relief!
So it’s off to the drug store to fill my new prescriptions. I am feeling better already! I will most definitely keep up the plantar fascitis exercises, and my doctor even suggested a few more than the ones I was already doing.
Here’s to good feet!