anke pain

[Helene2013]

I can't change the title...if a mod can do it for "ankle" it would be great.
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Well, when it is not one thing, it is another one right!!!!

I had some light ankle (the inside of right ankle) pain when walking a lot. Getting worse with summer since we are mostly wearing sandals, and even no shoes on grass. And the fact I have a huge yard to cut the grass and it rains so much, it grows like crazy...so that is a lot of walking to mow so much, twice a week!!!

I know I have overpronation feet, worst on the right one. I did have customed inside soles made to put into my shoes but I don't like the feel of it.

PT at the time gave me tips on how to work on those ankles to strengthen them as much as possible, without having to wear ortho soles as she is not a big fan of inside soles as it does not "teach" you how to walk and strengthen your feet.

Soooo forward to this past weekend. We were camping, I walked a lot (we have to walk our 3 dogs on leash while at campground) and I only brought my crocs
. Not the best support to walk on gravel, I know!

So by Sunday night, after cutting grass, up/down the stairs to put camping stuff away, my ankle was so painful and swollen that even applying ice pack on it hurt. I could no longer tolerate weight on it.

And we're going on vacation in under 2 weeks and there will be lots of walking. I took 2 Aleve and yesterday morning, no more pain. Yippeee. In meantime, I spoke with my physiotherapist and saw her last night.

At lunch I went to the Runningroom and purchased a pair of walking shoes, that my PT approved when she saw them. They are perfect for my condition. So salesman did a great job! He knew his stuff. He was surprised I never had a torn ligament or twisted an ankle by the overpronation and my walking style. oh well... I must be blessed. haha

We never "paid" attention to the foot as we were then working on knees at the time. But since I do "suffer" from Hallux vallus (bunion), my big toe does not support the foot like it should. So she did a few things and it felt sooooo good. She gave me some PT exercises to do at home to reinforce my weakened tendon (we can see the different in size with the left foot). She also did a taping on the big toe to push it to where it should normally be instead of sticking to the next toe. She did noticed that I had some "stiffness" in some area of the foot and worked on it. But she was happy to see that my toes were very flexible, which is not often for those suffering from bunions.

She gave me extra tape, but also did some sort of foam shape that I can put in-between the two toes. She also said that even the pedicure toe separator could do the job if I had no tape, or lost my little handmade foam.

I have to pay attention on how I walk, to remind myself to put pressure a certain way, etc... not easy to "re-learn" to walk. She gave me some extra tape so I can do my own taping, and I can also use a cut-up piece of foam she did for me to put between the big toe and the other one. That will help push the big toe in its place. It will not fix the issue but will help the weight of the foot to be put in the right place, to help with the steps and pressure. And help to realign the knee.

Last night I iced the ankle and it was so painful just the weight of the bag. She told me to try frozen rice bag as it may not be as heavy, or try a light gel pack. I took 2 Aleve night and this morning I was top shape. Came to work in my new shoes - wearing shorts (and changed once I got to work) and will try to avoid sandals until I feel better since they crush my big toe. Hard at work as I work in dress/skirts. But if I want to be able to walk a lot during our 3 weeks vacation...no choice...

At least I have the go to cycle as much as I want. That's good news. hihi

So you solve one problem...and you get a new one. Ahhhh the joy of agin sometimes!!!

[Helene2013]

Thanks Muireen. My new shoes are great, so far. Very very comfy. I'll keep the Chacos in mind (and when I see a store that carry them will give a try with feet in) when I look for a new pair. At the price the Saucony cost me (184$cdn taxes incl)...they better last for a while. hihi

[Helene2013]

They are Saucony Omni 14. Perfect for the fast walking I do.
http://www.saucony.com/en/omni-14/18...q=omni&start=1

[Aromig]

I have a bunion that's getting worse as I get older. This is the first year that it's actually been bothering me after cycling long distances, and you summed it up perfectly - it's like the big toe isn't supporting the foot like it should. I know that I may eventually have to get it treated (I've heard surgery is about the only option), but I'll put that off until it is really really really bothering me. In the meantime, I'd be interested in hearing how you're taping the toes/foot. I've learned how to tape my shoulders and knees from physical therapist, and I've googled other taping methods but never thought it might be able to help with my foot!

I have some super duper gel toe separators I sometimes use when just laying around and my foot feels better afterwards. I never thought about using a spacer any other time.

[Helene2013]

I hear you...it got worse over my "younger" years but seemed to stabilized when I stopped wearing high heels. At least those that crunched my toes. Anyway, I can't walk in high heels now because of feet instability. So I wear some at work, but take them off under my desk, and when I go to lunch or need to walk on other floors, I put on my flats. Soooo sexy. haha

I could not find quickly a pic on internet of what the temp taping looks like. So I took one of my foot.... do not pay attention to my pedicure...it has to be redone and too lazy right now. blah

But it will give you an idea. It pulls just enough on the side of the toe so I can apply normal pressure on the toe when walking. It is a test she is doing and I need to report to her how it goes tomorrow. Very easy to do myself if conclusive. I would have liked it to be a tighter pull but it is ok for now. When I redo it tomorrow, I will pull on the side tape just a notch harder to make sure it keeps the toes straigther. It is just a trial now and see how it goes.



I will try using the handmade spacer she did for me when I will be all day in a walking shoe. See how it feels when on.

As for surgery, when I saw a podiatrist for ingrown toenail surgery, she told me they rarely due bunion surgery nowadays. Very painful, and risky. I'm far from needing one but if I had known that super high heels would have caused this to me when I was in my later teens and 20s, I would never have worn them so much. But it is what it is and I can only try to fix what I can.

I did 30 minutes of full cycling today followed by 30 minutes of muscle training + my physio that has to be done too and no pain. It was sensitive but nothing like 2 days ago.

Good luck and I'm sure we are many here with this toe isue. Afterall, we're mostly women...and probably abused (and still abuse) of high heels. hihi

[Aromig]

I hear you...it got worse over my "younger" years but seemed to stabilized when I stopped wearing high heels.

yes! That's me. I have about 5 or 6 pairs of shoes under my desk where I wear high heels in and then wear flip flops home. I also walk around my office barefoot, or put on flats until I have a meeting or something. I have super tight calves (from wearing heels for years so they've shortened) and always have to stretch them or get plantar fasciitis. I had a partner at work who had the bunion surgery a few years ago, and it seemed like a pain. She wore super high heels for 50 years. Anyway, for the most part mine don't bother me often, they've just started recently on long cycling rides (like greater than 40 miles) and the pain/hotspot/numbness goes away after I walk a few minutes at rest stops so I guess I shouldn't complain, just always looking for ideas! I'm going to try the tape to see if it helps!

Thanks,

Amy

[ny biker]

I had the same problem years ago. It got worse over time until finally I needed to have surgery to remove the permanently-damaged tendon, replace it with part of a tendon from another part of my foot, and move the heel bone 1/4 inch to relieve pressure on the tendon. It was a painful experience that took a long time to heal.

Get rid of all the shoes that provide no support. Address the overpronation problem. Wear whatever shoes you need to wear at work, regardless of how they look with dresses and skirts. Just tell people it is necessary to heal the tendonitis.

Good luck.