HOW I GOT TARSAL TUNNEL PAIN - AND WHAT HELPS ME
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NURTIONAL SUPPLEMENTS - available at most health stores.
NOTE: I have tried almost every kind nutritional supplement and over the counter products. Most of them did not help - all were expensive. I've tried various Anti-Oxidants but they have not helped me much. One product, Liga-Tend, made by Bio-Chem has helped me a great deal.
The nutritional supplement called Liga-Tend. It is made by Bio-Chem and can be found at any health food store - expensive as hell. But, it has Mucopolysacchoirde Complex -which is supposed to help the nerve sheaths. It reduces inflammation. The only other major source for Mucopolysacchoirde is whole leaf aloe vera juice or oil. I take about 4 Liga-Tend a day - costs about $75 a month - but, I notice more pain when I don't take it.
FLAX SEED OIL OR WHOLE LEAF ALOE VERA OIL
- I drink it as often as I can stand it. Comes in pill form, but they are very expensive for what you get in the pills. Buy the liquid - it is a good test of how much you want to relieve the pain you are in! I should drink it more often.TOPICAL CREAMS & OILS
I've bought many dollars of creams and lotions - here is what has helped me
DMSO
- with 1/3 Aloe Oil - you can find it at any health food store - read the cautions and ask the clerks if you have never used DMSO before. The long term effects are unknown. However, it really does help the inflammation in my feet. My wife hates the smell of it!CAPSICUM CREAM
- many people with arthritis use this. It is made from cayenne peppers. I have a bad reaction to hot peppers and don't use this - but, it is approved by the FDA to reduce inflammation and helps many people with foot pain.MENTHOL PATCHES - these are great - you can cut them to any size with a pair of sissors. The patches stay on all day. One drawback, you will smell like your grandfather. Menthol is one of the oldest healing balms and is found in many medicines around the world.
FOUR NON-SURGICAL THINGS THAT HAVE HELPED THE MOST…
CUSTOM MADE ORTHOTICS - ABOUT $250
I must have spent hundred of dollars on all sorts of weird foot inserts! I wish I had gone to a good orthotics maker first, paid more and really gotten some relief. Plus, the folks who work on orthotics can be a great source of information and support. They know a tremendous amount about foot problems and can be very helpful. Don't delay on good orthotics!
RELAXATION TRAINING - BOOKS & TAPES
I use relaxation and healing imagery to control pain and promote healing. It helps me a lot. The best book I know is Dr. Herbert Benson's YOUR MAXIMUM MIND. This is a follow up to Dr. Benson's best seller, The Relaxation Response and his work at the Harvard Medical School.
I listen to relaxation tapes by DR. EMMETT MILLER. His cassette tapes are for sale in hospitals or can be ordered in bookstores. I enjoy "Letting Go of Stress" and "Healing Journey".
TRY SMALL ICE PACKS!
Here is my way of using ICE PACKS - it works almost as well. You can get soft gel ice packs at almost any major store. You keep them in your freezer. Be sure to get the soft, FLEXIBLE ones - they mold themselves to your feet.
(You can also use plain ice cubes and hold them in place with a sock)
Use a coffee filter to place between your foot and the ice pack. This protects the skin from ice burns. I also use a sock - with the toe cut out. I slip the ice pack under my inside ankle bone and tie another sock around the outside to hold the ice pack in place. I leave this on for 20-30 min.
Any ice cubes will also work - just hold them in place with a sock. Put 1 to 3 ice cubes around the inside of your ankle.
Finish off with a rinse of WARM water - the alternate cold and warmth feel great!
MAGNETS! Small, Dime Sized Magnets rated 10,000 or higher gauss
Believe it or not, magnets have really helped me. I use the very small, 10,000 gauss type. They are smaller than a dime and weigh almost nothing. BUT they were spendy - $20 for two! NOTE: new research casts doubts on the use of magnets. However, they can't hurt, and I personally have felt some relief using them.
I am sure if you shop around you can find them cheaper. I simply tape three small magnets to the inside of each foot - right along the tarsal tunnel. You only want to use very small magnets as larger ones can bang against the TT and cause more pain. Use only small magnets!
You can find these types of magnets at health food stores - but I would try to find them from an industrial firm first - they will be much cheaper - and probably work just as well. I wear mine all the time - even at nite. People laugh, but I would not trade them for anything!
NOTE: I DO NOT USE "FULL SOLE" MAGNETIC FOOT INSOLES!
People with TTS need orthotics and the magnet insoles do not fit together - plus the magnets in the insoles are not very strong and too far away from the Tarsal Tunnel site. Use small, dime sized magnets on the side of your foot - if at all. Perhaps magnetic shoe inserts help some people with diabetes.
I am fortunate to have had a very good surgeon. Try to find one in your local area with experience in Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome. Call local coaches - football, basketball or track. Coaches know which docs are good with sports injuries and that can be a help.
WHAT TO DO BEFORE YOU HAVE SURGERY …
1) Quit Smoking Cigarettes. I did not quit and it really hurt my recovery. Nicotine constricts the small blood vessels and makes TTS much worse. QUIT SMOKING NOW!
2) Lose Weight every extra pound off can help your chances of recovery- however, quitting cigarettes is more important! Many people with TTS are both overweight & smoke.
3) Ask your doctor to check out the so-called "high tarsal tunnel zone" - about 4 inches up from the ankle. A major reason surgeries fail is because doctors don't check for compression far up the ankle - where the tibial nerve comes down into the foot. You get two scars per foot!
A good surgeon will advise TTS surgery only as a LAST RESORT! I agree - and I've been satisfied with the results from my own surgeries even if I still have pain.
MORE IDEAS ON PAIN RELIEF - PILLS & LASERS & ELECTRICTY
I don't use
PAIN PILLS much - narcotics make me too drowsy to think. I have begun taking Neurontin. It was developed to treat epilepsy and seizures. It is also being prescribed for all sorts of nerve pain. It is not addictive and it is non-narcotic. It is the best medicine I have found for TTS pain.Does anyone know of a Pain Patch that could be worn right on the tarsal tunnel? They are making many medications in Skin Patch form today. I know patches are made for cancer patients, but are there less addicting medicines being made in patches?
Also, I would also like to learn more about
ELECTRICAL OR LASER THERAPY for pain. I have not used it but I have heard of some promising research. Anyone know more about it?I use
ANTI-DEPRESSANTS for both pain and my down moods which largely come with having to deal with severe, constant pain. I won't say which anti-depressants I take because there are dozens on the market and what works for me may not work for you. Your doctor is the best person to speak with about anti-depressants and pain control.Below is a picture of me taken in 1976. I was a railroad construction worker - a "gandydancer". My greatest love was hiking with my dogs in the mountains of Oregon. We explored many streams filled with gemstones. We built miles and miles of wilderness trails for other hikers.
A few years ago my feet started to ache. I began buying a lot of over the counter foot aids - none helped. My family doctor, a great fellow, was baffled. It took nearly a year to diagnose it.
Partly due to my increasing foot pain, I lost a job that I loved - as a mental health worker with people who have problems such as schizophrenia. I used to take my clients on long hikes in the wilderness. The activity I loved most was making me crippled. It took part of my spirit away.
Pictures of Tarsal Tunnel Foot Pain
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