Foot Pain 101: What to Do When Your Feet Need Treatment Now

December 26th, 2009 Posted in Travel and Leisure

At times when your feet are tired, sore, and overused, the pain can often become horrendous. Running, dancing, and athletic activities can put enormous stress on our feet, and cause problems with our tendons, muscles, and bones. Painful blisters, heelspurs, and shin splint pain can cause simple movements like walking to be painful. Nonetheless, there are several options that can help manage the pain and heal the injuries when carried out habitually. Here are 3 things to make feet feel better so you can resume normal activities.

Treating Blisters Properly Can Prevent Infection

Snugly-fitted shoes can cause blisters on the skin of the feet. Blisters can appear on all regions of the foot, but the back of the foot is the most affected site. Since the skin is the body’s largest organ, and responsible for protecting us from bacteria and viruses, a blister should not intentionally be popped. Podiatrists suggest the use of moleskin as a great choice for shielding an un-popped blister to avoiding it from breaking open. If a blister has already popped, it is advised to clean the area and apply Neosporin. Then, keep the site covered with a bandage.

How to Deal with Shin Pain Challenges

Shin splints is a painful condition that can affect athletes. This uncomfortable condition is caused by abuse of the lower leg by any activity that involves repeated impact. The exact nature of the injury is under investigation, but they seem to affect a tendon located in the shin identified as the posterior peroneal tendon. Since this problem also seems to afflict people who experience over-pronation of their feet (over-pronation is the inward rolling of the foot), special support devices in the shoes, known as sports insoles are very useful.

Treatment for shin splint pain can include icing the area, giving it a break until it is healed, and doing activities that are non-impact such as using a stationary bicycle or swimming. To avoid re-injuring the area, wear sports orthotics whenever engaging in high-impact sports.

Heel injuries Can Be Helped with Insoles For Sports

Plantar fasciitis is one of the most painful heel and foot issues to suffer from. Plantar fasciitis pain occurs when the plantar fascia is overly stretched and becomes full, tender, and difficult to put pressure on. A proper method to treat these conditions from the start is with sufficient support of the foot arches and padding, which can be provided by using sports insoles. Gentle massage of the affected area as well as using ice and getting physical therapy are also helpful.

When your lower body parts experience pain, your body is sending you a vital warning: it needs help. Sometimes, the mere act of resting from high-impact exercises for a short period and wearing sports insoles is enough. But when more serious injuries develop such as shin splint pain, a doctor should be consulted in order to appropriately evaluate the problem and provide proper treatment.