I am in pain and I can't take in no more!

[Keggy]

I am so tired of my ankle hurting. It makes me sick. It seems it gets better than it gets worse. Just a month or so ago I went to the accupuncturist and he poked it and prodded it, trying to relive the swelling. It has been swollen for over a year. It used to hurt a little, starting last friday (when I started my vacation time) it started hurting a lot!

My other ankle aches from carrying the weight of the other.

I wear a magnetic brace all the time...... I hate it.

any advice will be appreciated.

[MaryEvelyn]

No advice just Megga hugs ((((((((((((((((((((KEGGY)))))))))))))))))))))

[milivica]

I totally hear you on the other foot getting screwed up due to trying to relieve hurt foot (or ankle rather).

I went through about a 2 year period with a messed up right ankle for which I had something inflatable I was supposed to wear, AND my left foot was in a walking cast, I forget from what. Of course I had crutches too. Being a person that can't stand shoes, I pretty much didn't do the walking cast or ankle brace, even though they did give relief - they just felt too restraining (maybe some sensory or psychological thing??) like I imagine a corsette would.

You might years back (maybe 3 years ago???) I got by CRAWLING everywhere around here, and not going out, and when I did finally - using those slow battery operated contraptions stores have. I just was not able to handle the pain, so with a lot of tears I got good at walking on my knees like they were short stilts, and did force myself to use crutches to take off the weight I put on them and walked very very slow when ever I did. After a good month of serious paying attention to never straining my ankle and foot, there was improvement. I think all together it was under 2 years, but I finally got them both just fine again. I believe tendons were torn in both, a bone was chipped in my heel, there was more but I forget what. I do know being overweight played a role too.

And, though this may not help you - who knows it may....all my adult life and even as a teen, my feet have ACHED terribly. I think due to working in lines at factories and standing for hours in one spot, and waitressing too. Anyhow, years back, when I first met Pamster here and found out she does not have one of her legs (but does have loads of phantom pain) it's like, attitude wise, I was never fed up by any pain I felt in my feet and ankles anymore. I just always say to myself when I hurt, "At least I have two feet to hurt", and I really 'feel' the statement. I was just so influenced or impacted by Pam back when I first met her in 1999 on the old MGH, it just always stuck with me.

So, that might or might not work for you. I know there are times I'm not in the frame of mind to hear how 'lucky' I am about something, it just so happens that when it comes to pain in my legs ankles and feet, of which I have lots, I don't care - and it's cause knowing what happened to Pam could just as easily as me, dunno how to explain it, the reality of having a painful foot or ankle by comparison to none just hit me. I've known other amputees, for some reason Pam (maybe cause she's a mom like me with an autistic son like me) just made an impact on me.

Dunno if any of that helps but I do feel for you! It's really frustrating when it takes sooooo long and just goes on and on.

((((Mili))))

[Isabelle]

my dd is a marathon runner, an thrialton (sp) participant. at her first marathon she collapsed with a knee injury. 4 years went by, after several doctors advising this and that, one even recommended immediate surgery. until a podiatrist noticed an unbalanced hip and recommend special soles to compensate, no more knee/hip pain.
just finding the right specialist with integrity...imagine having surgery for something that custom soles corrected?

[Keggy]

Thanks for your sympathies guys. This problem goes way back... the more I think about it the more back it goes. I first hurt my left ankle back in 1978, sprained it walking down the stairs. It was agony, and put a huge straing on my right ankle. After that I broke and sprained my ankles several times. Do you remember when I hit myself with my car? that was ten years ago and I hurt this ankle when I did that.
I have worn orth shoes, I wear sketchers now... dam cute and comfortable. People always compliment my shoes cause they are so cute. So the foot pain isn't an issue like it used to be (try them moldy)
ankle pain... a whole other problem.
I am sure this is the result of too much icecream and crap. If I lost some weight my ankles would probably say ....." whew, thank you"....

BTW Moldy, it I started crawling around at work they would have me crawl into a room and that is where i would remain!! Besides, my knees can not ... they refuse to be used in that manner!

[mrsdoubtfyre]

I certainly understand pain....

Two people at work have had recent tendon fixes. One is a young gal who broke her ankle years ago...was not treated correctly and now she had tendon issues.
The other fellow had his achilles tendon lengthened.

I think a sports doctor consult would be a good idea for you (after you rule out arthritis and gout).

They are doing fancy stuff now with tendons. The gal had a scope put up her ankle revealing loss of tendons from inflammation. The doctor reconstructed it and she is now doing well. She had years of terrible pain.

If walking is hurting you too much there are special shoes now that take some of the shock off your ankle...
The achilles tendon patient uses these:
http://www.zcoil.com/

And I know another who likes them too. But they are expensive.

[Mother's Heart]

I've seen a wearer of the z-coil. THe person was an O.R. supervisor and wore just one....I presumed to relieve her of the necessity of toe-walking to compensate for one leg shorter that the other. awesome looking invention.
I wonder if I would trip over my own feet though....I can't even handle a sandal with a heel....different balance totally throws me for a loop. I'm sure the adjustment would not be a long process, once all that pain is relieved.

Hugs for you Keggy. Chronic pain and restricted ability is SOoooooooooooo much more difficult to live with than something that you can put a mental limit on. IT's a lot easier to tolerate having pain or nausea or weakness from an acute illness, like the flu, since you know if you can just survive a few more days it will all go away.

hang in there,
cj

[milivica]

Ohhhhh yeah, that's true. You're on your feet all the time at work. Wow 1978, that's sure a long time. Any chance one of those inflatable supports around your ankle/foot area would work? My walking cast really took a lot of weight off my foot and ankle, but man, it was annoying (ehem, for the whole day or so I wore it :o )

I've broken my toes, torn tendons, etc... so many times in my feet due to major clumsiness, poor judgment like the time I broke my foot kicking a football in gym class (didn't wear shoes there either or during school thanks to bell bottoms) then continued screwing up my feet as an adult due to acting skinny and young now that I'm fat and old (fatter/older, what ever). Sketchers, aye? I do need to get some 'real' shoes someday. I don't even wear shoes in the winter unless there's snow, or I'm worried my feet will stick to the concrete when there's ice. When I say I hate shoes, I mean I really really really hate shoes. I can tolerate Earth Shoe sandals in a wide width, I like the cushy feel. But just talking about wearing shoes is making me anxious!

Sorry, way off topic here.

I hope you find relief for your ankle, I think at this point you need to find some wonderful very old grandma to tell you what to do. I'd say seek a qualified professional, but them are so darn impossible to find. Just as long as your circulation is good...do you get tons of toe cramps in the foot connected to the bad ankle? Just curious.

Mili

[sadge]

Keggy I do no know if these would help you or if you tried them already, but I have heel pain that makes my walking difficult, which in turn has made my leg and hip really bad, have found birkenstock's tip my foot back to where it should be and I have walk much better. If I wear something else then I am in agony just a thought.

Mili I know someone just like you with their shoes, my mum she wears sandals all year round no matter what the weather, and I cannot stand wearing closed in shoes unless I have to much prefer bare feet (that hurts these day's) or like I told Keggy these sandals, so much better for my feet, and not surprising when you read the history of the maker and how they came up with the idea.

Susan

[Keggy]

No cramps or nothing my feet are feeling amazingly good outside of a pain on the top of lefty, dropped a jar of peanut butter on her the other day. There is just something obviosly wrong with this ankle...been swollen over year.
It hurts barefoot or shoed.. either way. I feel like a bone snapped right over the ankle bone, running up the leg. Feels like someone shoved a splinter up my leg.
So... I am begginging to think of it as a leg pain.
Been wearing supports and braces... but my feet prefer to be naked, and I am finding that these supports not only make "righty" hot, they don't seem to be helping anymore. I wore an ace bandage on my ankle area yesterday, really didn't do a thing for me.
As much as we love being barefooted.. (like nature intended) this is how most of my injuries occur. If I had on shoes more often... probably wouldn't be in so much pain now.

[milivica]

"Feels like someone shoved a splinter up my leg."

When I have that feeling, it is a torn tendon. The doc said to imagine a rubber band, imagine the edge of the thick rubber band gets a little snip from a scissor, if the rubber band (tendon) isn't being stretched I'm fine, if it get a pain like someone shoved a burning thin metal shishkabob skewer in me, that's the rubber band (tendon) being stretched too far and re-tearing. For me the only thing that helps, is making myself go as long as possible consecutively NOT stretching that tendon - easier said than done. I do notice after just a few days, it starts to feel better - but - stretch it one time and the tear is aggravated and it's like starting from square one. Tendons take MONTHS and only if you quit re-tearing them. By now you probably have an original injury plus tons more from trying to compensate for it I'm guessing.

So, dropping a jar of pb on your foot...no jelly? Lol. I broke a toe, smashed it actually, when I opened the tiny fridge (trying to sneak food for me and my sibs) and my dad swerved and a full glass bottle of milk dropped on my toe. It bounced so high I actually caught it on the way up!!! He pulled the truck over and I split my head on the wee table edge. I was maybe 10, it was my first/last trip to Six Flags but I had to sit on a bench mostly and they'd come back to check on me from time to time, my toe was blown up like a blue tomato - my brother had the squirts really bad from stealing and eating a ton of green apples from someones tree the night before so would go on a roller coaster then bolt to the bathroom, my dad couldn't pee again so we had to stop off to the hospital to 'drain' him (prostate thing I think) - not that they had anyone check my toe (grrr) which my ma did when he returned me to her. Also that trip was after my step ma had just gotten all her teeth pulled but the stitches were mostly healed, I think my sister was fine but I'm sure my brother and I found some way to make her miserable - although we all got a kick out of examining my toe nail which fell off a couple days later. Ahhhh, what memories...anyone still wonder why I take paxil, hee hee hee.

See, that's memories for ya, you say peanut butter dropped on your foot, and my brain launches into that - which I hope I don't wish to edit out later cause I guess now I can't! Thanks for the heads up on no editing!!!! Man, I feel like so 'vulnerable' now that I know I can't go back and make corrections which, I always do after posts (editing spelling, endless rambles, etc...)

Anyhow Keg, what can you do (if anything) to walk in a way that babies the injuries without creating more by compensating for the pain?

[Lara]

Ouch, sounds really awful Keggy. So many things that could cause pain like that but when you mention that it sounds as if someone shoved a splinter up your leg, that would make me wonder if it's not some sort of arthritic condition esp. if you've had past injury to the same ankle. Could be some sort of nerve entrapment as well. Could be so many things. Maybe seeing a Podiatrist might help. They might be able to suggest ways to cushion it so that it heals better or can relieve the constant pain. I hope it's feeling better soon.

[Keggy]

Gee, interesting story about your family vacation there moldy. I am thinking that you may be on to something about the tendon. The evidence I put before you is this......
the other day I had a similar pain in my other foot!!

I have tried staying off it today, spent the day writing this thing I am developing, so.... it feels better. I can't stay off it long though....

[milivica]

Gee, interesting story about your family vacation there moldy. I am thinking that you may be on to something about the tendon. The evidence I put before you is this......
the other day I had a similar pain in my other foot!!

I have tried staying off it today, spent the day writing this thing I am developing, so.... it feels better. I can't stay off it long though....

Yes, interesting vacation, first and last with my dad. Maybe that would shed some light onto why this is our first vacation since the kids were born - childhood memories, hee hee.

I was able to heal my torn tendons by learning how NOT to move/walk/twist my foot or ankle while walking. There should be a certain 'range' of moment that is ok, and the range of movement that guarantees the hot shishkabob skewer feeling. IF it's a tendon, and you don't let it heal, it'll just keep re-tearing or re-injuring over and over. I have a slight tear in the tendon in my left inner ankle from vacation, dunno how I got it, too much walking I guess - but I know the only way to not keep irritating it is to make a conscious effort not to twist it which is a natural movement when turning, you sort of pivot and your ankle naturally twists a bit.

Find the burning shishkabob skewer range and stop doing it. Dunno if that's the entire problem after all this time though but who knows, could start a healing trend for your feet.

[frogmama]

interesting flashback there Mili - lol, I flashed back to the time my sis dropped a big can of refried beans on her toe and it swelled up - 2 days later my Dad had to get a needle redt hot and shove it thru the toenail to let all the pus out.... ahhhh the "no health insurance years" what fun!

[milivica]

UGH the red hot needle, I hated that!!! But my dad used a finishing nail, he'd claim making a hole through the nail relieved the pressure, he'd make it red hot over the flame, and start manually drilling. Cripe, I think he just liked draining fluids ( a gross trait I also have ). One time, he insisted he could pop a monster zit on my 13 year old face...all he did is make it gigantic and BLUE. He had a cup of coffee to regroup, and began again. But my zit had it's revenge, all the stuff that exploded out of it not only spattered him but the walls and towels which stayed stained with the blood spatter....for which I got in trouble!

Is it any wonder most of our kids are spoiled? What whacked up childhood memories all of us can recall aye!

Sorry Keg, frogmama enticed me beyond what I could resist, a pus draining story. I'm totally serious now, I could do that for a living - something about getting stuff OUT that shouldn't be there be it a wee black head or a juicy cyst that just satisfies, I dunno what's up with that.

Oh, and I don't mean satisfies like 'sexually', I mean satisfies like when your fridge is spotless and organized from head to toe.

[Keggy]

Oh, and I don't mean satisfies like 'sexually', I mean satisfies like when your fridge is spotless and organized from head to toe.

LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!

What is with the red hot needle thing? Like people don't know sterilizing the needle was what you had to do, and you could let it cool first!

I was watching a friend of mine trying to burn a tic.... she said it had to be red hot... good grief... I could get her a job in a concentration camp for sure.

These little tales make me happy my dad never lived with me.

BTW.... update on my ankle. This afternoon I was driving and all of a sudden I get this really weird feeling where the pain is. I start thinking... great.. getting worse... and all of a sudden the pain decreased!! About 40% I would say. It is still there, but not so bad now.

this is good thang...... cause I don't really like pain much. And I don't mean thang like 'sexually', I mean thang like when your fridge is spotless and organized from head to toe.
LOLOLOLOL oh god..... i need to eat something snort!

[frogmama]

that's so gross, but I'm the same way, I cannot leave a zit alone on ANYBODY in the family! or, how about a nice little boil... Ohh, or a scab, gotta pick at it....

The needle has to be red hot to melt through the toenail!

It's not just us either, when DH was a kid he was helping his Dad chop wood and got an ax thru the web between his thumb and finger - no insurance so his Mom just wrapped his finger and thumb together with tape until it healed, he still has a really funky scar.

My kids will have their own whacked memories - I took my daughters stitches out last week (3 in her foot from a broken mason jar) rather than pay $20 to the Dr. or $75 to the E.R..

[milivica]

Keg, glad to see you laughing (even if I'm not entirely sure why it was funny, I'm still very glad!) So girl you inspired me, I went to the Good Feet store today, some kind of place in the mall where they supposedly sell inserts to make your feet feel better. I tried them, they really helped the pain in the tops of my feet right away. I didn't realize how bad they hurt till they stopped - however, when the boy said $269 suddenly I realized the pain wasn't so bad afterall, lol. They do sell for $59 the same thing but don't guarantee it. They feel a bit uncomfortable (but not painful). It seems they help your feet cause they add support BETWEEN the arch of your foot and the ball of your foot. So, I could totally visualize why the things worked, so I'm going to try and make the same kind of adjustments to the insides of my shoes myself using regular supports for inside shoes or more likely some of the spare carpet padding I have (very dense, for basements, waterproof).

Ok so anyhow, I tried your Sketchers too - oh yes I made a morning of it, and all the sketchers were so tight and uncomfortable, there were just none in my size. Dr. Scholl's and orthapedic shoes all waaay too uncomfortable. I did find one pair of, I think they were Nike, that I did like cause they were downright bouncy - if you're interested, they were $69 and newly in, light blue and white, but that's all I know. But they were of course also not in my size. I was about to give up, cause shoes are never in my size it seems...well, the shoe store kid was very helpful, and he gave me a pair of sneakers that actually fit! They were a men's 8 quadroople E (EEEE) so I bought them! They are not as comfy as no shoes of course, but wow, at least my feet didn't feel as bound and restricted. I got a 9 4E cause they felt even nicer. Now I can't feel the shoe at all around my toes and they can spread out too. I think they are a Reebok, anyhow they were on sale but still $39!!! I usually get the $6 Walmart sneaker. The one time I didn't the dumb things wound up hurting anyhow.

Frogmama...(warning to all, if you are grossed out by puss stop reading) if you're like that with all the zits and puss and stuff, omg, you'd have just died like I did....One time, my Standard Poodle had this black head I thought was a tic until I took a good look. I got the black head out, no problem but used tweezers if you can imagine how big it was that I did that!!! Cause of course no dog with sit through 'squeezing' if it hurts. And omg, first of all the friggin black head was the size of a small pea and long like a torpedo, and there was like this friggin CAVERN where the thing used to be, literally a hole! I have no idea why but I assumed that was it. Well, the next day, I checked and sure enough the 'hole' was still there, well, just for the heck of it, I gave a small squeeze AND THEN....THE GOO....I swear to you, and I'm not lying, it was like if a machine was invented to make one spaghetti noodle at a time, that is how this stuff shot out. It was like squirting a can of silly 'puss' string!!!! It was like the best puss removal moment of my entire life. I swear to you, I could have stretched out that puss string well well over 3 feet - it was awesome! I didn't think it would ever end! My mouth is watering just talking about it - and no I have no idea why my mouth waters at the site of stuff like that, I swear I have no 'appetite' or desire to ingest it, EW. It was just like so gross and cool at the same time, my mouth just waters. Dh is SUCH a crybaby about letting me pop anything I find on him, which is so rare, he's just not 'zitty'. He's more an ingrown hair kind of person, booooring.

Ooops, speaking of dh, he just pulled in the driveway. Better get off this thread before he reads it and thinks I'm completely nuts.

[lacyndarella]

Have you been to a doctor? Perhaps some water pills to remove the swelling might help some. Maybe a chiropractor could help as well.

Lacy

[Keggy]

Been to my regular doctor, the cardiologist, pulmonoligist and an accupuncturist. I am opposed to chiropractor, soft tisse manipulation is better.
I can't take water pills cause of my low blood presssure, besides, its not edema the doc says.