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.
