Chefs with foot problems

I've heard that plantar fascitis is very painful.

As almost everyone here knows, I have had 2 surgeries and 4 bunionectomies. Most people only get one on each foot; I was fortunate enough to have 2 per).I am now being told that I have to have my ligaments severed between 2 toes on each of my feet, because the surgery made my ligaments tighten up, and my baby toes don't touch the floor anymore. :( . Good news is I don't have to take another 6 weeks off. I can go back to work right away.

I had bunions, but they were never really painfull, just big and ugly. I had them removed, and I think it did worse damage. My left foot is always bothering me, and I have a hard time walking around barefoot. Never had anything as serious as tendons snapping. YIKES!!!

I have Plantar fasciitis, Morton's neuroma, metatarsalgia and occasionally I feel as if I'm standing on a bare electric wire when the pinched nerve condition acts up. That usually happens when the large cyst in the arch of a foot gets bigger. All of this started because a the bones in my feet are out of alignment. My podiatrist is sending me to a neurologist after making the expensive inserts for me. They help a lot, but don't do it all. I couldn't walk without Ultram. There have been evenings when I've come home from work and after sitting down for a few minutes, couldn't get up again without a walker. Now I am told that the tendons behind my ankles that run under my feet are going on me too. The last time I had a problem with that, I couldn't walk for twenty days. My podiatrist was on vacation and my insurance company wouldn't let me see another doctor.

It's all about shoes. I had both knees operated on, a bad back, and a seperated shoulder. What does all this have to do with feet you ask? Everything. If something in your body is in pain, it affects the way you stand and move, which in turn affect they way your weight is applied to your poor feets. I finally got some good shoes (clogs with wooden soles) and my back problems have cleared up, my posture is better, and my feet don't hurt when I get off a twelver anymore. My arches are exceptionally high, so I suffered from lack of support and the danger of them falling, but no more. I firmly beleive it's all in the shoes.

 

I do believe you're right.

 

Does anyone know of shoes kinda like Dansko clogs but with padded soles? The arch support on mine was great, but the soles are TOO DAMN HARD (and the insoles I bought kept slipping around inside my shoes). I switched to a pair of lightly-padded insole shoes with very little arch support to give my knees and hips a break from the Dansko soles, and now my plantar fasciitis is back with a vengeance. I can't do Crocs because they're too soft, and because my Achilles tendons don't like them.

I have had bad feet all my life. Gone to many Drs. Have had nerve surgery and have learned from many Drs, The lighter the shoe the better.  Wear inserts custom if possible. Change shoes during day if possible, wear heavy socks. Soft sided shoes are better. Don't try and save $$ n shoes. You only have about 16 bones in your foot take care of them. Always stand on mats of some kind.

Same here....my bone spurs ended up right directly behind my Achilles tendon. Had to have it detached, the spurs shaved and the tendon re-attached with pins. Long recovery.

To this day I have bone sticking out of my heel. It's not painful anymore, but I also use shoe inserts that were made from plaster molds of my feet.

do you guys use lotion on your soles or anything to keep them moist after work?? I got a really bad callus on my left feet and have to shave the sole every now and then so i can stand up to those 14 hrs. But the soles on my feet are so dried up and tough yet so sensitive If i was to go outside my house barefoot.

 

How do you guys feel about Shoes for crews? they dont seem to last that long I think I've had a pair for 7 month and instead of getting new insoles I might just get a whole new shoe

Yup.

 

Got diagnosed with flat feet about 16 years ago, got custom made orthotics, and that took care of things for a few years.

 

Then I got plantar facscitis--both feet.  Not much I could do, I 0/0 my own catering business and cooks would only do so much, only got relief when I drove for a few hours each day.  Lived a life of hell for about 3 years and things went from bad to worse when my doc put me Vioxx.  Vioxx was an antinflammatory, just blocks the nerve messages to your brain, feet are still inflamed and hurt, but at least you can work.  Then Vioxx got banned.  Things only got better when we sold the catering business and I sat on my butt for 3 months, and the plantar finally went away, but I suffered for well over 4 years.

 

Still have flat feet,still wear orthotics.  And those things wear out too, usually around $500 a pop to replace.   Thing with orthotics is you need a good shoe to support the orthotic.  If the shoe flexes laterally, the orthotic rocks and doesn't do it's job, and that means I go from mild mannered cook to raving S.O.B. in about 40 minutes. 

I've never really gotten my feet in a better pair of long standing/light walking shoes than my Dansko's. I'm going to be sad retiring them for the summer to have to go back to laced shoes to run stairs in a seasonal outlet designed by an idiot... but I digress...

Sika makes a pretty nice looking pair that have a flexible sole, but they are in "new knife" territory in price.

I've spent hundreds on good shoes since the 80's . It didn't seem to matter since I ended up with several foot/feet/body problems. Now, though, I'm afraid to have my feet looked at. It's not a matter of learning what a problem might be or how to correct it but how many problems there actually are. I figure, I already have issues with mobility so why add insult to injury and get prescribed more meds or useless surgury(s). After 3 carpal tunnel release failures that led to a highly avoided bi-lateral ulnar neuopathy surgury and given the state of another major area of my skeleton, ignorance is bliss.  It's not like my feet are going to fix my spine (way past the point of Dr Scholl's commercial for help. Doohhh!!!!)

March last year I could not take the pain in my foot any longer , only to be told I had achilles tendonitis. I ended up wearing a CAM boot for 3 months (sent a pic to Joey) , going to physio 4 times a week. This past winter I could not wear a closed shoe on the heel. The only time I get relief is when I wear shoes with an insert on the heal. The doctor will not give me a cortisone shot because of fear of tearing the achilles and or damaging it.

I have had to take a break this past 2 weeks and will be leaving soon for a rest.

 

When our feet are not happy , we are not .

 

 

Someone mentioned rough skin . A simple application of a good foot cream every morning after a shower and before you go to bed will stop that problem. It's remembering to do it though. I have always taken good care of my feet. To end up with tendonitis .......takes the cake.

 

Does stress have anything to do with the nerve endings on our feet ? If so , to what point ?

For those of you with Plantar Fasciitis, I really sympathize with the pain you're living with. I had the same thing in both feet for years and it made me feel like a total cripple. After begging for the cortisone injections too frequently for my doctor's comfort, he suggested shockwave therapy. Of course, the insurance company would not cover anything that actually cures the problem, but I sprung for it anyway. 

Eight years later-no heel pain, though my pocket is several K lighter for it. Worth every penny.

I haven't had many issues with my feet. My ankles click/pop when I walk barefoot or in socks at home, but other than that, I'm alright. I have patellar tendinitis in my left knee, but it hasn't acted up in years. I have dislocated both shoulders a couple times from football and throwing in track in high school, they start to hurt every so often... Sometimes it gets to the point where I have to rest and massage it after work

I have also big problems with my feet.Since i work onboard the cruise ships-safety shoes are essential.they are abit heavy,and already working as a chef for 7 years,i have big problems with foot ankle...