The Physical Therapy/Gentle Movement Accountability & Resources Thread

[sonofsven]

I will second the recommendation for the physiatrist.  I knew nothing about this type of specialty. 
She was the first person who was able to prescribe something that worked. Between her and my family doctor I am finally taking the right combination of medications. She was willing to do research and while she didn't know how to prescribe the key medication, she armed me with instructions to go back to another specialist who is happy to help if he doesn't have to think to much.

I am also finding a pain support and education group helpful.

Thanks, I'll look into the physiatrist. I've never heard of one.
My medical knowledge peaks at "ow, that hurts".

[Dollar Slice]

Thanks, I'll look into the physiatrist. I've never heard of one.
My medical knowledge peaks at "ow, that hurts".

You may find them listed under something like physical medicine, rehabilitation, or even "sports medicine" (usually in some combination).

Basically they do non-surgical interventions for your painful problems. I see one of those also, for my frozen shoulder.

[RetiredAt63]

Good news - my physiotherapist and I are no longer working on my hips and back.  I still have my exercises to do every day, of course. I expect to be doing them forever.

Now it is only the knees, and we are down to once every 2 weeks.

Mango and DD and I walked down to their local park the other day - I only had one hip twinge (no warm up, but I was able to stretch it out quickly) and one knee twinge (steep hill).

Physiotherapy rocks our worlds.

[Frugal Lizard]

I am now attempting to go 4 weeks between PT treatments.
My PT is the best: She suggested making an appointment in 3 weeks and another in 4 weeks. If I am doing well and don't need to come in at 3 weeks, just cancel it and come the following week.

It was a great appointment on the 6th. 1) she didn't need to do pelvic physio. 2) She made my left leg and right lower back feel so much better. 3) The improvement in flexibility is off the charts.

The pain in my hamstrings is likely due to me sitting more on my right butt cheek to avoid pain in left side pelvic floor. It seems to me that I really just have to avoid all sitting because I don't hurt moving. Standing hurts after extended time. So either I be moving or lying down.

New exercise has gotten immeasurably easier already. Yeah for physio. 

[G-dog]

I am now attempting to go 4 weeks between PT treatments.
My PT is the best: She suggested making an appointment in 3 weeks and another in 4 weeks. If I am doing well and don't need to come in at 3 weeks, just cancel it and come the following week.

It was a great appointment on the 6th. 1) she didn't need to do pelvic physio. 2) She made my left leg and right lower back feel so much better. 3) The improvement in flexibility is off the charts.

The pain in my hamstrings is likely due to me sitting more on my right butt cheek to avoid pain in left side pelvic floor. It seems to me that I really just have to avoid all sitting because I don't hurt moving. Standing hurts after extended time. So either I be moving or lying down.

New exercise has gotten immeasurably easier already. Yeah for physio.

 Yeah to you for the the work and sticking with this for so long!  No matter how good the physio is - they cannot make up for the patient not doing the work.

[Frugal Lizard]

I am going to go to my 3rd week physio appointment tomorrow. My hamstrings are so tight and tender at my sits bone I am not waiting another week. My physio is the best. She said make two appointments, one for three weeks, another for four. If I don't need to come in, just cancel. Up to the morning of the appointment. No need to decide 48 hours before. Guess this is the frequent customer discount.

I have been attending an 8 week chronic pelvic pain support group that has a fitness component. I can do all but the movements that start with a sitting position or require a lot of hamstring flexibility. I am a master at pelvic floor stuff. And the PT leading the support group thanked me for sharing tips of how to envision different zones in the pelvic floor. My Pelvic PT is amazing and has a number of visualization that I found more helpful than the PT with the support group was using. Perhaps because I have been seeing her or her trainee for 19 months?

[oneday]

Your physio is clever and I'm glad you had the option!

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

Noooo I have developed a new problem- pain in my upper elbow and forearm. I have an appointment to have it looked at but not until 11/13. My Kaiser office is pretty backed up.

I've been doing a good job of doing my wrist PT once a week to try to stave off a return of pain, and now that it is sock weather I have been doing my foot flex exercises to strengthen my ankle (it still gets a little sore sometimes).

[oneday]

Good for you, keeping up on the wrist and ankle PT. That something that is easy to drop.

I had similar time frame last year. Thankfully I was able to get right into the PT department and did not need to go through any gate keeping. I hope you are able to get relief at the 11/13 appointment, not just a gate keeping appointment.

[Frugal Lizard]

PT appointment Friday was so needed. Sticking with appointments every 3 weeks for now. As disappointed as I am, just one year ago I was going 1x a week, trying to stretch to every 10 days without torturing myself.

Pelvic floor muscles are so danged stubborn.

[Frugal Lizard]

Physio appointment went well yesterday.

Once again, Ms. Magic Hands worked on completely new muscles and corrected my posture. I am leaning backwards. Six weeks ago my pelvis was twisted. That problem fixed. Now I am compressing my lower back to compensate for the tight muscles that connect into my pelvic floor. The good news is that none of the tightness was deep in pelvic floor muscles. It was all on the outside.

So now I have a whole whack of new physio exercise.

And I watched a youtube video two weeks ago that totally explains the injury and myofascial pain syndrome. I can see how I got to where I am, and has giving me hope that I can completely recover from this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g--4SA9rKiY  It is less than 4 minutes. I have been connecting physio therapy to trauma therapy to occupational therapy since finding this.

Some things happen at the right time. I think I had to get this far into my recovery journey before I could use this knowledge in my healing work. Here's hoping that I am on the acceleration track.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

Guess who gets to have physical therapy for the fourth time in two years? I am told that if physical therapy does not help my elbow I can see the "elbow doctor."

I injured it pulling a car seat dolly through the airport at like the end of July and it still hurts. Another "baby over 40" injury!

[use2betrix]

Figured I’d take a look around!

Last year I had a complete tear of 2 of my 3 hamstring tendons while waterskiing. Through some vigorous rest, PT, and back into recovery, I have ‘mostly’ recovered to the point I was knocking out 100 mile months running this summer. When I had the MRI for my hamstring last year, they also saw some issues with the hip (labral tear/impingement). I never had any hip pain or issues so no need to address.

Fast forward to this past spring, and while an early morning run at a nearby state park, I got chased/attacked by two very large dogs and spent nearly an hour in a tree. After they departed for a little bit, I broke off a huge branch for self defense and ran as fast as I could (about a mile) to my car. During this run (I was no longer warmed up), I tweaked my hip. Not recalling the known hip injury from the MRI, I spent the next 5-6 months aggressively stretching my hip multiple times per day, thinking that would “help.” If anything, it just mad matters worse.

I met with a hip preservation specialist late this summer and quit running. I picked up much more biking since it didn’t bother it as much. Basically running/jumping/high impact really aggravated the hip. In normal day to day life, it wasn’t too bad.

Two weeks ago I had hip surgery to repair the labral tear and shave down the bone for the impingement. Aside from all the “equipment” and limitations I have to deal with, pain has been very manageable and minimal. I expected near hamstring pain recovery, it was probably 5%-10%.

I started PT the day after surgery, and have been doing it in the facility 2x per week and at home twice per day. They had me on the stationary bike the day after surgery and I’ve been continuing that for 20 minutes, twice per day.

Should be off crutches next week, slowly biking more next month, and start a return to running program come February!

Best part is that work was adamant about me going on short term disability for recovery - so full pay and zero work for about 3.5 weeks. I typically work from home 3 days a week and offered to continue, but they wanted to follow “proper policy.” No complaints on my end!

[oneday]

And I watched a youtube video two weeks ago that totally explains the injury and myofascial pain syndrome. I can see how I got to where I am, and has giving me hope that I can completely recover from this.

Frugal Lizard, that is wonderful to learn. The mental aspects of healing should not be overlooked.

Guess who gets to have physical therapy for the fourth time in two years? I am told that if physical therapy does not help my elbow I can see the "elbow doctor."

I injured it pulling a car seat dolly through the airport at like the end of July and it still hurts. Another "baby over 40" injury!

Ahh! Sorry about the repeated injury, @La Bibliotecaria Feroz . May this be your final round in PT, and that the problem gets solved once and for all.

Two weeks ago I had hip surgery to repair the labral tear and shave down the bone for the impingement...Should be off crutches next week, slowly biking more next month, and start a return to running program come February!

@use2betrix that incident with the dogs sounds scary and I'm glad you made it out of there without a canine confrontation. Sorry about the hip problem, though. I started this thread to support me in daily PT exercises, which can become tedious, and it was great for that. However, that has dwindled off. It's become a place where folks report in periodically.


I will probably be back at the PT before long. I've had pain in the AC joint area (opposite side from prior injury). Here's a good picture. It's not getting better with rest, ice and stretching, so the pro is my next stop. Life is busy, tho! I don't have time for all these injuries...

[mspym]

Back on my ankle work. :(

Haven't twisted it but I'd let it lapse a bit because I'd stopped running with the dog (she seems to have a hip problem that only shows when she is running) and it's noticeably clickier and transferring more to my PF. I am hoping that without the ongoing injury caused by running, the exercises will actually help me get better instead of just [barely] holding off more injuries.

- Three direction ankle bends
- 2 min calf stretches, straight leg, bent leg and crossed stance, each side
- lots of rotation and rolling my foot on a ball.

[GuitarStv]

Smashed the outside of my right ankle against a wall while being thrown in jiu jitsu last night.  Felt sore but not that bad last night, but this morning I couldn't bend the ankle much because of swelling.  It feels almost sprained but wasn't hyperextended or anything . . . and oddly there's no visible bruising or anything.  Figure I'll try gentle stretching, bends, and walking for the next couple days to see how things pan out.  Hoping it's not broken, it hit with a lot of torque.

[G-dog]

Smashed the outside of my right ankle against a wall while being thrown in jiu jitsu last night.  Felt sore but not that bad last night, but this morning I couldn't bend the ankle much because of swelling.  It feels almost sprained but wasn't hyperextended or anything . . . and oddly there's no visible bruising or anything.  Figure I'll try gentle stretching, bends, and walking for the next couple days to see how things pan out.  Hoping it's not broken, it hit with a lot of torque.

Any chance it’s a chipped bone?  Any bruise might show in another day or so. 

[GuitarStv]

Smashed the outside of my right ankle against a wall while being thrown in jiu jitsu last night.  Felt sore but not that bad last night, but this morning I couldn't bend the ankle much because of swelling.  It feels almost sprained but wasn't hyperextended or anything . . . and oddly there's no visible bruising or anything.  Figure I'll try gentle stretching, bends, and walking for the next couple days to see how things pan out.  Hoping it's not broken, it hit with a lot of torque.

Any chance it’s a chipped bone?  Any bruise might show in another day or so.

Could be?  I don't feel any loose bits in there under the swelling.  I was thinking maybe even a hairline fracture of some sort.  Still no bruising today, which seems really weird.  The swelling has done down enough that it's mostly not painful when walking today.  It gets sore when toes approach fully flexed down or fully flexed up.  I can even balance on the hurt ankle without much pain.

[Metalcat]

Smashed the outside of my right ankle against a wall while being thrown in jiu jitsu last night.  Felt sore but not that bad last night, but this morning I couldn't bend the ankle much because of swelling.  It feels almost sprained but wasn't hyperextended or anything . . . and oddly there's no visible bruising or anything.  Figure I'll try gentle stretching, bends, and walking for the next couple days to see how things pan out.  Hoping it's not broken, it hit with a lot of torque.

Any chance it’s a chipped bone?  Any bruise might show in another day or so.

Could be?  I don't feel any loose bits in there under the swelling.  I was thinking maybe even a hairline fracture of some sort.  Still no bruising today, which seems really weird.  The swelling has done down enough that it's mostly not painful when walking today.  It gets sore when toes approach fully flexed down or fully flexed up.  I can even balance on the hurt ankle without much pain.

Ugh, I hate you. If that happened to me my leg would fall off or something. I once permanently injured my wrist opening a door, I dislocated my knee the other day shifting in bed while taking a nap.

You're like my DH, he'll come back from mountain biking with half his body covered in road rash and talk about how he got thrown over his handlebars and then got up and walked it off.

I hate both of you, lol.

[GuitarStv]

Smashed the outside of my right ankle against a wall while being thrown in jiu jitsu last night.  Felt sore but not that bad last night, but this morning I couldn't bend the ankle much because of swelling.  It feels almost sprained but wasn't hyperextended or anything . . . and oddly there's no visible bruising or anything.  Figure I'll try gentle stretching, bends, and walking for the next couple days to see how things pan out.  Hoping it's not broken, it hit with a lot of torque.

Any chance it’s a chipped bone?  Any bruise might show in another day or so.

Could be?  I don't feel any loose bits in there under the swelling.  I was thinking maybe even a hairline fracture of some sort.  Still no bruising today, which seems really weird.  The swelling has done down enough that it's mostly not painful when walking today.  It gets sore when toes approach fully flexed down or fully flexed up.  I can even balance on the hurt ankle without much pain.

Ugh, I hate you. If that happened to me my leg would fall off or something. I once permanently injured my wrist opening a door, I dislocated my knee the other day shifting in bed while taking a nap.

You're like my DH, he'll come back from mountain biking with half his body covered in road rash and talk about how he got thrown over his handlebars and then got up and walked it off.

I hate both of you, lol.

Yeah, I've generally been very lucky as far as healing from injuries goes over my life.  Although I noticed that this has been slowing down a bit as I age - 30 year old GuitarStv could take a lot more beating than the 40 year old version.

I could jog today but it was pretty painful.  The swelling is still going down though, and pain is less when stretching so I'm guessing that it's not fractured.  I'm hoping it'll be OK with some tape for wrestling on the weekend.  The no bruising thing really weirded me out.  I've never had an impact like that without visible bruises.  :P

[Metalcat]

Smashed the outside of my right ankle against a wall while being thrown in jiu jitsu last night.  Felt sore but not that bad last night, but this morning I couldn't bend the ankle much because of swelling.  It feels almost sprained but wasn't hyperextended or anything . . . and oddly there's no visible bruising or anything.  Figure I'll try gentle stretching, bends, and walking for the next couple days to see how things pan out.  Hoping it's not broken, it hit with a lot of torque.

Any chance it’s a chipped bone?  Any bruise might show in another day or so.

Could be?  I don't feel any loose bits in there under the swelling.  I was thinking maybe even a hairline fracture of some sort.  Still no bruising today, which seems really weird.  The swelling has done down enough that it's mostly not painful when walking today.  It gets sore when toes approach fully flexed down or fully flexed up.  I can even balance on the hurt ankle without much pain.

Ugh, I hate you. If that happened to me my leg would fall off or something. I once permanently injured my wrist opening a door, I dislocated my knee the other day shifting in bed while taking a nap.

You're like my DH, he'll come back from mountain biking with half his body covered in road rash and talk about how he got thrown over his handlebars and then got up and walked it off.

I hate both of you, lol.

Yeah, I've generally been very lucky as far as healing from injuries goes over my life.  Although I noticed that this has been slowing down a bit as I age - 30 year old GuitarStv could take a lot more beating than the 40 year old version.

I could jog today but it was pretty painful.  The swelling is still going down though, and pain is less when stretching so I'm guessing that it's not fractured.  I'm hoping it'll be OK with some tape for wrestling on the weekend.  The no bruising thing really weirded me out.  I've never had an impact like that without visible bruises.  :P

It just means there's no blood pooling at the surface. You can easily injure soft tissue or bone without a lot of pooling blood as a result. I bruise incredibly easily and tend to not bruise when joint damage is done because they're not very vascular. But if you so much as grab my bicep with too much finger pressure I'll have fingertip shaped bruises.

[mspym]

@GuitarStv another factor could be bone bruises can take a while to surface. Hope your ankle heals cleanly.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

Yeah, I've generally been very lucky as far as healing from injuries goes over my life.  Although I noticed that this has been slowing down a bit as I age - 30 year old GuitarStv could take a lot more beating than the 40 year old version.

I could jog today but it was pretty painful.  The swelling is still going down though, and pain is less when stretching so I'm guessing that it's not fractured.  I'm hoping it'll be OK with some tape for wrestling on the weekend.  The no bruising thing really weirded me out.  I've never had an impact like that without visible bruises.  :P

Sprains you are supposed to walk on apparently so maybe you are wise to jog! LMK if you want to see LB's prescribed exercises from his sprain. Which he did not do. 11yos heal pretty great!

[GuitarStv]

Yeah, I've generally been very lucky as far as healing from injuries goes over my life.  Although I noticed that this has been slowing down a bit as I age - 30 year old GuitarStv could take a lot more beating than the 40 year old version.

I could jog today but it was pretty painful.  The swelling is still going down though, and pain is less when stretching so I'm guessing that it's not fractured.  I'm hoping it'll be OK with some tape for wrestling on the weekend.  The no bruising thing really weirded me out.  I've never had an impact like that without visible bruises.  :P

Sprains you are supposed to walk on apparently so maybe you are wise to jog! LMK if you want to see LB's prescribed exercises from his sprain. Which he did not do. 11yos heal pretty great!

I appreciate it, but I've been spraining various parts for decades now (had a stint in my 20s where I was competing in taekwondo and soccer that was particularly hard on them).

Used to follow the RICE method pretty religiously, but about fifteen years ago a doctor who deals with sports rehab was telling me that it does more harm than good in the case of sprains.  Apparently you want to start strengthening it and moving on them as soon as pain allows you to.  It has seemed to work much better for me as far as time necessary for healing.

It's still sore, but swelling has gone down a lot.  Jogging was better today.  I'm going to tape it up well and try wrestling tomorrow.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

Oooh, that's interesting about the RICE!

[halfling]

Anyone have any YouTube video recommendations for strengthening the knees?

[Metalcat]

Anyone have any YouTube video recommendations for strengthening the knees?

Depends on what your knee issue is. I have patellofemoral syndrome causing my knee pain and it's easy to google specific exercises for it.

[halfling]

Anyone have any YouTube video recommendations for strengthening the knees?

Depends on what your knee issue is. I have patellofemoral syndrome causing my knee pain and it's easy to google specific exercises for it.

Mr. Halfling's ACL is hanging by a thread :'( I know it's easy to Google for exercises but sometimes folks have specific video creators to recommend. I like Yoga With Adriene on Youtube for yoga, for example.

[Metalcat]

Anyone have any YouTube video recommendations for strengthening the knees?

Depends on what your knee issue is. I have patellofemoral syndrome causing my knee pain and it's easy to google specific exercises for it.

Mr. Halfling's ACL is hanging by a thread :'( I know it's easy to Google for exercises but sometimes folks have specific video creators to recommend. I like Yoga With Adriene on Youtube for yoga, for example.

To clarify, my point was that specific recommendations will depend on what the specific problem is.

[halfling]

Oops. The partial ACL tear escalated to a full tear at almost the exact moment I posted my forum reply. Cruel world! I guess we can hold off on the strengthening exercises until after the next Mr. Knee Doctor visit.

[Metalcat]

Oops. The partial ACL tear escalated to a full tear at almost the exact moment I posted my forum reply. Cruel world! I guess we can hold off on the strengthening exercises until after the next Mr. Knee Doctor visit.

Ugh, that sucks, I'm really sorry to hear that.

[GuitarStv]

That sucks.

When you do get the knee sorted enough to exercise regularly again, look up 'knees over toes guy'.  He has a variety of stretches snd exercises that strengthen the knees in much deeper flexion than traditional leg exercises recommend.  Following them for a while really helped with knee pain that I was experiencing.

[halfling]

That sucks.

When you do get the knee sorted enough to exercise regularly again, look up 'knees over toes guy'.  He has a variety of stretches snd exercises that strengthen the knees in much deeper flexion than traditional leg exercises recommend.  Following them for a while really helped with knee pain that I was experiencing.

Thank you so much!

[Frugal Lizard]

Just back from physiotherapy. Next appointment is in January. 
YESSSSS! A whole month.

Healing is going so well. The entire at home exercises are shifting to end of day / breaks in sitting relaxation exercises and some new combinations to build endurance that can be done once a day.

At this point in time, I can live with the level, duration and frequency of pain episodes I am experiencing week to week.

[YK-Phil]

After ten years of suffering from a torn Achilles Tendon caused by too much running on hard surfaces, then regular visits to a physiotherapist, acupuncturist, and massage therapist that only provided temporary relief, followed by bad decision on my part to start on-and-off running for a few days and more intense pain and total inactivity for weeks, I decided a few weeks ago to give a try to aqua-jogging since our winter rental has a small pool that nobody uses. Started with 30 minutes, then 45, and now 60 minutes. I can't believe my pain has disappeared and I can run again and I think I'll add another thirty minutes to my workout! The pool is only about 5 feet deep but it does the trick. I'm trying to convince my 87-year-old mom visiting us for the winter to give it a try but so far, I haven't been able to convince her. In the meantime, both she and my wife keep me company around the pool to chat so time passes very quickly.

[sonofsven]

I'm still doing my six days a week pool PT, and once a month with a physical therapist.
Lap swimming is sooo boring, but I mix it up with treading water: legs only with arms out of the water, then arms only, etc.
The pool has a "lazy river", with current that can be strong or soft. Fifty one laps equals a mile. I carry these yellow plastic resistance "barbells"; they are tough to move under water and provide a good core workout when I walk against the current.
I mix it up with some one legged squats and lower back stretches, and sessions in the jacuzzi with the jets working my SI joint.
My MRI came back "clean"; no spine damage. Minor bulging and arthritis. "So wth is wrong with my back?"
So far the hope is that my hip replacement will eventually help my back.
I do feel better from my PT regimen, but it doesn't last. Two hours walking, doing yard cleanup, or driving and I'm right back in pain land.
Walking especially has gotten tough lately.
I finally met with the joint replacement team and they showed me on my x ray where my hip is bone on bone, with a fairly significant bone spur and degradation of the joint.
The PA reiterated that, yes, my back *could* improve post replacement, but no guarantees. This clinic is supposedly one of the top in PDX, and highly sought after. So much so that they are scheduling now for mid April.
sigh

[GuitarStv]

Does anyone have opinions on minimalist shoes for strengthening the feet and ankles?  They just have thin soles, zero slant from front to back of the shoe, no arch support or ankle support, and a wide toe box.  I bought a pair a couple weeks ago and have been using them for walking the dog/running most of the time since.  It has changed the way that I run in what seems to be a better way (landing on the ball of the foot all the time now, rather than heel) and I feel lighter when jogging or sprinting this way.  Made my feet and ankles a little sore initially, although after a couple weeks they seem to be getting the hang of it.  It seems like it's strengthening stuff, but was wondering if anyone had positive/negative views about thus sort of footwear and potential for accident prevention through additional strengthening.

[FrugalShrew]

Does anyone have opinions on minimalist shoes for strengthening the feet and ankles?  They just have thin soles, zero slant from front to back of the shoe, no arch support or ankle support, and a wide toe box.  I bought a pair a couple weeks ago and have been using them for walking the dog/running most of the time since.  It has changed the way that I run in what seems to be a better way (landing on the ball of the foot all the time now, rather than heel) and I feel lighter when jogging or sprinting this way.  Made my feet and ankles a little sore initially, although after a couple weeks they seem to be getting the hang of it.  It seems like it's strengthening stuff, but was wondering if anyone had positive/negative views about thus sort of footwear and potential for accident prevention through additional strengthening.

Very positive! I switched over to barefoot shoes about 2 years ago, and have never looked back. Once my feet tasted freedom, they didn't want to go back in a cage...

I think you nailed it that minimalist shoes alone, by allowing feet more freedom to move, will permit natural strengthening. But after a lifetime of being stuck in rigid shoes, most people's feet are stiff and weak, and often contorted into muscle patterns that need to be unlearned and counteracted, like bunions developed from squished toes. So yes, strengthening and stretching is an important part of transitioning to barefoot shoes safely.

I pretty much did it all wrong and just switched full time to barefoot shoes without doing anything else. I'm lucky I didn't get injured from that, and if I hadn't been rehabbing my knees at the time and taking things slowly because of that, I probably would have. It's a huge leap from traditional, rigid shoes to fully minimal ones. If I could go back and do it over, I definitely would transition more carefully--including getting shoes with a bit of cushion, or some cushion insoles, for the interim period.

For me at this point, the barefoot shoes are just a tool. It's more about the philosophy that bodies were made to move, and be strong through a full range of motion, feet included. I warn you--it's a fun black hole to get sucked into. :)

Some resources I have found helpful:
-https://anyasreviews.com/foot-exercises-transitioning-barefoot-shoes/
-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoUjgxGZg2o (Chase Mountains--What They Don't Tell You About Barefoot Style Shoes...), it's good despite the click-baity title!
-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phCwU3aU8Vk (Upright Health--Foot and Ankle Exercises for Beginners)
-Books: Simple Steps to Foot Pain Relief and Whole Body Barefoot by Katy Bowman
-ankle CARS

[Metalcat]

Does anyone have opinions on minimalist shoes for strengthening the feet and ankles?  They just have thin soles, zero slant from front to back of the shoe, no arch support or ankle support, and a wide toe box.  I bought a pair a couple weeks ago and have been using them for walking the dog/running most of the time since.  It has changed the way that I run in what seems to be a better way (landing on the ball of the foot all the time now, rather than heel) and I feel lighter when jogging or sprinting this way.  Made my feet and ankles a little sore initially, although after a couple weeks they seem to be getting the hang of it.  It seems like it's strengthening stuff, but was wondering if anyone had positive/negative views about thus sort of footwear and potential for accident prevention through additional strengthening.

It all depends on your mechanics. As someone who just had their femur broken and rotated, I'm hyper aware of mechanics now.

A shocking number of people are walking around with mildly rotated or curved femurs or tibias and this fundamentally impacts the weight on your feet.

So proceed with caution. Pay close attention to your pain and see how it changes over time. Monitor closely how long it takes to hurt, how long it takes to recover from the pain, and whether those times are changing in a good way or a bad way.

If your bones are straight, the mechanics should be fine. But if they aren't, and they aren't in a lot of people, the pack of absorption at the foot level could cause a lot of excess strain along the chain of the leg. 

[sonofsven]

Update: Good news and bad.
I received a steroid injection into my hip joint using some kind of flexible "needle" that they maneuvered around to deliver the dose right into the joint; it felt like a worm was wriggling through my body- not really painful, but a little uncomfortable.
It took three weeks but I did see some improvement in chronic pain in the hip, although walking and flexibility are still difficult. In short, my hip is still a mess, but my lower back SI joint is slightly improved, which gives me hope that the hip replacement will help the SI pain.
I'm still going to the pool daily for my workout, but we were at an impasse with PT in the pool so we switched to PT visits in the clinic, weekly.
In the pool, the exercises my therapist wanted to do to strengthen my SI were limited by my hip, and the exercises for my hip were limited by my SI.
In the clinic we're doing basic work with rubber bands and rubber balls and, so far, I have had positive results. It's enough work to make it a little painful and uncomfortable in the moment, but later in the day I do feel better.
I am set to receive more injections this week, into my SI joint. I'm getting to the point that my hip is now giving me more acute pain than my SI, which is actually positive news, lol.
Finally, I did get a definite date on my hip surgery, and it's not until early August. So four more months.
I heard through the grapevine that the hospital system I'm signed up in due to my insurance choices had an issue with their anesthesiologists and ended up losing many of them to another system? Whatever the case, they are way backed up. When I had my initial appointment with the surgical team in late December they indicated they were scheduling for April, which at the time seemed like it was so far off. By the time they processed my referral for the surgery they were scheduling for July, which then became August.
It was in September of '23 that I made an appointment with my PCP because my pain was so intense I couldn't do much of anything, so almost a full year. Our healthcare system, while excellent in many regards, is extremely slow.

(Edited to add)
This is a great example of the importance of being FI. My friends know me as a self employed working carpenter, frugal and definitely not rich. A few have offered to loan me money, but I just say "no thanks, I'm fine, I have savings". I do tell them that it's a little disconcerting to actually spend my savings, because it is.

[Metalcat]

I hear you on the slowness. I'm still waiting for a hip surgery that I consented to almost a year ago. Every 6 weeks the surgical schedule comes out and every 6 weeks I'm not on it.

Hopefully your hip surgery will help your SI joint. Mine absolutely has. Now that I have better hip mechanics, my SI joint doesn't hurt nearly as much and doesn't pop constantly. So here's hoping you get the same benefit.

[sonofsven]

I hear you on the slowness. I'm still waiting for a hip surgery that I consented to almost a year ago. Every 6 weeks the surgical schedule comes out and every 6 weeks I'm not on it.

Hopefully your hip surgery will help your SI joint. Mine absolutely has. Now that I have better hip mechanics, my SI joint doesn't hurt nearly as much and doesn't pop constantly. So here's hoping you get the same benefit.

Thanks, I hope you get on the list soon.

[Metalcat]

I hear you on the slowness. I'm still waiting for a hip surgery that I consented to almost a year ago. Every 6 weeks the surgical schedule comes out and every 6 weeks I'm not on it.

Hopefully your hip surgery will help your SI joint. Mine absolutely has. Now that I have better hip mechanics, my SI joint doesn't hurt nearly as much and doesn't pop constantly. So here's hoping you get the same benefit.

Thanks, I hope you get on the list soon.

I'm fucking off to another province for several months, so I won't even have the option to have surgery until September, which will be a full year later than when I was initially expecting to have it, lol.

[sonofsven]

I hear you on the slowness. I'm still waiting for a hip surgery that I consented to almost a year ago. Every 6 weeks the surgical schedule comes out and every 6 weeks I'm not on it.

Hopefully your hip surgery will help your SI joint. Mine absolutely has. Now that I have better hip mechanics, my SI joint doesn't hurt nearly as much and doesn't pop constantly. So here's hoping you get the same benefit.

Thanks, I hope you get on the list soon.

I'm fucking off to another province for several months, so I won't even have the option to have surgery until September, which will be a full year later than when I was initially expecting to have it, lol.

Well then I hope the fresh sea air and bracing temperatures provide some relief.
Pack your heating pad.

[Frugal Lizard]

I haven't been to physio since the second week of February. That was the last week the therapist I had been seeing since November 2022 was working. She really helped me but I am not quite ready to stop. She was promoted to run a clinic closer to where she lives. She has some patients there already and won't be taking new ones even if I wanted to drive to her.

I was able to travel for five whole weeks (Feb 20 to Mar 28) with minimal discomfort. It was amazing to have a complete break from being a patient.

Now I am feeling the need to get back to actual appointments. The deficits can't be ignored now that gardening season is upon us. The left hip weakness and lack of range was almost comical as I was trying to fill trays with potting mix and tipping over while twisting on my knees. Potting soil bag does make for a soft but really messy landing. Once the seeds are sprouted I will be very unhappy rolling in them and crushing them.

I have a referral to a new pelvic PT for the 24th of April. I am not thrilled about having to meet another person for pelvic physio. But I do want to heal some more so I will have to get over my fear. In the mean time I am doing some new exercises I found on YouTube for strengthening the obturator internus.

[oneday]

I haven't been to physio since the second week of February. That was the last week the therapist I had been seeing since November 2022 was working. She really helped me but I am not quite ready to stop. She was promoted to run a clinic closer to where she lives. She has some patients there already and won't be taking new ones even if I wanted to drive to her.

I was able to travel for five whole weeks (Feb 20 to Mar 28) with minimal discomfort. It was amazing to have a complete break from being a patient.

Now I am feeling the need to get back to actual appointments. The deficits can't be ignored now that gardening season is upon us. The left hip weakness and lack of range was almost comical as I was trying to fill trays with potting mix and tipping over while twisting on my knees. Potting soil bag does make for a soft but really messy landing. Once the seeds are sprouted I will be very unhappy rolling in them and crushing them.

I have a referral to a new pelvic PT for the 24th of April. I am not thrilled about having to meet another person for pelvic physio. But I do want to heal some more so I will have to get over my fear. In the mean time I am doing some new exercises I found on YouTube for strengthening the obturator internus.

@Frugal Lizard I remember that you were struggling to get from one appointment to another. And now you took a break from appointments for a significant amount of time. Your dedication and hard work is paying off, slowly and surely. Go you!

I hope the appointment with the new person goes better that you could imagine.

[oneday]

Oops, forgot to add: I'm back in PT, this time for osteoarthritis pain amelioration on the opposite shoulder from the issue that prompted the start of this thread. And also plantar fasciitis, my old nemesis. I am pleased that this thread is still a community resource.

Currently posting my updates to the healthy lifestyle goals thread for April.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

I am doing PT for my wrist again, although just doing the exercises at home that the orthopedist gave me. I had a big scare with it when I was injudicious and it was unusable for a few days. Even things like scratching my ear with that hand were exquisitely painful!

I can get 1 more cortisone shot but I am waiting until baby is a little older. She is 20 months. She won't be sleeping in a crib and wearing diapers forever! The lifting burden will go down dramatically and if I time the shot right I will be closer to getting relief!

@oneday, good luck with the pain relief!

@Frugal Lizard, yay for a nice break! I hope the new PT person is helpful. I had someone I really liked and I went obediently for like 8 months and did all the exercises... but my issues returned. Trying to be more diligent about doing the exercises again and especially squats!

[oneday]

@La Bibliotecaria Feroz thank you and I hope you are getting some relief too. It is hard to be in that place where every little movement might be painful and hard to remember not to make those movements. Or keep discovering new ways to trigger the pain.