Foot Injury Recovery: How Long Should It Take?

[Monique]

How long should foot injuries last? I've been walking with a limp for 7 weeks now and I'm getting tired of it I visited the doctor after I injured it (just a misstep), who said it wasn't broken. I then walked with crutches and tape to take off the weight and give support (the area around my mid-foot bone), it’s better in the sense that I can walk again, but it still hurts quite a bit.

I'm seeing the doctor again on tuesday, but I was wondering if you guys have had a similar situation.

 

[Kurdt]

I had bruised heels for a year. Unfortunately with minor foot injuries like this they do take some time because you are obviously stressing the foot nearly all the time. The only way to be sure would be to use crutches again for a week and see how it feels then, but with a minor injury it seems a bit silly. Other than that just take it really easy until it begins to feel better.

It was truly a miserable time for me when I had the bruised heels because at the time I was part of a football team and an athletics team and I thought I would never regain full use. I was a bit silly though and probably pushed it too far too soon in my haste to start running and playing again.

 

[Moonbear]

It really depends, but can take a long time to heal, though shouldn't be constantly painful by 7 weeks. If you're on your feet a lot (like most grad students are), it would probably keep getting sore from walking on it for a while. When I've sprained my wrist/ankle, it would take a few days for the real pain to go away, then aching for a few weeks, then sore with use for months to a year before it felt completely normal again. But, always best to get it checked out, which you already have planned, just to make sure it's healing properly without further intervention.

 

[baywax]

How long should foot injuries last? I've been walking with a limp for 7 weeks now and I'm getting tired of it I visited the doctor after I injured it (just a misstep), who said it wasn't broken. I then walked with crutches and tape to take off the weight and give support (the area around my mid-foot bone), it’s better in the sense that I can walk again, but it still hurts quite a bit.

I'm seeing the doctor again on tuesday, but I was wondering if you guys have had a similar situation.

There have been situations where walking was difficult and it was perhaps started by an injury yet exasperated by a sub-conscous reticence to "not step up to the plate or go forward with your plans". In fact the injury may have occurred because of the same subconscioussupression of progress.

If you think this sounds appropriate, try affirming, in whatever way you do, that you are willing to go forward everyday until you are!

Hopefully, flakey psycho-babble is permitted in the general discussion area.

 

[Monique]

Hi Kurdt, what do you mean by bruised? That's really bad that it took you a year to recover, are they better now or are they still a soft spot?

And Moonbear, I have been on my feet a lot.. I had to work all the weekends because of deadlines, otherwise I would have taken time off. That's the sour part, I hope that didn't do too much damage.

The first few weeks I was unable to bear any weight on my foot and was unable to 'roll' my foot while walking. So I just walked very slowly so I could put my weight on the ankle and ball of my foot, which worked alright indoors.

I did take a week off after the deadlines, but that really didn't help much unfortunately. I just googled and found an injury that matches my symptoms, which is called Lisfranc fracture, and prognosis is quite poor. But I'm probably unneccesarily scaring myself here, I hope

It is already much better since I can bear weight again and make the rolling motion, but there still is swelling. Let's see what the doc says, otherwise I'll just have to set-up home in the lab so that I don't have to commute and climb stairs

 

[Monique]

There have been situations where walking was difficult and it was perhaps started by an injury yet exasperated by a sub-conscous reticence to "not step up to the plate or go forward with your plans". In fact the injury may have occurred because of the same subconscioussupression of progress.

If you think this sounds appropriate, try affirming, in whatever way you do, that you are willing to go forward everyday until you are!

Hopefully, flakey psycho-babble is permitted in the general discussion area.

"step up to the plate or go forward with your plans"? That does sound very flaky, things are going great except for this hurdle.

 

[Kurdt]

Well a bruised hell is a fairly common athletics and sports injury. It just means that the protective layer of the heel gets moved out of the way and the more fleshy part of the foot causes pain because I suppose it bruises easily. I don't have any problems any more but it was very hard to judge when it was finally healed (excuse the pun) because when i was no longer receiving pain during walking I'd try to run and it would flare up again. Very frustrating stuff.

Hope your foot gets better soon Monique.

 

[Evo]

Monique did you tear anything? I injured my foot once and the doctor said "the bad news is that it's not broken". I had torn just about everything that could tear in my foot and ankle and he was right, it took forever to get better. I had to wear one of those frankenstein foot things for months.

I'm glad you're going back to the doctor, maybe crutches might be helpful for awhile to keep the weight off.

 

[Astronuc]

It can take several weeks for a foot injury to heal. One basically has to stay off the foot and keep it raised. I would also use hot and cold contrasting which I have used for inflamed tendons.

I severely injured my foot once when I hyperextended it (twisted backwards) and fell on it (leg got twisted underneath) - bad landing after a fast spinning hook-kick. Not realizing how much it was injured I kept on going. It (and several toes) then swelled about 50% and turned various shades of purple and yellow - and went partially numb.

It took just over one week for the swelling to go down to where the foot was normal size and another 6 weeks before I could use it.

I had to keep my foot and leg elevated for most of that period.

 

[Danger]

You might get some relief as well by using Sorbothane or gel insoles in your shoes. They won't do anything for the rolling or flexing ability, nor the swelling, but they certainly reduce the impact of taking a step.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Monique. have you checked for rocks in your shoes?

I injured my foot the summer before last, and it took at least 6-8 weeks... and I think more like all summer until it was completely healed [felt no pain]. But mine was mainly a toe injury - I nearly broke a few of them.

 

[Kurdt]

Oh yeah forgot to mention that you can get athletic tape and tape your foot for extra support. That might help you in doing day to day stuff even if it does make you walk a bit funnier.

 

[Danger]

Tape can be effective, but be careful not to get it too tight. Restricted circulation will prolong the healing process and possibly cause more damage. If you use it and your foot starts to tingle or lose feeling, loosen it up.

 

[Dr Transport]

Sprains take months to heal correctly. I had a high ankle sprain which took about 4 months to heal completely. It looks like you need to take the weight off of it and take it easy for a while.

 

[Moonbear]

And Moonbear, I have been on my feet a lot.. I had to work all the weekends because of deadlines, otherwise I would have taken time off. That's the sour part, I hope that didn't do too much damage.

If you were careful, you may be just fine. I don't remember where I saw it, but I think it was about 6 months to a year ago (but I lose track of time anymore) that I saw an article saying the old advice to stay off an injury wasn't the best advice, and at least in terms of sports injuries, they were recommending instead to use the injured body part as soon as possible to retain range of motion. Of course, you don't want to overdo it either to the point of increasing inflammation or injury. If you aren't still wearing any sort of brace or support, you might want to do that, at least on the days when being on your feet is unavoidable.

 

[Evo]

If the ligaments are torn, it is usually recommended to avoid using the foot as much as possible for the first few weeks.

That was my problem, severly torn ligaments. It sounds like Monique might be suffering from something similar and the constant use of her foot is aggravating the condition.

http://www.drfoot.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=71

 

[Monique]

You might get some relief as well by using Sorbothane or gel insoles in your shoes. They won't do anything for the rolling or flexing ability, nor the swelling, but they certainly reduce the impact of taking a step.

Yeah, I bought a pair that gives extra support in the ball of the foot and I immediately noticed a difference. I'd recommend those things to anyone who walks around a lot.

Monique. have you checked for rocks in your shoes?

Gee, why didn't I think of that?
Nope, I just checked and there are no rocks!

Oh yeah forgot to mention that you can get athletic tape and tape your foot for extra support. That might help you in doing day to day stuff even if it does make you walk a bit funnier.

Actually the tape has kept me on my feet. It is quite hard to get it around your toes in the proper way, but it works really well. The problem is that after a few days the tape starts to irritate the skin, so then I need to take it off for a few days.

So it seems to be 'normal' that it can linger quite long, I've just taken the tape off again so I'll see what it feels like on monday and what the doc says on tuesday. Thanks for the advice

 

[Monique]

For anyone who's curious: the verdict is in.

I had some X-rays taken, I didn't think anything would show up.. but I just got a call: one of the bones in my fore-foot was partially broken but still aligned. A crack was still visible but there is enough new bone growth so that I should be fine At least now I have an excuse to walk with a limp

 

[Evo]

For anyone who's curious: the verdict is in.

I had some X-rays taken, I didn't think anything would show up.. but I just got a call: one of the bones in my fore-foot was partially broken but still aligned. A crack was still visible but there is enough new bone growth so that I should be fine At least now I have an excuse to walk with a limp

Ouch! You poor thing walking aound on a broken foot all this time! I hope you start feeling better soon.

 

[K.J.Healey]

I was playing softball last month (Center Field) and was running for a catch, the ground was lumpy, and the inside of my left foot caught a tuft of grass/dirt on the ground, and when i stepped it rotate my left foor counter clockwise about 45 degrees. When it landed, I felt a "POP" in my knee and a very sharp/weird pain as I dropped to my side.
It felt like when you roll your ankle, but in my knee. Sorta like it pooped out and then back in, though there's not much to pop out right?

Well, its been a few weeks, probably 6 or 7 so far, and sometimes when I walk it feels like it slips out and back in again, is the only way I can describe it. I was told to just not put any stress on it (I stopped softball). But at least once a day I feel it go in and out real fast. Doesn't really HURT, but its a very weird dislocated-type feeling.

I wonder if I should go back to the doctor. I don't want any permanent damage. I probably tore/detached some ligament or something and it's not healing.

 

[Kurdt]

For anyone who's curious: the verdict is in.

I had some X-rays taken, I didn't think anything would show up.. but I just got a call: one of the bones in my fore-foot was partially broken but still aligned. A crack was still visible but there is enough new bone growth so that I should be fine At least now I have an excuse to walk with a limp

Sorry to hear that it was such a bad injury. At least its showing signs of healing and I hope it gets better as soon as possible.

 

[Monique]

But at least once a day I feel it go in and out real fast. Doesn't really HURT, but its a very weird dislocated-type feeling.

I wonder if I should go back to the doctor. I don't want any permanent damage. I probably tore/detached some ligament or something and it's not healing.

Maybe you should see a physiotherapist, they might be able to suggest some excercises to strenghten your knee.

Thanks for your comments Evo and Kurdt, I'm rather annoyed with some real-life people who think it's ok to make inconsiderate comments. Like I'd go to the doctor and get X-rays taken if my foot is not really bothering me.

 

[Gokul43201]

Well, its been a few weeks, probably 6 or 7 so far, and sometimes when I walk it feels like it slips out and back in again, is the only way I can describe it. I was told to just not put any stress on it (I stopped softball). But at least once a day I feel it go in and out real fast. Doesn't really HURT, but its a very weird dislocated-type feeling.

I sprained my knee 5 weeks ago, and until about a week back, I used to feel something like this too. It's gone now, and my knee is almost good again, but it still hurts at night, when I'm in bed.