If you’ve ever experienced foot and ankle pain, you know just how uncomfortable that pain is. The most common pain in the ankle is due to an acute ankle sprain from a jump, fall, or sudden loss of balance. Chronic ankle pain can result from a simple sprain. Achilles pain is a common example. Most ankle sprains heal slowly, and unfortunately the same injury tends to recur, with each new sprain taking longer to heal. Eventually, the results are weakened ligaments, instability of the ankle, chronic ankle pain, or even ankle arthritis that restricts the ankle’s range of motion.
Chronic foot pain usually comes from walking too far or standing too long. Plantar fasciitis, stress fractures, arthritis, and pain from an inflamed nerve at the toes (Morton’s neuroma) are among the most common causes.
- Plantar fasciitis or chronic heel pain is one of the most debilitating forms of foot pain. The agony of plantar fasciitis is characterized by severe pain in one or both heels, which becomes immediately obvious upon arising from bed, and is noticeable with the first few steps. Plantar fasciitis is slow to heal, and the pain may last up to a year or more.
- A Morton’s neuroma is a thickening of nerve tissue between the bones of the foot. If you have a neuroma, you will probably have symptoms in the area of the nerve damage. Tingling, burning, numbness, pain or a feeling that something is inside the ball of the foot are common complaints.
Because the foot is the only connection of a standing person to the ground, it must be re-educated to contact the ground without pain. Foot and ankle pain may need support in the form of a brace or orthotics. In addition, the relationship of the foot and ankle to higher structures must be addressed. If the spine, hips, and legs don’t function as a system, the feet and ankles can be stressed.
If you’ve rested enough or if physical therapy has not worked for you, the Feldenkrais Method can be used to treat all problems for which surgery isn’t necessary. Feldenkrais uses simple, gentle movements to reorganize posture, flexibility, strength and coordination. Based on the neurological processes by which we learn movement skills, it is a novel approach to foot and ankle pain relief, using the power of the brain to help the body function more efficiently. More efficient use of self creates environments within which chronic foot and ankle pain can heal. Feldenkrais helps you to do all those things from which your feet now hold you back; discover what it can do for you.
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