TheraFlow Foot Massager

The pain of plantar fasciitis is caused by inflammation after tiny tears ensue in the plantar fascia, the tissue that connects our heels to our toes. These tiny tears are very slow to heal.

TheraFlow is a reflexology foot massager that promises to relieve pain, which can be intense. Massaging the bottom of our feet eases tension, loosens knots, and reduces stress. But the most important benefit of massage therapy is improving blood flow which is thought by doctors to promote healing. As it turns out, our legs below our knees are slower to heal because they receive less blood circulation than areas of the body in closer proximity to our hearts.

I can support trying this therapy because it feels great and the device is inexpensive. You'll see it as high as $50 but as cheap as $17.99 on Amazon and in family stores such as Walmart. The massager is lightweight, compact, and portable. I also think the low-tech method of sliding your feet back and forth with muscle power is all you really need -- it's not strenuous nor tiring to do it, so there's no need to buy a pricier electronic device that does the rotations to massage your feet for you. The 1st 4 wheels give you a gentler message and the 5th wheel with rounded wooden spikes is a tad more intense, like acupuncture without piercing the skin.

I doubt the TheraFlow Foot Massager is a miracle holistic cure, however, I say take relief however/wherever you can get it, and hope it promotes faster healing! What do we have to lose but $17.99 for a cheap feel-good foot massage?

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Exercises For Plantar Fasciitis

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Plantar Fasciitis is heel pain in the plantar fascia, the connective tissue located on the bottom of your foot that connects your heel to your toes. With high arches, a person underpronates (underrolls her foot inward) when walking, so her arches and knees take a pounding on concrete. In doing this research, I learned people with flat feet (who overpronate) can also suffer from plantar fasciitis. How about that? 

According to another source, the condition means there are microscopic tears in the plantar fascia which are slow to heal.

In my 30s I wisely started selecting shoes with arch support and stable heels, as well as, putting insoles with arch support inside my shoes. Years ago a podiatrist also made custom orthotics for my high arches, but they don't fit most of my shoes including my Nike sneakers! They are so wide they only fit my Ugg boots and Croc ballet flats. His answer was I had to buy very big shoes! {Ridiculous! ... clown shoes!?!} I've read this is the wrong solution as custom orthotics can and should be made to fit most of a wearer's shoes, and one shouldn't have to go up more than 1/2 shoe size. Alas, I gave up on the podiatrist several years ago.:) 

Well, luckily I averted heel pain until this November 2023 when suddenly I developed worrisome pain in my right heel. Now I'm on a quest to find an effective drugstore pair of orthotics to fit my other shoes. Recommendations are welcome!

Meanwhile, daily stretching of the foot and calf can help ease pain by helping to decrease the amount of tension in the plantar fascia. Pain is caused by the inflammation of this connective tissue. If you've ever experienced it, you know you can barely walk when you rise from bed, or sit for a while, but moving makes walking and the extreme pain better.

Podiatrists recommend 3 exercises that stretch the plantar fascia: 

Wall Stretch

Photo: The Healing Sole

1) Face and put palms against the wall. Extend one leg forward about 12 inches apart, one leg bent in front with the rear knee straight.

2) Keeping both feet on the ground, lean towards the wall and bend the front knee until you feel a stretch in the back leg. 

3) Stop if you feel pain.

4) Hold for 20 - 30 seconds and repeat with the opposite leg.

Towel Stretch

Photo: Versus Arthritis

1) Sit with your butt on the floor and both legs stretched out in front of you.

2) Loop a towel over the ball of one foot at a time while keeping your leg straight. Pull it towards you until you feel a stretch in your calf and hold for 20 - 30 seconds.

3) Repeat with your other leg.

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UVM Health org

Stair Stretch

1) While holding onto the stair rail, stand with your heels hanging off a step. 

2) Slowly lower the heels until you feel a stretch. 

3) Hold for 20 - 30 seconds.

Other actions to ease the pain include:

The Tennis Ball Roll

I'm also rolling my arches and heels over a tennis ball which brings relief. It's advice I read years ago. Btw tennis balls are multi-taskers. Toss them into the dryer in place of fabric sofer. They work!

Other exercises to gently stretch the foot help too like flexing and pointing your toes up to the sky. 

It's a pity no matter what we do to slow it down, the years inevitably take their toll. We are all destined to fall apart. Teeth, feet, ligaments, and bones, wear out. Aim to slow "it" -- i.e. your state of disrepair down with sensible strategies. :)

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A Cautionary Tale: Toe Nail Fungus

Here's a cautionary tale: A savvy friend did a bad thing because she had a momentary lapse of good judgment. At T.J. Maxx she slipped her bare feet into a pair of very cute toe-shaped water shoes. Well, nobody is perfect, however, this one and only time is all it took to catch a nail fungus (a/k/a onychomycosis). She says she never tries on shoes in stores barefooted, but since the water shoes were shaped like real feet, she made an exception because her sock didn't fit into the shoes and she was unsure whether to go up 1/2 size. Still, she knew better! 

Her nail fungus began on the big toe of one foot, but since she had zero experience with this disease, at first she didn't know what was the matter with her big toe ... and so repeatedly soaked her feet in a moisturizing foot bath to treat it, thereby spreading her nail fungus from one big toe to all 20 of her digits, fingers and toes. Yikes!

Her doctor says there is no quick cure for nail fungus, and it is very contagious! If the fungus is on the skin or in-between the toes, it is called Athlete's foot.

The remedy to heal a nail fungus is to swallow a prescription drug called Tervinafine, one tablet per day, for 6 months or longer. Although rarely, Terbinafine can cause liver damage. While taking it, a patient must have a blood test monthly to ensure the drug isn't affecting the liver. Holy Moly!!

My friend recommends also painting a coat of liquid solution with 25% undecylenic acid plus sprinking foot powder containing 2% miconazole nitrate on the nail fugus extra remedies before sticking your feet into socks or sandals.

Geeze! A second of error ... 6, 8, 9, ??? months of medicine and doctor visits to cure it. Is it worth it? No.

As of yesterday, this savvy friend who had a momentary lapse of good judgment is not experiencing any problems with Terbinafine, but golly, let the example of her momentary lapse of good judgment stop the rest of us from trying on rack shoes barefooted that other people may have tired on! I'm sure I've done so a couple of times over the years myself. Boys and girls, just don't do it! Never, ever, um, um, um!! Our moms were right!!!

Other safe practices to keep foot/nail fungus away include: Always walk around public pools or gyms in flip-flops. Use a disposable foot bath moisturizing boot only once, then toss it out. Reusing it is not worth the money saved. 

Many thanks to my friend for sharing her story. The lapses of our friends remind us not to suspend our own good judgment. As my father (quoting Sam Levenson) always said: "Learn from other people's mistakes. Life is too short to make them all yourself!"

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How To Protect A Pinky Toe?

 

Sorry ... in no way will the following blog be sexy. It's about how aging changes your tootsies when once upon a time, they never gave you any problems.

Ouch! My feet are getting battered, and I don't know what to do about it. We walk everywhere in New York City on hard, unforgiving concrete.

But I'm on top of it! I always wear structured shoes (brands like Merrell and Vionic) with good arch support and stabilized heels. Round, roomy toe boxes, and my shoes seem to be the right size. Supportive flats, not high heels (except perhaps once a year), plus I'm not walking as much as I did before the pandemic. Yet my feet are taking a real beating, especially the inside of the pinky toe on my left foot! Short of wearing band-aids, what can I do to protect it?

Once in a while, I experience painful arches, or an ache in the front part of my foot also, but not often nor severe enough to worry yet. Not quite yet!! If such a pain in the front of of your foot is severe and frequent, then it's time to think about a condition called Morton's Neuroma, which 1 in 3 people have. Women can get it from wearing high heels or a narrow toe box which I have rarely done!

Of course the main reason to explain what is happening is, my feet are aging right along with the rest of me. Regardless of how sensible our footwear, our parts start to wear out! As we grow older (beginning around the age of 45 or so), we lose the fat padding on the bottoms of our feet that protects them from daily pounding, which is why we can't walk barefoot on hard floors anymore without foot pain. 

Years ago I also learned I must buy leather shoes (skipping manmade materials) to avoid many shoe, i.e., foot problems. So let's check that solution off.

What's more, nearly all of my shoes have insoles to provide extra padding. So gezz-Louise, what more do I have to do on a daily basis? After my little toe became so raw and inflamed it felt like it would fall off, I began wearing band-aids, as well as, protective gels to buffer it from my other toes. After years of peaceful living side-by-side, the 4 bigger toes no longer play nice with the little one!

You know, I'd like to walk out of my apartment without too much fanfare. Must I start wrapping my pinky toe every day now!?! 

I've stepped outside of science and am trying 15 minutes of yoga toes each day too in an effort to save the pinky toe! I'm out of ideas.

Do you have any ingenious products to help prevent foot problems? Help ...

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8 Shapes Of Feet

Illustration: Library of Congress

Thanks to what pops up on my Facebook feed, I now know what the shape of my foot is called. I have Egyptian shaped feet, the 1st illustration below.

According to science, it means absolutely nothing. Despite the names given to each foot shape, there is no correlation between how your toes align on your feet and your ancestry, or personality traits, therefore I won't bother expounding on them. In fact, people of all ethnic groups, nationalities and personalities have each type of feet. So all we really know is what the name of our own shape of feet is. And it's all in good fun. 

Here are 8 types of feet people throughout the world have:

Using this above illustration going in order: 

1) Egyptian - The toes are tapered going from the longest big toe down to the little toe.

2) Roman -  The 2nd and 3rd toes are longer in length than the big toe. It is the most common of all the foot shapes.

3) Greek - The 2nd toe is the longest toe. The ancient Greeks found this foot shape to be aesthetically appealing and incorporated it into paintings and sculptures. Later artists followed suit. Michelangelo's David and the Statue of Liberty have Greek (also called Morton's) toes.

4) German - The big toe is the longest, followed by toes nearly the same length.

5) Oriental - Looks like the dark foot on the right. The toes are very slightly tapered, more rounded then an Egyptian foot. 

6) Celtic - The foot with a tattoo.

7) Peasant - Also called Giselle, all the toes are nearly the same length.

8) A Very Short Little Toe
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As mentioned, a majority of people have Roman  shaped feet, and because the 2nd and 3rd toes are about the same length, it's thought to be good for balance and may give athletes an advantage in sports. I think after a lifetime of practice all 8 foot shapes work well for balancing a body as people are so adaptable.

Peasant shape feet

In my research I also learned that some people can wiggle their little toes while others can't, but must use a finger to move them. It turns out I can move my little toes unassisted. Now what can I use my newly found talent to accomplish?🙂

The Greek shaped foot - David on the left and The Statue of Liberty on the right.

Have you figured out the shape of your feet yet? Oh, get wild and crazy ... also see if you can wiggle your little toes. We'll start a movement!😊

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