Thread: anyone sprain the arch of their foot?

my left foot is sensitive---i had stress reactions ( not a stress fracture--checked by an MD) when i kept working on a back turn. this was 2 years ago i think.

so now---i can't go on half toe or jump( i tweaked the foot dancing the Friday before the BDUC 2/18.) i was doing an awesome layered choo-choo and felt my arch go twang!!!! i iced it the rest of the night and it was ok---i taped it and wore dance sneakers the rest of the BDUC and it was ok.

So--it feels better and i do something( teach my 2 classes Tues. night or walk a mall for 2-3 hours last Friday)----and then it hurts again.
i looked on the computer yesterday and seems like between plantar fascitis and pulled flexor halllucis tendor( common in dancers!!!). there is no swelling or i would go to the doctor. When i saw the Dr. 2 years ago, i did PT and learned how to tape my foot( the flesh colored first aid tape hides well under my sheer to the waist No-Nonsense hose)

"I also had a stress fracture of my right foot and I was performing full time. So, I was basically dancing on one foot for several weeks - probably shouldn't have been dancing at all but oh well. Every morning I'd go down to the lake and stick my foot in and then I'd tape it heavily then pull on the fishnets and do entire shows with all my weight on the left leg" Elibelinde

Love this, mine is --ice, tape, tonight it will be Shear Energy for more support( i cancelled my restaurant but someone really, really needed a party done---i'm bringing a student to help dance some)

I marked on the calendar the day i tweaked my foot, so i will tape every day and wear flat shoes for a month. of course i'm doing Little Egypt tomorrow---flat footed is OK---but then i can always sit and take notes. I have really high arches----never had trouble w/my feet till 10 years ago. i get in trouble when i forget to do calf stretches when doing any practice or performing.

Anyone have any other ideas for me?

has anyone tried the toe alignment socks? Shira mentions them on her site.

Don't know about toe alignment socks, but yoga toes seem to have had good reviews.

Personally, I would be wearing dance sneakers in class and flats with proper arch support during the day for a while. While they can be fairly ugly, if you are trying to heal, short of getting totally off the foot for a designated period of time and then rehabilitating, this may be your best strategy.

{{{HUGS}}}

I have high arches too.

I sprained my foot in 2008, on my third day of a month-long trip to Egypt, Turkey, and the UK. It took longer to heal than it should have, due to the fact that I remained active: getting up on the dance floor at a nightclub, going on tours of temples along the Nile cruise, exploring Liverpool, dealing with lots of air travel, etc.

After a month of all that, I came home to the U.S. and still had a non-trivial amount of pain. After giving me a good scolding for waiting so long to come see her, my doctor told me to wear one of those velcro-on rigid-sole shoes that immobilizes the sole of the foot, which I did for a few more weeks. It helped.

My advice:

• Stay off that foot!!! Mine would have healed much faster if I'd stayed off it. I don't regret enjoying my international travel, but I realize I did delay my recovery. At least give yourself a week or two without teaching or performing.
• Do see a doctor, just to have it checked out. You might want to ask if you should wear a rigid-sole shoe to immobilize it, as my doctor recommended to me. If the answer is yes, wear it during all your waking hours. It did help me.
• Minimize how much time you spend wearing conventional shoes. I know you said you're planning to wear flat shoes, but I'd urge you to minimize how much you wear even flats. Normal shoes tend to squeeze your foot, and I found that it was helpful to wear normal shoes (flats) ONLY when going out in public.
• After you heal, consider myofascial release. After mine healed, I had an issue with stiffness in my foot, I think a combination of scar tissue and muscle knots. I found a massage therapist who did both traditional massage and myofascial release, and her treatment really restored my foot to its normal supple flexibility. I think it took about a total of a dozen massages before I felt like my foot was back to its pre-injury condition.

thanks, Shira---and of course i signed up for both Little Egypt in LA classes tomorrow!!!! i will be sitting w/ my notebook,

i think i can get out of everything except teaching my 2 classes on Tuesday. i'll ask students to be my demos. we're getting ready for a show w/ the intermediates so i sorta have to finish the choreography.

and i think i will call the Dr. who saw my foot last time to see if i can get an appointment on Monday or Tuesday.

i got the diagnosis from the foot and ankle specialist. Plantar fasciatis---reduce actvity 50% for 2 weeks, tape my foot for a month, massage arch/heel of foot and stretch my calves 3 x day. I go to Physical Therapy next week for more exercises.

My lessons to myself are---must stretch calves every day, warm up ALWAYS before dancing, need to do more to take care of myself than the 2 yoga classes a week that i have been doing. The yoga is great but i must do either more of it or other things.

I'm reading "How to Dance Forever" (recommended by Ozma ) and the lesson so far is "you might take one day off of body maintenance but not 2 days--unless you are really sick". Also ---i have "Pain Free" by Pete Egoscue (bought for my husband's computer shoulder and arm pain---it is recommended by Azhia---and i've used it alot.) His focus is on balance in the body of feet, hips, knees---everything lining up to work together. And lots of cross-training---to escape repetitive motion injury.

a friend at yoga has a tweaked ankle and his Dr. told him---these things happen when you get older!!! he's younger than me!!!

If i want to dance---i must take care of my musical instrument----the body!!

Once you're ready to resume normal activity levels, here's a good way to keep your calves and Achilles tendons stretched and flexible: Go for walks on hilly terrain, either on sidewalks or in parks. Walking uphill is wonderful for this. And avoid wearing shoes with any heel at all, even flats with a small heel - barefoot or stocking-foot is best for ensuring flexible calves and Achilles tendons.

yep---i'm out of the glamor pool of those high, high heels----i have some platform shoes for glamor at BD events sometimes. otherwise---no way.

and not for quite a while now will i wear my platforms.

and there is the beautiful walk on Signal Hill in Long Beach to look forward to.

thanks.

Yea for Physical Therapist!! i got diagnosed w/ tendons of the foot that are strained---plantar and the tendon to the big toe. Also tension in the nerves going down the leg to the feet and toes. I got stretching and foot taping info---all the components together explain symptoms i've had over the years. so happy to know what it is and what to do. Dancing next week!! this should help me not to be so CRABBY!!!

foot still hurts ---bummer---maybe the Physical therapy will have to be adjusted next week. i got patches from my Accupunturist that are the only thing that seems to help. i think i'm taping my foot too tight.

Bhuz to the rescue---i just ordered:

"Also Cassandra Shore's conditioning for dancers DVD has some *great* foot strengthening exercises that will also increase flexibility."

Hey taji,
Will you check it out from the physician or not one...? I think that firstly you should consult to a physician and also check the shoes you used in the dance.... Will they are comfortable or not ...

Walnut Creek Personal trainer

Zimba,thanks for your concern---i went to a foot and ankle Dr. first and then physical therapy. i see the physical therapist on Monday---i think i was taping too tight and maybe the exercises need to be changed.