Why Do Your Feet Hurt?

Photo by Imani Clovis from Unsplash

Aching feet is a common issue. It’s always a relief to come home from a long day of work, kick off your shoes, and prop your feet up. Our feet do a lot of work, so it’s not really a surprise they often feel sore. But what is really making your feet hurt? Here are five common sources of foot pain.

1) Poor Support

Do you wear supportive shoes? Supportive shoes can give our feet the extra cushion and arch support they need to not feel so achy. Many shoes lack the proper support our feet need. Heels wreck havoc on our feet. Give your feet some love and wear orthopedic shoe inserts. These inserts add some extra cushion to the heels and balls of your feet and also provide more arch support. Wearing supportive shoes or shoe inserts is especially important for people who do a lot of standing or walking all day.

2) Bone Spurs

Bone spurs can be caused by obesity, poor-fitting shoes, or an injury. Symptoms of bone spurs include stiffness or swelling in the foot, pain when standing or walking, or limited joint mobility. Bone spurs can also go unnoticed because they sometimes don’t cause pain. If you are experiencing these painful symptoms, a podiatrist can help you diagnose and treat your bone spurs. Through weight loss, pain medication, or wearing supportive shoes, you could relieve the pain your bone spurs cause.

3) Ingrown Toenails

Ingrown toenails can cause discomfort. Wearing shoes that are too small or cutting your toenails too short can cause ingrown toenails. When a nail begins growing into the skin, it can cause pain, discomfort, and even infection. Severe ingrown toenails will need to be treated by a doctor who will cut the skin growing around the nail and trim the nail. This helps the toenail grow the proper way without digging into the skin again.

4) Bunions

Bunions are growths on the base of the big toe and can be very painful. A bunion forms when your big toe presses too tightly against the next toe. This forces the joint of your big toe to stick out and get bigger. Wearing tight shoes can make bunions worse. There are several ways to treat bunions; wearing more comfortable shoes, using tape, pain relievers, and shoe inserts can all help manage bunion pain. You can also have surgery to have the bunion removed.

5) Achilles Tendinitis

The tendon that runs from your lower leg to your heel bone is known as the Achilles tendon. When this tendon is overused it can result in Achilles tendinitis. It’s most common in active runners. Achilles tendinitis will cause muscle ache in the back of the leg above the heel. It can also make your foot and calf stiff or tender. Most Achilles tendinitis can be treated with physical therapy. Different exercises can help strengthen and stretch the tendon while shoe inserts can be used to help lessen the symptoms. More severe Achilles tendonitis can be treated with surgery to repair the tendon.