thequiltmama

I wanted to see if anyone else has had or has Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome??? For people who don't know it is like Carpal Tunnel but in your feet. I have it in both feet and have been struggling with the pain for about 2 years. When do you decide to have surgery?? I have taken Prednisone twice in a row and it only maintained it to a tolerable level. I am lucky and get to work from home but that may not always be true. I am not sure if there are other options out there or not for my feet. So please if anyone has had this I would love it if you would share your experience. :)

tazzyjj

My dr told me to take one tylenol and one aleve for mine...it helps me to go thru the day.

sandyl

DD just had surgery for that about 7 weeks ago. She only had it in one foot. Had surgery and then PT. Her scar is pretty large and that makes it tough to find shoes that won't rub on it. Takes a while to get back to being able to walk normal. If you want I can send you her email address and I'm sure she would be glad to chat with you about it.

thequiltmama

thanks, sending now. :)

luv-e

I had put a recipe for Carpel Tunnel so I don't know why you couldn't use it on the feet too??
2-3 Drops of Birch Oil
mix with 1 Tbsp. of baby oil
Rub on AM & PM

Birch Oil can be found @ health food store....
lady swears by it and even her Dr. said use it if it helps you.......... GF just started using it but just started this week....

thequiltmama

What is birch oil? and what does it do?

Prism99

If it's similar to carpal tunnel, then what is happening is that there is inflammation and swelling of the tunnel through which the nerve goes. If you can reduce the inflammation, you can get rid of the pain. If permanent scarring has taken place then it may not be possible to reduce the inflammation and swelling.

A hand doctor told me I needed to have surgery for severe carpal tunnel in my right hand. I hadn't actually had symptoms for too many months, so I decided to see if I could reduce the inflammation instead. Here's what I did, although not sure how much of it applies to your tarsal tunnel problem.

I bought a brace at Walmart (the one the doctor's office gave me was next to worthless) and wore it every night, plus as much of the day as I could. The purpose of the brace is to keep the limb in a neutral position so to minimize pressure on the nerve. I assume there is a brace like this available for the foot, but I don't know for sure.

Some of my problem was related to bad ergonomics combined with a lot of typing at the computer, so I re-jigged the whole computer setter to make it more ergonomic and cut my typing in half. I always wore my brace when typing. (Not sure if you could wear a brace while walking.)

I added a lot of citrus bioflavanoids to my day -- mostly in supplement form. Got the strongest ones I could find and took two in the am and two in the pm. Citrus bioflavanoids are supposed to help, although I don't know the mechanism.

I took aspirin and other anti-inflammatories regularly during the day (but not overdoing). Aspirin reduces inflammation, and that is what you want to do in order to relieve pressure on the nerve.

Here is a website I found on tarsal tunnel syndrome:
http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/foot...rsaltunnel.htm

Edit: It looks as if tarsal tunnel may be aggravated by bad footwear. I would go to a shoe shop that specializes in high-quality shoes for older people (can't remember the name of the chain where we are), find a salesperson who has a lot of experience, and ask for their advice in choosing a pair of shoes that might help your problem.

thequiltmama

hi, yes I spend $130 every 6 months on orthopedic shoes. I have done all that the doc has asked of me but now it is only tolerable instead of severe pain. I am worried that it may have been too long and I have nerve damage now. Hope not :( Thanks for the advice. I am going to see the doc in June again to see what we can do next. :)