Sensitivity (a bit gross)

XX Dogfather

Barefooters
Nov 11, 2013
50
73
18
56
Poole Dorset UK
(gross out warning)

A few days ago I shut my foot in a door in an alcohol related incident. I caught my big toe quite badly and was reduced to a swearing hopping mess. The nail went black pretty much instantly and it took me a few minutes to work out I hadn't actually broken anything.

Now here's where my question comes. After about 10 mins the pain abated and I wasn't that worried about it. Today the whole nail fell off right down to the nail bed. I am feeling no real pain and it hasn't affected my barefoot lifestyle. However I am pretty sure that if I wasn't a habitual barefoooter I would still be limping. It made me think. A couple of weeks ago I cut the heel of my right foot on a particularly sharp stone but carried on walking and after the initial ouch wasn't too concerned.

So... does being unshod make your feet less sensitive to things that would have the average Joe hobbling about and if it does, does that mean that a barefooter is at risk of doing some serious harm without realising the magnitude of what thy have done?
 
So... does being unshod make your feet less sensitive to things that would have the average Joe hobbling about...

I think it all depends on what the injury is and where it is located.

...if it does, does that mean that a barefooter is at risk of doing some serious harm without realising the magnitude of what thy have done?

Again, I think it all depends on where you have conditioned your skin, muscles, tendons, and bones. Some would say, such as Ken Bob, that we become more sensitive over a period of time even with conditioning, and some of that has to do with proprioception. I have two thoughts. The first is, our skin is more conditioned, so we are protected against some injury to the bottoms of the soles. Our muscles, tendons, and bones are more conditioned, whereas our shoddie friends have atrophied, so we are more protected from certain kinds of injuries in that respect. Shoes can protect a toe from being kicked into a doorjamb, but shoes can atrophy your feet. Anyway you look at it, there are benefits to both sides, and there are tradeoffs to both sides.