So, as some of you know, 2010 has been a very trying and painful year to me, all attributable to shoes. Yes, shoes are what put me in this boat, however directly at some points and indirectly at others. A recap for those who may not know my pitiful story. (For all of you who know the story, you can skip to the red parts, although the rest of it is a good read too. Hee.)
04/27/10 & 4/29/10: Had cryosurgery for Morton's Neuroma in both feet (two nerves, each foot), a condition directly caused by the types of shoes we wear.
05/23/10: Ran one (1) measly mile trying to believe what the doctor had told me, that I would be running in two weeks, maybe four.
06/06/10: Suffered through three very short miserable runs totaling 7.21 miles. Still healing from the surgery itself. At this point I still couldn't tell if the surgery corrected what it was supposed to in the first place. I know I have developed PF at this point from all the walking around on my heels trying to avoid putting pressure on the balls of my feet. (I know, broken record.)
06/13/10: Ran 18.79 painful miles for the week. Slowly getting better from the cryo recovery, not with the MN, nor the PF.
06/20/10: 15.76 miles for the week. I journaled this note: [color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>They hurt when I walk and run, but not as much as before. I've developed a good case of heel pain from trying to avoid placing weight on my forefoot. Although the PTs I was seeing did nothing physically to help me, one of them said something that made a lot of sense. She said my nerves are extremely sensitive from the cryosurgery. She said I needed to work them constantly to decrease that sensitivity. I had been ignoring my feet, so I wouldn't feel the pain; any little touch was quite painful. I found that running barefoot (once again) becomes less painful each time I do it. I'm thinking that the contact with the ground is actually working more to decrease the sensitivity in the nerves than any other post cyrosurgical treatment I've tried. The pain I'm dealing with right now is part of the recovery from the cryosurgery itself. Since my miles aren't high right now, I have no idea if the actual cryosurgery did the trick though (reduced the neuromas/killed the nerves as planned, alleviated the Morton's Neuroma). I will only figure that out with time and distance...and patience.
[color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I just spoke to the podiatrist that did the cryosurgery on the nerves in my feet. I told him I wasn't seeing improvement, if anything, I'm getting worse. He advised traditional surgery to cut the nerves out. He said my nerves have become resilient due to all the many OTHER procedures I have had, 1 cortisone shot (that the well-intention doc stuck ALL THE WAY THROUGH MY FOOT!), 16 alcohol sclerosing shots, and shockwave therapy with 8 more numbing shots, now the 12 numbing injections from the cryo itself (37 needles all told). Kinda makes running barefoot sound painless, right? [/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>They hurt when I walk and run, but not as much as before. I've developed a good case of heel pain from trying to avoid placing weight on my forefoot. Although the PTs I was seeing did nothing physically to help me, one of them said something that made a lot of sense. She said my nerves are extremely sensitive from the cryosurgery. She said I needed to work them constantly to decrease that sensitivity. I had been ignoring my feet, so I wouldn't feel the pain; any little touch was quite painful. I found that running barefoot (once again) becomes less painful each time I do it. I'm thinking that the contact with the ground is actually working more to decrease the sensitivity in the nerves than any other post cyrosurgical treatment I've tried. The pain I'm dealing with right now is part of the recovery from the cryosurgery itself. Since my miles aren't high right now, I have no idea if the actual cryosurgery did the trick though (reduced the neuromas/killed the nerves as planned, alleviated the Morton's Neuroma). I will only figure that out with time and distance...and patience.
[color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.[color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I just spoke to the podiatrist that did the cryosurgery on the nerves in my feet. I told him I wasn't seeing improvement, if anything, I'm getting worse. He advised traditional surgery to cut the nerves out. He said my nerves have become resilient due to all the many OTHER procedures I have had, 1 cortisone shot (that the well-intention doc stuck ALL THE WAY THROUGH MY FOOT!), 16 alcohol sclerosing shots, and shockwave therapy with 8 more numbing shots, now the 12 numbing injections from the cryo itself (37 needles all told). Kinda makes running barefoot sound painless, right? [/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>They hurt when I walk and run, but not as much as before. I've developed a good case of heel pain from trying to avoid placing weight on my forefoot. Although the PTs I was seeing did nothing physically to help me, one of them said something that made a lot of sense. She said my nerves are extremely sensitive from the cryosurgery. She said I needed to work them constantly to decrease that sensitivity. I had been ignoring my feet, so I wouldn't feel the pain; any little touch was quite painful. I found that running barefoot (once again) becomes less painful each time I do it. I'm thinking that the contact with the ground is actually working more to decrease the sensitivity in the nerves than any other post cyrosurgical treatment I've tried. The pain I'm dealing with right now is part of the recovery from the cryosurgery itself. Since my miles aren't high right now, I have no idea if the actual cryosurgery did the trick though (reduced the neuromas/killed the nerves as planned, alleviated the Morton's Neuroma). I will only figure that out with time and distance...and patience.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. The nerves are still extremely hypersensitive in my feet from the cryosurgery, forcing me to don VFFs occasionally to finish my runs. The negative, aside from not being able to enjoy the pure sensation the earth provides, is my form completely goes out the window whenever I have to wear minimalist shoes. I'm just not a gifted runner; in order to run my best, I have to be barefoot. I will carry socks with me next time to see "again" if that would be better than VFFs, offer just enough deafening of the nerves without losing form. I miss being able to run pure, to run true, to run free.[/size=2 face=Arial>Of which I ran the Peachtree Road Race 10K barefoot with Terry again this year and Norman of the BRS.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.
04/27/10 & 4/29/10: Had cryosurgery for Morton's Neuroma in both feet (two nerves, each foot), a condition directly caused by the types of shoes we wear.
05/23/10: Ran one (1) measly mile trying to believe what the doctor had told me, that I would be running in two weeks, maybe four.
06/06/10: Suffered through three very short miserable runs totaling 7.21 miles. Still healing from the surgery itself. At this point I still couldn't tell if the surgery corrected what it was supposed to in the first place. I know I have developed PF at this point from all the walking around on my heels trying to avoid putting pressure on the balls of my feet. (I know, broken record.)
06/13/10: Ran 18.79 painful miles for the week. Slowly getting better from the cryo recovery, not with the MN, nor the PF.
06/20/10: 15.76 miles for the week. I journaled this note: [color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>They hurt when I walk and run, but not as much as before. I've developed a good case of heel pain from trying to avoid placing weight on my forefoot. Although the PTs I was seeing did nothing physically to help me, one of them said something that made a lot of sense. She said my nerves are extremely sensitive from the cryosurgery. She said I needed to work them constantly to decrease that sensitivity. I had been ignoring my feet, so I wouldn't feel the pain; any little touch was quite painful. I found that running barefoot (once again) becomes less painful each time I do it. I'm thinking that the contact with the ground is actually working more to decrease the sensitivity in the nerves than any other post cyrosurgical treatment I've tried. The pain I'm dealing with right now is part of the recovery from the cryosurgery itself. Since my miles aren't high right now, I have no idea if the actual cryosurgery did the trick though (reduced the neuromas/killed the nerves as planned, alleviated the Morton's Neuroma). I will only figure that out with time and distance...and patience.
[color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I just spoke to the podiatrist that did the cryosurgery on the nerves in my feet. I told him I wasn't seeing improvement, if anything, I'm getting worse. He advised traditional surgery to cut the nerves out. He said my nerves have become resilient due to all the many OTHER procedures I have had, 1 cortisone shot (that the well-intention doc stuck ALL THE WAY THROUGH MY FOOT!), 16 alcohol sclerosing shots, and shockwave therapy with 8 more numbing shots, now the 12 numbing injections from the cryo itself (37 needles all told). Kinda makes running barefoot sound painless, right? [/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>They hurt when I walk and run, but not as much as before. I've developed a good case of heel pain from trying to avoid placing weight on my forefoot. Although the PTs I was seeing did nothing physically to help me, one of them said something that made a lot of sense. She said my nerves are extremely sensitive from the cryosurgery. She said I needed to work them constantly to decrease that sensitivity. I had been ignoring my feet, so I wouldn't feel the pain; any little touch was quite painful. I found that running barefoot (once again) becomes less painful each time I do it. I'm thinking that the contact with the ground is actually working more to decrease the sensitivity in the nerves than any other post cyrosurgical treatment I've tried. The pain I'm dealing with right now is part of the recovery from the cryosurgery itself. Since my miles aren't high right now, I have no idea if the actual cryosurgery did the trick though (reduced the neuromas/killed the nerves as planned, alleviated the Morton's Neuroma). I will only figure that out with time and distance...and patience.
[color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.[color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I just spoke to the podiatrist that did the cryosurgery on the nerves in my feet. I told him I wasn't seeing improvement, if anything, I'm getting worse. He advised traditional surgery to cut the nerves out. He said my nerves have become resilient due to all the many OTHER procedures I have had, 1 cortisone shot (that the well-intention doc stuck ALL THE WAY THROUGH MY FOOT!), 16 alcohol sclerosing shots, and shockwave therapy with 8 more numbing shots, now the 12 numbing injections from the cryo itself (37 needles all told). Kinda makes running barefoot sound painless, right? [/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>They hurt when I walk and run, but not as much as before. I've developed a good case of heel pain from trying to avoid placing weight on my forefoot. Although the PTs I was seeing did nothing physically to help me, one of them said something that made a lot of sense. She said my nerves are extremely sensitive from the cryosurgery. She said I needed to work them constantly to decrease that sensitivity. I had been ignoring my feet, so I wouldn't feel the pain; any little touch was quite painful. I found that running barefoot (once again) becomes less painful each time I do it. I'm thinking that the contact with the ground is actually working more to decrease the sensitivity in the nerves than any other post cyrosurgical treatment I've tried. The pain I'm dealing with right now is part of the recovery from the cryosurgery itself. Since my miles aren't high right now, I have no idea if the actual cryosurgery did the trick though (reduced the neuromas/killed the nerves as planned, alleviated the Morton's Neuroma). I will only figure that out with time and distance...and patience.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery. The nerves are still extremely hypersensitive in my feet from the cryosurgery, forcing me to don VFFs occasionally to finish my runs. The negative, aside from not being able to enjoy the pure sensation the earth provides, is my form completely goes out the window whenever I have to wear minimalist shoes. I'm just not a gifted runner; in order to run my best, I have to be barefoot. I will carry socks with me next time to see "again" if that would be better than VFFs, offer just enough deafening of the nerves without losing form. I miss being able to run pure, to run true, to run free.[/size=2 face=Arial>Of which I ran the Peachtree Road Race 10K barefoot with Terry again this year and Norman of the BRS.[/color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial> I am able to run more comfortably minimal at this point (socks and VFFs), so I think I will go that route for the next couple of months but DEFINITELY incorporate some barefoot running each week, and if I don't see any improvement with the nerves, I will schedule to have traditional surgery.