I was told a lot of things about treatment and physical therapy tonight by a 40 year old woman that has suffered with foot pain for OVER a year! This was a friend, I was in no way telling her she needed anything, she was just telling me about her imminent doom…..
She has had two MRI’s:
The first telling her that she tore a ligament in her ankle.
The second was read that she was healed after 2 months of wearing a boot, BUT she still had pain and the pain has been there for an entire year.
She said there is no hope… she is going to be hurting forever and I asked her what she has tried in terms of treatment?
“Well, nothing….. there’s nothing that can be done.”
That answer is not uncommon but it’s laughable.. There is always something that can be done! What if you could decrease that problem by 50%??? Would it be worth it? She said that would make a huge difference in her life BUT it IS NOT possible! She said she is doomed!
And why would she spend money on treatment when it’s “definitely not going to work” and she can, “get all the exercises she needs off the internet.”
I completely understand where she is coming from with so much information out on the internet, there is access to every exercise anyone could think of. But what if it’s not just exercise she needs?? She was in a boot for 2 months right?
The ligament may have healed but after seeing this so many times I would assume that her pain is coming from how tight that foot and ankle have become in the boot. If you don’t use it you lose it right?
Wouldn’t it make sense that she lost mobility in the foot/ankle? Her pain is on the top of the foot, the bottom AND in the Achilles now! When it started, it was the top of the foot where the ligament was damaged but now it’s everywhere….
She is a friend but I told her if I saw her in the clinic, I wouldn’t even take her as a patient. She has these ideas that nothing can be done, but she hasn’t tried anything. What I do know is that if she thinks nothing will work then “YEA” nothing is going to work because she would never let it work.
Regular physical therapy may not be effective and most of the “exercises” could be found on the internet but going to a specialist whose livelihood depends on her improving is completely different.
Don’t give up before you try. Look for a quality practitioner and if you are reading this from another state then reach out! There are people who actually treat these injuries daily and can help her but how would she ever know if she didn’t speak up.
Dr. Jonathan Ruzicka is a Manual Therapist whose experience as a private therapist for professional athletes drove him to further his education attaining unparalleled skills in tissue mobility work, performance based rehab, injury prevention, myofacial release and joint mobilization to optimize human performance.
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