If you want to step up your game, you need your feet to do the stepping! Our feet are amazing. You hardly ever think about them, but those 26 bones, interconnected via an intricate network of muscles, ligaments, and tendons can take you dancing, running, strolling, shopping, jump roping, hiking, or pickleballing! But if they’re sore, itchy, tired, or tingly, it’s time to stop and take care of those amazing tootsies that take you everywhere in life. Here at ReSet Lounge, your Chagrin Falls spa, we can help you get healthy feet again with several high-tech and holistic therapies, including ozone therapy and red light therapy for foot pain relief and healing.
Addressing Common Foot Problems
First things first, though. Where does it hurt? What happened when your foot started hurting? Are your toes experiencing numbness and tingling? Does your arch hurt? Does your heel hurt when you get out of bed in the morning? Does the top of your foot hurt? Are your feet swollen? Understanding foot anatomy and the causes of common foot problems can help you address them effectively. Some of the most frequent causes of foot pain include:
- Standing on them for a long time
- Being overweight
- Wearing the wrong footwear
- Sudden or overuse injuries
- Chronic conditions like arthritis or diabetes
The following is a list of some of the most common foot problems, but there are many others:
Athlete’s Foot
Symptoms include itching, burning, blisters, raw, cracked, dry skin, and brittle toenails. Athlete's foot is a contagious fungal infection; you typically pick it up in places like swimming pools, locker rooms, or public showers.
Bunions
Bunions are a misalignment of your big toe. It looks like the tip of your big toe is pointing inward toward your other toes and the base of your big toe (where it joins with the rest of the foot), develops a lump.
Blisters
Excess friction rubs the skin on your feet so much that it causes fluid to gather under the rubbed part of the foot.
Bursitis
A lot of repetitive stress on the joints in your foot can cause painful swelling and fluid buildup in those joints.
Plantar Fasciitis
Overuse, over-stretching, and strain on the “plantar fascia” attachment that connects the ball of your foot and your toes to your heel can cause inflammation that presents as significant heel pain.
Flat Feet
Your feet develop arches during childhood, but not always. Some people never do, or their arches collapse (fallen arches) later on, which can cause problems like plantar fasciitis and gait problems when walking.
Heel Spur
The body creates painful new bone tissue on the heel in response to inflammation of the plantar fascia, right on the bottom of the heel bone where the plantar fascia attaches.
Sprains & Strains
A foot sprain happens if you overstretch or tear a ligament (tissue bands that connect bones). A strain is when you overstretch or tear muscle or tendon fibers.
Corns and Calluses
Both calluses and corns are thick, hardened patches of skin that form on areas of your feet that see a lot of repeated friction. In response to that friction, the skin thickens and hardens. Corns are small and round, while calluses can be larger and have different shapes.
Hammer Toe
Excess pressure on the toes, pushing them out of place causes the tendons and muscles to tighten, curling them up into a hammer-like appearance.
Gout
Gout causes pain and a fiery sensation in the joints of the feet, especially the big toe, because of excess uric acid. Aging, hormonal changes, and certain foods can aggravate gout.
Ingrown Toenails
A common but painful condition where the toenail corner grows into the surrounding skin. Don’t taper the edges when you clip your toenails, and this reduces your chances of getting ingrown toenails.
Plantar Wart
Rough, sometimes painful bumps that develop on the soles of the feet if the HPV virus enters a cut or crack in the skin of the foot.
Peripheral Neuropathy
Peripheral neuropathy can have several causes, including high blood sugar in people with diabetes. It is a type of nerve damage that can affect the toes and feet. Getting the causes under control can help relieve the symptoms of numbness and tingling.
Fungal Nail Infections
Athlete’s foot isn’t the only type of fungal infection your toes or toenails can suffer. Excess moisture, exposure to fungi, and chronic health conditions can lead to itchy toes and flaking, yellowing toenails.
Daily Foot Care Routine for Healthy Feet
Keeping your feet healthy can resolve or prevent many of these problems, and because your feet are such an important part of your daily life, don’t think it’s just a luxury to take time out of your day to give your feet the proper care they need. These six daily foot health basics can keep you and your feet up and running:
1. Foot Hygiene and Inspection
Every day, you should take a look at your feet and check for any symptoms mentioned above. Also, make sure to thoroughly wash and dry your feet every day, especially drying between the toes.
2. Hydrate Properly
We mean two things when we say hydrate. First, drink plenty of clean water throughout the day to keep your entire body running well as this will also affect your foot health. Second, use a recommended moisturizing cream or lotion to bolster your feet’s protective skin barrier to prevent flakiness and cracking that could allow bacteria, viruses, and fungi to get under the skin.
3. Wear Footwear that Properly Fits Your Feet
Look for supportive footwear in your size, but keep in mind that different shoe brands may not fit the same in the same size. Pro tip: go shoe shopping later in the day when you’ve been on your feet, and they’re a bit stretched out. Walk around in the shop for a while. You shouldn’t have to break in new shoes, they should feel comfortable from the get-go.
4. Clip and Examine Your Toenails Regularly
Clip straight across and do not taper your toenails to avoid ingrown toenail problems. Also, check for any signs of discoloration or brittleness in the nails that could indicate fungal infections.
5. Stretch and Exercise
Of course, regular exercise is crucial for overall health, and your feet can benefit too. Make sure to incorporate foot stretches into your warm-up and cool-down routine every day so that the muscles, ligaments, and tendons in the foot stay supple and limber. You can also stretch the tendons and ligaments on the bottom of your feet by rolling them over a racquet ball, either seated or standing depending on level of flexibility.
6. Don’t Ignore Foot Pain
Most of all, you shouldn’t have to “just live” with any kind of foot pain. Furthermore, different types of foot pain or numbness and tingling can be symptoms of other, systemic health problems. Also, if you are under the care of a physician for any particular foot problems, make sure to follow any additional care regimen activities necessary.
Give Healthy Feet a Boost at ReSet Lounge
In addition to those basic foot care and hygiene essentials, you can give your feet some extra love and healing here at ReSet Lounge, our Chagrin Falls Wellness Spa. Our feet absolutely deserve all the love we can show them, and many of the therapies we provide apply to whole-body wellness that can help promote healthy feet as well. For example:
Red Light Therapy for Foot Pain
If your feet are dog-tired, overworked, or injured, check out our red light therapy for foot pain and see just how much better they feel afterward. The red light panels emit a near-infrared light wavelength that stimulates cellular healing and regeneration, especially in joints, muscles, and soft tissues like tendons and ligaments. It also boosts the body’s own feel-good dopamine and serotonin levels.
Foot Health and Ozone Therapy
Ozone therapy in our HOCATT™ sauna capsule provides truly next-level healing and wellness for the whole body, including the feet. It flushes sore, injured tissues with oxygen, detoxifies the system, reduces overall inflammation, and promotes cellular healing. If your foot pain comes from chronic conditions, this is an excellent option for pain relief.
Acupuncture and Foot Health
Acupuncture has been around for over two millennia and is still the first line of medical care across Asia today. It can help not only with targeted foot pain relief but also with balancing your health in general to address any conditions that might be aggravating any foot health issues.
Massage Therapy for Your Feet
The foot rollers on the specialized massage chairs in our Chagrin Falls spa provide a wonderful dose of massage and compression for tired, swollen, achy feet. This mechanized massage also boosts circulation to the feet and helps accelerate healing.
Thai Reflexology for Healthy Feet
Our amazing and certified Chagrin Falls naturopath, Jennifer Cabic, is experienced in Thai reflexology for the feet and whole-body health. One fascinating thing about the feet is that they have about 7,000 nerve endings that connect to the rest of the body’s organs. So, sometimes, when your feet hurt, something else is amiss too. Jennifer’s skill in Thai reflexology can reduce foot pain, improve circulation, and boost healing in the feet and other organs that might need a boost.
Visit Our Chagrin Falls Wellness Spa for Fabulous Feet
Whether your feet are in pain, or you are trying to keep them healthy and pain-free to boost your athletic performance, our Chagrin Falls spa, ReSet Lounge, is here with a wide variety of holistic therapies that can help you feel good from toes to heels, and everywhere in between. Schedule an appointment with us today.
