Scared of Surgery

I happen to have been doing Irish dancing for about a year and a half, maybe two, and the problem is that I think that I have some sort of tendonitis in the plant of my foot, down the center of the sole.
I have no idea if there even exists a tendon there, but anyway, after walking too much, or dancing too much, I get a pain every time that I don't stand fully on my toes, and are putting weight on the sole, or when I'm walking and inevitably stretch the sole.

I've tried looking up sites that have information about what could be causing this pain, but they all mention surgery, for tendonitis, something called plantar fascilis and bursitis...all these things that could be the matter.

Before you tell me to consult a doctor, I'll tell you that I have an extreme fear of dentists, doctors, needles, surgery, anesthetic, podologists, chiroptractors, acupuncturists, and just about anyone to do with medicine or such.

Its so frightening, to think of all the horrible things that could be causing this pain, and that the only alternatives mentioned is surgery.

Any help, tips, information or support would be immensely appreciated.
If you want, you can e-mail me here:
crackers_fanfic@hotmail.com

Please, any help would be so welcome.

-beth

Check out WebMD.com if you havent already. Also, call a local hospital, tell them symptoms and what the causes could be. They'll help you out over the phone so you can atleast know exactley what it is.

thanks, but I wouldn't dream of going anywhere near a hospital..even over the phone

Then you dont care much about your problem

i think whether your scared or not you should go get it checked out at least, cause wouldn't it just suck if it got so bad you could never dance or even walk again without being in heaps of pain. what means more to you, being scared and living in pain or getting it checked and even fixed?

Perhaps the bigger question is why do so many people come on these forums with pleas for help, and then when they receive the only kind of advice that is capable of helping them, they simply say "I can't do that?"

And to the original poster-- maybe you should consult an astrologer or psychic or faith healer about your problem.

I'm a christian, Lydia, I don't believe in consulting psychics or "faith healers," and I'm not absolutely sure that a psychologist/psuchiatrist could help an awful lot.
Perhaps the reason that I say "I can't do that," is because I'm trying to find a natural alternative.
Today my foot doesn't hurt, but later, maybe next week, it will again, and if there's no help that could actually work for me, then I'll accept the old method of gripping your teeth together, suffering the pain, and praying that it will go away.
Maybe after the christmas break and a few weeks of rest I will return to dancing with stronger, rested feet, until then, if no one knows an exercise that can strengthen tendon/long-shaped muscle that runs through the center of the foot, then thanks for the help...
I can see now that there's no support.

-beth.

P.S. Sorry if that sounded cruel, but this is a very tiring problem to me. Its a vicious circle.

Sorry, Beth. I was really not serious in suggesting psychics, etc. I was just being sarcastic and I really shouldn't have. I hope that time will heal you. But here is another serious suggestion. You might consult a podiatrist and see if they can provide a non-surgical remedy such as orthotics. That would be painless and non-invasive. I wish you well.

thanks Lydia.
I happened to notice that when I dance in hard-shoes, which are irish dance shoes that have a stiff sole that is used to do a sort of tapping dance, I don't suffer that pain in my foot, so I thought that if and when I got the pain again I could try bandaging the foot, so perhaps that would help because the sole would have some type of stiff support...
I hope it works, and thanks a lot for the support, I truly needed it.

-beth

Foot still hurts, though not as much.
Bandage didn't really seem to help.

My sister had RSD is her foot from swimming. Similar feeling however. She used a tens machine hired from the hospital. It was the only thing that helped. I am not sure how much it would help you but I guess it is worth a try! Good luck! Tess xxx

What is RSD and what is a tens machine?
Sorry, but I've never heard of that.

As of today the foot is much better, although still a bit stiff, but I'm going to see a naturapath doctor who doesn't intimidate me quite as much.
I've also used cataplasms made out of mud, and they really help, also resting the foot, soaking it in hot and cold water and bandaging it has helped.

Thanks a lot anyway!
beth

I would still recommend seeing a podiatrist that can provide non surgical tratment. In my previous post I mentioned orthotics but I see that in Australia they are called orthoses. which are custom-made shoe inserts. They help to align the structure of the foot for use in the most stable and efficient position. They can also help to reduce and prevent pain in the feet and in joints like knees and hips.

I've had other Irish-dancing friends who said that got the same pain, and another who said that every blue moon she gets the same pain. At least now I'm more relieved and know that its not a very serious pain, more like stress in the tendon.
One girl said I had to put a rounded stick, like a broom handle on the ground and roll my foot on it, back and forth, kind of like a massage.

Oh, and I don't live in Australia, I live in Chile, and I have no idea what orthotics are called here, probably "ortopedicos" or something.

Thanks again!
beth

well im just out of surgery getting my appendix out and its not really all that bad! but ive danced since i was 3 or 4 n when i was like 11 i got a thing removed from the bottom of my foot cuz it was hurting so much and it really wasn't that bad it is soar for a few days after the operation and then you can't dance for 4 weeks and then after that when you go back and start dancing you never get the pain again and its like forgotten about i know a good few people who have it!!!