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burning nerve pain in foot

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valerie65786
valerie65786

I had foot surgery 3 weeks ago. Had an extra navicular bone removed from my left foot and the tendons reattached. Have had pain but was able to manage it with pain meds until last night when I was awaken from dead sleep with the most intense pain I have ever experienced. Took another pain pill but nothing helped. My burning pain was on the outside of my foot and under my heel. The pain was so bad my entire leg was twinging uncontrollably. I have always felt that I had a very high tolerance for pain but this was UNBELIEVEABLE and something I hope doesnt happen again. I called the dr this morning and was told it was probably my nerves waking back up. Has anyone else experienced this horrific pain and can you shed some light on how long I may have to expect this. I am scared to go to sleep tonight in fear of this waking me up again. HELP

 

0 likes, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • michelle84125
    michelle84125 valerie65786

    Posted

    Hi Valerie. I know exactly how you feel

    I had surgery just a few weeks ago and felt good coming home so only took one perkaset painkiller before bed. Then I woke up from a dad sleep as the freezing wore off bs so did the pain med. I have had 4 kids and thought I was great at managing pain till then. The burning and throbbing and intense pressure was so bad. Best thing I did was stay on top of pain meds every 4-6 hrs and ice the area. Rest and lots and lots of whole foods, no preservatives just fresh veggies and fruit to help the Body. Get better soon

  • cheryl96314
    cheryl96314 valerie65786

    Posted

    Yep its the nerve pain, and it will take sometime to heal, I am post op 18 wks and still have ocassional twings. I took tylenol pm at night, did not keep it from coming back but did help some. Slept in recliner alot so foot was up and ice behind  the knee, Hang in there it will get better each week.
    • valerie65786
      valerie65786 cheryl96314

      Posted

      thanks for the encouraging words. So are you walking normal at post op 18 weeks? And was it painfull when you 1st started walking in the boot? I still have over 2 weeks in the cast with no weight at all on it. Very tough for someone who is use to being on the go all the time
    • cheryl96314
      cheryl96314 valerie65786

      Posted

      I never did have what you would call pain after the surgery just the terrible nerve pain. I still have a slight limp, and I am 70 yrs old so it all took a toll on my knee and hip of that side. You lose so much strength and at my age you need to keep things moving, so hopefully when I see Dr in march it will be better. But I have been told it can take up to a year to get full mobility.So dont get discouraged we are here to listen and help as much as we can

      ​s

  • gillian36729
    gillian36729 valerie65786

    Posted

    I'm sorry you're in so much pain sad I remember that. When I initially broke my ankle I went through two reconstructive surgeries in quick succession. As I recovered I had those horribe spasms of nerve pain -- I remember not knowing how to describe it to anyone and using the word "electric". It was a pain that I hadn't felt before, but it has long since gone away. I would say in the month immediately after surgery the nerve pain was at its worst and somethign I could expect every day, but slowly it became less frequent. It was still quite painful into the next month, but I would only have random spasms every couple of days. I took Neurontin and it helped a bit, but I just sort of had to bear it. It probably went away completely within two months. After that I had residual nerve pain, but on a much more normal and manageable level. I would feel an uncomfortable tingliness when people touched my foot in certain spots. This took more like 5-6 months to completely go away. I haven't experienced any real nerve pain since (unfortunately I may again as I'll be getting either a total ankle replacement or fusion this year sadly). I hope this helps. Unfortunately I think the nerve pain is just a reality after certain surgeries -- not indicative of something having gone wrong or anything. And it will go away, probably very soon. 

  • debi37231
    debi37231 valerie65786

    Posted

    Hi I am almost 7 weeks post op from my total ankle replacement  I know the burning pain you speak of I have it now and 6 years ago after my car accident.  It is very painful and yes I wake up from it.  It sometimes makes me cry  it is normal its the nerves trying to repair itself.  It does go away but it can take weeks Ask your doctor what you can take to help with the nerve pain   Not all my nerves came back  parts of my foot are numb but not painful anymore beleve me its better than it was.  I can wiggle my toes but my big toe is completely numb I'm ok with that because over all I'm feeling good  Just know its normal although extremley painful it does go away.  Debi

    • valerie65786
      valerie65786 debi37231

      Posted

      Thank you so much. It helps so much to know that this is part of the healing as my dr did not warn me of this happening so when the excruciating pain came from out of no where I was FREAKING out. I have had 3 days of no burning so I hope that I never have to deal with that much pain again.
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