Having pain anywhere isn’t very fun, but when you have bottom of foot pain, then it can actually be crippling, because you rely on your feet to move around. If the problem is severe enough, it could prevent you from walking at all, and then you couldn’t move around anymore. That’s why it’s important to know the causes of such pain, the various symptoms, and how you can heal these symptoms. If you ever feel numbness, swelling, or other types of pain on the bottom of your foot, this may help you identify the culprit and what you can do about it.
There’s a lot of different causes for bottom of foot pain. Bursitis is a common problem that can affect your foot. Everyone has small sacs below their feet, and these are used to provide a better connection with the ground. The bursal sac can be found under your foot, near the back, and can be the cause of pain if it becomes inflamed. This can cause swelling and pain, because your inflamed sac will constantly come into contact with the ground as you walk. This kind of pain usually goes away after some time, and the best thing you can do is stop walking until it passes. Capsulitis is a problem with the ligaments just behind your toes. When these ligaments become inflamed, then pain occurs whenever you move your feet. Because ligaments are located near bones and muscles, and are used to move those bones around, the pain will happen when you move your feet or toes. Again, this type of pain goes away after a while, and staying still can help reduce the pain. If it doesn’t heal up by itself, cortisone injections can be done to repair the damage.
Heel pain, also called plantar fasciitis, is when your whole bottom of foot pain occurs. This is when the very large ligament that runs the length of your feet has an inflammation. This can lead to pain both on the bottom of the foot and the heel itself, often over a large surface. The causes for this can be varied, such as the way you walk, being overweight, or doing sports. Again, resting your foot is the best way to reduce pain. Finally, foot neuroma is when one of the nerves in your foot gets pinched and becomes painful. This can happen because of stress or by adopting strange postures for long periods of time. Typically, this is very sharp pain located at the bottom of your toes. You can also feel numbness or burning sensations. In this case, rubbing your foot for a few minutes can help reduce this type of pain.
Overall, there’s a lot of different causes for bottom of foot pain, and most of them are fairly benign, caused by how you walk or what activities you’ve done. Most will go away after a while, or by doing a few exercises. However, for any pain that doesn’t seem to go away, going to see a doctor is always the prudent course of action.