Heel Pain

Heel Pain: Causes, Treatment, and Prevention

Heel pain is quite a prevalent foot issue. It usually affects the bottom of the heel or behind it where the heel bone and the achilles tendon connect. In some cases, it can affect the side of a person’s heel. The foot is an integral part of the body. It supports the entire weight of the body when a person is standing, walking, or jumping. Therefore, significant heel pain can be quite devitalizing. Consequently, it is imperative for you to learn how you can protect yourself from heel pain and visit a dependable New York podiatrist for treatment if you are suffering from heel pain.

Causes of Heel Pain

In most cases, heel pain is not brought on by a single physical injury, such as a fall or a twist. It usually results from recurrent stress or pounding of the heels. One of the most common causes include Plantar Fasciitis. This has to do with the inflammation of the plantar fascia. It happens due to the way the foot is made, especially when the arches are too low or too high. Heel Bursitis is also a common trigger of heel pain. It can occur when a person lands awkwardly or wears improper footwear. Heel pain can also result from tarsal tunnel syndrome, which occurs when the nerve found at the back of the foot is trapped or pinched. Other causes of heel pain include severs disease, Achilles tendinitis, bone tumor, heel spur, stress fractures, reactive arthritis, and heel bumps, among others.

Heel Pain Treatments

There are several treatments that can be relied on to treat heel pain. Some conservative treatments include corticosteroid injections, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, athletic tapings, orthotics, and physical therapy to teach patients about the exercises that can strengthen the lower leg muscles. Other methods that can be used to treat heel pain include surgery, rest, ice, better footwear, and foot supports.

Heel Pain Treatments

Heel Pain Prevention

The best way to deal with heel pain problems is preventing it from occurring. Some of the ways that you can count on to prevent heel pain include:

  • Avoiding walking barefoot
  • Keeping your weight within healthy levels to minimize stress on the heels
  • Wearing shoes with heels that can absorb stress
  • Avoiding shoes that tend to trigger pain
  • If you are susceptible to heel pain, rest your feet when you can and only stand when you must.
  • Wear proper sports footwear for each task
  • If you have to engage in a sporting activity, it is important to warm up properly before doing so.

The Takeaway

Overall, it is apparent that since the foot is a critical part of the body, heel pain can significantly affect a person’s mobility and the ability to carry out some basic tasks. However, there are several ways in which it can be prevented and even treated. If you are looking for a reliable podiatrist to help you with heel pain, City Podiatry is the best health facility to visit. Feel free to contact them today.

Untitled Pregnancy

Untitled Pregnancy after Birth Control document

Birth Control Effects

Many women find themselves in this scenario: they have been using birth control for some time and they’ve finally decided that it’s the right time to have a baby. However, they are not sure how the long-term use of birth control might have affected their ability to conceive. Generally, there are no negative effects on your fertility after using birth control for a while. In some cases, where you’ve been using a method that has the hormones progestin and estrogen, it might take you a bit longer to conceive. However, you can still get pregnant after you’ve stopped using any Arlington contraception methods.

Stopping Birth Control

Until you’re ready to get pregnant, don’t stop using birth control methods. The body doesn’t need time to get back to its original patterns, and it’s very possible to conceive a month after stopping birth control. If you are not ready to get pregnant and you still want to stop using hormonal birth control, replace it with another method such as condoms.

Barrier methods like condoms or diaphragms are useful but as soon as you have sex without them, it’s possible to get pregnant. However, your health, especially your genes and lifestyle habits play a huge role in how long you’ll wait before getting pregnant. Additionally, some birth control methods have more impact than others do.

Stopping Birth Control

Birth Control Types

You are still able to get pregnant within one to three months after stopping hormonal birth control pills. A majority of women can get pregnant within a year. If you’ve been using a minipill, chances of getting pregnant a few days or weeks after stopping usage are high. The minipill doesn’t stop conception by stopping ovulation but by thinning out the uterine wall. As soon as you stop taking the minipill, the uterine wall thickens again, making pregnancy a possibility.

If you’ve been using an intrauterine device (IUD), and the doctor removes it, it’s possible to get pregnant right away. Although pregnancy happens within 6 months to a year after removal, women usually begin ovulating one month after removal. The same applies to an implant. Most women begin ovulating within the first month after the doctor removes an implant. If you’re using a birth control patch or vaginal ring, you’re likely to ovulate within one to three months after removal.

It may be harder to get pregnant after stopping injectable birth control. It usually takes more than ten months before you can start ovulating. Thus, if you want to use birth control but still have hopes of having children in the future, don’t consider this method.

Ovulating Again

If you’ve been using hormonal birth control methods, it might be a few months before you start ovulating, because this method affects your hormonal balance. It will take your body some time before it can adjust to its pre-birth control state. However, you can still get pregnant before having your periods. In fact, if you have sex immediately after you’ve stopped birth control, and it so happened that you were ovulating, you may get pregnant. If you recently stopped using birth control, had unprotected sex and you still haven’t seen your periods, get a pregnancy test. Getting a period is far less important than ovulating. You can only get pregnant when one of your ovaries releases an egg, and that’s all that matters.