I never realized how much I look after my feet. It was pointed out to me how I spend almost a half hour a day after work inspecting my feet. And I really do. It isn’t so much a habit I adopted from being diabetic though. I’m not sure how or when it formed. I’ve always had troublesome feet. I have had this persistent topical rrsh that likes to randomly move around my feet, and I’ve probably had it for about 6 or 7 years. It is the worst at the end of my day, when my feet are sweaty and my socks are really good and lived in. I have seen a doctor about it. At the time, I was given a lotriderm/fucidin mix cream, that did seem to help. The itchiness was greatly alleviated and the rash seemed to disappear. But then it came back the minute the cream was over.
Only this week, having suffered uncontrollably itchy rashes on my feet (ones that despite all my efforts were scratched every which way possible pretty much all the time). I finally discovered what the hell this rash is. The doc I saw said it was just a generic rash and it would go away. I have discoid exzema on my feet. Thank God I know, because apparently discoid exzema isn’t contagious, just highly susceptible to infection.
Curious what other people’s foot regimens are. I usually wash my feet, dry them well with a towel, slough off dead skin/callouses with a ped egg, trim and file my toenails, moisturize and then apply tinactin between my toes. (Tinactin is an antifungal cream for the feet). I use something called “T for Toes” from LUSH. It is a powder for feet that has antifungals, tea tree oil and peppermint with a hint of lemon. It’s essentially like Gold Bond. I also sleep with my feet elevated MOST of the time. For dry skin, I use Zim’s cracked heel cream and a peppermint foot cream from LUSH.
Was the doc a podiatrist? A podiatrist should oughta have known!
I’m lucky enough to have really good feet – I have never worn high heels in my whole life because I could never balance in them! So my feet have developed in the way they should. I make sure I wear socks every day, and I look at my feet every night. I’m physically very flexible, so I can see the bottoms, and under the toes, and of course, the tops and heels. I also feel for rough spots and warm spots. My skin is only mildly dry – and calluses are very thin – no problem with cracking or anything, but I do make sure I look for any indication that anything is different from usual. I just developed a telangiectasia, which is a red tangle of capillaries right under the skin, and showed it to my APN, who said it was just one of the things that happen when you get older, but I already knew that because I had googled it.
So I think the most important thing is to look for changes in your feet – and when in doubt show it to the doc. Most foot problems can be solved if you attend to them early. And now that you know that you have discoid eczema, you can keep it under control with meds and regular doc appts.
I have had contact dermatitis for about 40 years now. Your foot care is very good, but you may need to take a step or two further. Never use soap on your feet or any type of detergent (shower gels, etc.). I use a cream wash made especially for people with ezcema. Don’t subject your feet to hot water, cool is better, hot water dries the skin out and causes more itching. The other thing is to eliminate man made fibres from contact with your feet, try to find pure cotton socks, wool can be itchy so cotton is best. It is very hard to find pure cotton socks these days, but those with the least amount of lycra and other man made fibres are a good choice. Any eczema site on the net will explain these things to you. It is also a question of finding a wash substance that does not irritate YOUR feet, eczema is as individual as diabetes.
Phew! Your care is better than mine! I too have rashes, and itching and numbness and pain, and my first priority when I get in from doing anything is to get my shoes and socks off! Wash and dry them - I even carry a foot spray from the Body shop and spare socks during the day so that if they get unbearable I can change them.
I think my feeling of urgency stems from the many years I spent in Wellington Boots, or Riding Boots when I was working with horses! I do not ride any more, but I hate shoes with a passion, though I am always careful to wear them, and clean socks as I have already mentioned, and there is no feeling like clean socks and underwear to make me feel better.
Some people groan when they are given socks for Christmas or Birthdays - I say bring em on - the more the merrier! However, I do have a washing machine that seems to have a sock fettish and regularly eats the flipping things! My friend has suggested a sock fest at church where all odd socks are brought to church and see if they can be matched up? Alternatively we could keep all the odd socks, the brighter and more colourful the better and festoon them on some sad and lonely looking tree - preferably outside the kitchen window, to cheer it up a bit. Yep, my friend and I are completely zany! Perhaps it might become a trend!
Has Medicare stopped paying podiatrists from trimming toe nails and eliminating callouses? My podiatrist just told me he isn't going to do this anymore and I needed to get another podiatrist. I'm wondering if it has something to do with a change in Medicare.
Hi everyone! Thanks for all the awesome suggestions. It turns out that I have terrible eczema on my feet- that I've been battling for several years. I have just never managed to be rid of outbreaks of it. I work in a service end job, on my feet for forty hours a week, so they get pretty gross in 8 hours. I was never referred to a podiatrist by my medical team, so I have never seen one for general foot care. All of my foot care coaching was given by the diabetes clinic at the local hospital, which I attend every week. I use a heavily medicated cream for my feet now, but it doesn't seem to help very long because I am regularly returning to the conditions that caused the problem to begin with. I've never asked if a podiatrist would offer that service. Chances are, I doubt it. They have expected me to do everything myself, unless I can prove myself to be incompetent.
