Oh no....bunions!!! (pain, surgery, recovery, therapy)

[greatblueheron]

Woe is me.... I am becoming my grandmother after all.

Anyone have good tips for easing bunion pain?? (no surgery). I have the gel inserts you put between the great toe and #2 toe...but hoping someone has had luck with a night-time brace for a bit of corrective action on the great toe or any other suggestions. I have moved on to shoes with more roomy toe boxes...but still I have pain at night.

How do you deal with this annoying and painful problem???
Thanks for any tips~

gbh

[AnonChick]

Spacers between big and 2nd toe are the usual solution for night-time pain, also if you wear slippers around the house, get a pair that you can cut a hole in the tops so your toes are exposed, or get sandal-slippers (NOT flipflops!) like low-heeled mules.

There are lots of surgical options these days, depending on how bad the bunion is. Some of them don't even require general anasthesia and can be done as a one-hour out-patient procedure with local while you're awake. Some allow for a mild twilight that you -can- stay awake for, but usually drift off to sleep around 10 minutes into the procedure and wake up groggy, but able to move around.

Full recovery from surgery takes awhile, between six weeks and as long as six months. But there are rarely complications from the surgery, and if you follow the advice given, take the absolute minimum pain meds possible, do any physical therapy required as often as required, and wear whatever protective devices they tell you to wear, you could be up and about in short order.

So you'd be able to move around, but you'd have to be careful and it'll hurt. No marathons til you're completely recovered, but a trip to the supermarket within a few weeks without having to use a store's scooter is possible, in other words.