Daughters Foot Pain

This may sound odd, but I'm wondering if she has a food allergy. The foot pain sounds neurological to me, and often children with neurological problems often have food sensitivities that manifest themselves in neurological symptoms. If she is having something at daycare she doesn't normally get at home, that would explain why she wouldn't have foot pain on the weekends!

If her diet is normal at home (such as wheat consumption) then you might look at additives (MSG is in cheese nips which are a daycare favorite) artificial sweetener, artificial colors especially red... they should have the weekly meal/snack list available to you and you can also speak to her teacher to make sure there isn't anything beyond that list that she gets.

There's a company my MIL used to determine food sensitivities and eliminating them has helped her a lot- it changed her life. http://www.foodallergy.com/

Wishing you the best and most healthy lives,
S. Trost

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I'm interested in how she would describe the "pain". What type of physical activity is she involved in during the week? Are her shoes appropriate for her activities? Are they the right fit? (This could affect how her weight is distributed in her feet.) What primary position is she sleeping in? What type of floor(s) do you have in your home, and how much time does she spend standing (walking, running) at home. (I'm asking questions that I have to consider when my feet hurt.)

It could be as simple as growing pains, but you've got to follow your gut until you feel comfortable with the answers.

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I wouldn't ignore the pain - there may be something going on, but it is telling that she is experiencing this primarily on weekdays.

When she mentions it, I would ask her about her upcoming day - what is she looking forward to at school (and maybe what she isn't looking forward to). Get her to tell you about her school day and see if something comes up that might be bothering her.

You mentioned that she puts her feet on you at night, so I am assuming she sleeps with you regularly. Is it just the two of you in bed or are there other adults/children? Are there sleep issues going on? Does she have her own bed and her own room so she can sleep on her own if she wants to? Just keep an open mind and consider all possibilities that could be affecting her.

It sort of sounds like plantar fascitis. The plantar fascia is the big tendon on the bottom of your foot that makes the arch - when it gets inflamed, it hurts. I've been there. This is shy she complains about the flip flops, because she needs better arch support. Also why it's worse in the mornings - the tendon has tightened overnight, and needs a while to stretch out, thus the feeling better after about 45 minutes. Make sure she wears supportive shoes, and have her stretch her feet out a bit, I'll bet she feels better. But I'd still see a podiatrist to confirm.

Because it seems to have been going on for so long, I would take her to a Podiatrist. It might be that the pain is so slight that when she is distracted, it doesn't bother her. Good luck.

It sounds like something that she is doing at school, or something during the week is bothering her feet. She possibly could have some plantarfascitis and it is getting aggravated with her activities during the week. I would try doing some massage and stretching every night to her feet and see if that makes a difference.

My 5 year old son had the same problem. We talked to our doctor and even had his foot x-rayed. The conclusion, he needed more iron, so we are taking Flinstones Complete Multivitamin daily. It seems to be getting better.

Take her to the dr and have them check for heal spurs. I have been having the same pains for a couple of years, and the dr. never checked for that. I just spend an entire day in the ER to find out I have heal spurs and have stressed me ankle so bad that I have to stay completely off of it. If I walk on it, I could cause it to break.

It hurts worse during the week because she is on her feet more at day care and whatever else she has going on. Mine are the same way. I wake up some mornings and can't put my feet on the floor. I have to lay in bed and hope it will stop hurting.

I can not express to you how bad this really hurts. When I was in the ER getting x-rays, I was in tears when they touched my ankle. Mind you, I have a very high tolerance for pain. Right now I'm on T3 for pain. Yes, it hurts that bad.

Please make her an appt and get it checked.

why would it only hurt on weekdays?, do you go to work, and her go to school/daycare? could it be that she wants attention in the week, and on the weekends when she has you she does not think about it so much?

if it was a circulatory issue, you would certainly notice other symtoms, such as chilling, discoloration etc - and it would not get better on the weekend!

the only problems in a child of that age i can think of would be plantar fasciitis, which is worse in the mornings, but rarely affects children unless they are rather overweight, and something called severs disease.

podiatrist for 15 years

Honestly I have no idea what is going on...but feet are a very important part of your body and if not treated correctly (shoes that fit properly and placed on the right feet, kept clean and free of infections, etc) they can cause big problems for you in the future.

I highly suggest asking your pediatrician for a referral to a podiatrist for a second opinion.

Good Luck... ;-)

Hi T B,
I had a similar issue for years. The soles of my feet burned, tingled. No stabbing pain, not isolated to one area but rather the whole sole. I thought it was my shoes. I could not go barefoot on hard surfaces, only carpet but my feet still hurt. On the advise of a homeopath, I began taking pantothenic acid capsules daily. The pain was gone in about a week. When I ran out, I wondered if the problem was solved and didn't buy more. The pain immediately returned. Since resuming the dose, I can go barefoot on any floor surface and outside without any foot pain. HTH
ps. I am not diabetic nor have any other health issues.

A lot of what you explain sounds like it could be a heel spur, which she is really too young to have just yet, but you never know. A heel spur is a calcium build up in at the heel where it connects to the tendon that runs to the front of your foot (think of the arch). The calcium build up can poke at the tendon and cause it to hurt tremendously. I got them in both of my heels after I started doing step aerobics, new physical activity. One heel was much worse than the other. Surgery can be performed in extreme cases, but the best remedy is time. It takes about a year for one to heal, and during this time good supportive shoes should be worn.

They always hurt the worst in the morning when you first get out of bed. Stepping down that first time would be excruciating for me. I would limp my way to the bathroom. During this time I was doing my student teaching so I was on my feet all day. I had to get special shoes with good arch supports and then I added shoe inserts to help more. If I did not wear these shoes everyday, my feet would be almost unbearable by the end of the day. Forget flip flops or sandals without support or cushion. I also got some Nike Shocks (the expensive ones with springs in the heels). I wanted some Z-Coils, but couldn't afford them. The Nikes helped a lot too.

Another good practice that helped was this. When I woke up in the morning (or even before getting up after sitting for a while), I flex my foot, bending my toes as far back toward my knee as possible. This helps stretch that tendon that runs the arch of your foot.

If this is her problem, don't be little it. It's not an ailment other people can see, but it hurts so bad. Mine did finally heal itself after about a year. But, I still have to watch what type of shoes I wear when I know I am going to be standing a lot.

The first thing that came to mind is planters worts. They feel like you have a small piece of glass or splinter in the bottom of your foot. The do look like a wart but grow in instead of out. you will be able to feel them they are ruff to the touch and may have a slight difference of color in the skin around them. Been there.