If you are like me, you may avoid going to the doctor sometimes. I don’t know, I think I like to believe that if I just give it a few days that everything will be okay. I have heard that perhaps this view is incorrect (constantly, I have heard it constantly…)
The truth is that sometimes you can wait and sometimes you shouldn’t. For example, last week we talked about shin splints. When you first feel the pain of shin splints, you can rest, ice your shin, take some ibuprofen and see if it feels better in a couple of days. If not, then you need to go to the doctor.
There are times that you should not wait. For example, let’s say you have a sore on your foot. You then notice that the sore is looking pretty red. Maybe it is warm to the touch. Or maybe you start running a fever. Or you hit the jackpot and you see a line running up your foot from the sore. Those things, individually or together are signs that you need to get to the doctor fast. Okay, if you see a line moving up your leg from a sore, you need to go to the emergency room NOW. This not a wait and see moment.
Or let’s say that you develop a rash on your foot, especially between your toes. Think about how you could have gotten this rash. Have you been walking around the gym locker room or pool without flip flops? If so, then you could have athletes foot. You might want to start by using one of the over the counter medicines from the drug store. If that doesn’t work then you can go to the doctor.
Then one morning, you notice that one of your toe nails is looking a little funky. Perhaps it is turning a little yellow or just not looking like it should. Should you wait or should you go to your friendly local podiatrist? I bet you are thinking that you should wait. No, that is not the correct answer. You need to get to your podiatrist soon. You see, the faster you go and start a course of treatment, the better it will be for you. As the fungus takes root under the nail, it is harder to kill it and give you back the beautiful nail that you should have on your toe. If you wait too long, the solution might be that the nail will need to be removed. That does not sound like fun. So, if you see that your nail is not looking right, get to your friendly local podiatrist sooner rather than later.
Also, in case you have missed my rants about foot melanoma, I will give you a quick rant on the subject. Foot melanoma is deadly because people do not realize that they have it. You can get melanoma under your toe nail. If you see a spot on your toe nail and you notice that it does not grow out with the nail, that is a sign to get to the doctor quickly. Please remember to use sunscreen on your feet. I need to keep you reading these posts!
Your Pal,
The Foot Blogger Chick
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