What Is it?
Ouch! A shooting pain in my heel. It isn't constant, but it is certainly there. The more active I am, the worse it is going to be later on. That's the funny thing: it doesn't always hurt right away, but eventually you will know something is wrong.
That's my nemesis. That's my Achilles' heel.
I'm definitely not Achilles. He had only one physical weakness, and I have quite a few! But we do share a problem in that area of the body.
I have a bone spur that digs into the insertional point of my Achilles tendon. The part where it fans out across the heel bone and attaches near the bottom. The spur is along the curve. It isn't in a good place. It nags at my tendon when I move, particularly when I flex my foot up or down.
I've found a lot of information about the condition online. I've also found a lot of similar issues in that area that are treated in much the same way. I've read blogs about treatment and post-surgery ordeals and recovery. I didn't find much about how it all started; particularly for those with a bone spur.
First, let me point out that I am not a doctor. I'm just sharing my experience in simplified terms. If you have a heel problem, or an Achilles problem, the best thing to do is to go to a doctor. Most likely it won't fix itself anyway, so you'll need their guidance and intervention, along with their diagnosis. I'm as guilty as anyone as looking for advice from Dr. Google, though, so I understand the curiosity.
Referring back to some ankle/foot/heel issues that are related, I've found that when you search for this condition you get some cross referencing results. "Heel bone spur" will often reveal a cousin of the backward-facing spur, which is a frontward facing spur. This tends to impact your plantar fascia. I don't have this, but I've had plantar fasciitis, so I would assume it would feel similar (but much longer-lasting). This is a pain on the front of the heel, or actually under your foot. This is a different tendon than the Achilles.
Source: (http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/heel-spurs-pain-causes-symptoms-treatments)
The other condition you run into is called "Haglund's deformity." It actually results in similar pain, from what I've gathered. Haglund's is sort of outcropping on the top of your heel bone (aka the calcaneus). It still pokes into the Achilles, though. A bone spur is an outcropping more toward the bottom of the heel. Both are resolved surgically in a similar fashion, which includes getting around the Achilles (removal or incision) to remove the guilty bone. This is not a fun process for the patient, from what I've gathered. Note that sometimes conservative treatments (and not surgery) will help lessen the associated pain.
Source: (Pinterest)
Source: (https://www.halluxvalgus.at/en/surgery/hindfoot/upper-heel-spur/)
The Achilles runs right up behind/around this rear facing spur. I get the impression that the front facing spur is more common, as you tend to find a lot more hits when you search for "heel bone spur" for that one than for the rear facing Achilles spur.
It is safe to say that all three of these suck. But I've become more familiar with the Achilles facing spur, which I'll talk about here. I'll next talk about how mine came to be, or how I noticed a problem. I'm starting here; the day before my surgery to have this removed.
That's my nemesis. That's my Achilles' heel.
I'm definitely not Achilles. He had only one physical weakness, and I have quite a few! But we do share a problem in that area of the body.
I have a bone spur that digs into the insertional point of my Achilles tendon. The part where it fans out across the heel bone and attaches near the bottom. The spur is along the curve. It isn't in a good place. It nags at my tendon when I move, particularly when I flex my foot up or down.
I've found a lot of information about the condition online. I've also found a lot of similar issues in that area that are treated in much the same way. I've read blogs about treatment and post-surgery ordeals and recovery. I didn't find much about how it all started; particularly for those with a bone spur.
First, let me point out that I am not a doctor. I'm just sharing my experience in simplified terms. If you have a heel problem, or an Achilles problem, the best thing to do is to go to a doctor. Most likely it won't fix itself anyway, so you'll need their guidance and intervention, along with their diagnosis. I'm as guilty as anyone as looking for advice from Dr. Google, though, so I understand the curiosity.
Referring back to some ankle/foot/heel issues that are related, I've found that when you search for this condition you get some cross referencing results. "Heel bone spur" will often reveal a cousin of the backward-facing spur, which is a frontward facing spur. This tends to impact your plantar fascia. I don't have this, but I've had plantar fasciitis, so I would assume it would feel similar (but much longer-lasting). This is a pain on the front of the heel, or actually under your foot. This is a different tendon than the Achilles.
Source: (http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/heel-spurs-pain-causes-symptoms-treatments)
The other condition you run into is called "Haglund's deformity." It actually results in similar pain, from what I've gathered. Haglund's is sort of outcropping on the top of your heel bone (aka the calcaneus). It still pokes into the Achilles, though. A bone spur is an outcropping more toward the bottom of the heel. Both are resolved surgically in a similar fashion, which includes getting around the Achilles (removal or incision) to remove the guilty bone. This is not a fun process for the patient, from what I've gathered. Note that sometimes conservative treatments (and not surgery) will help lessen the associated pain.
The Achilles runs right up behind/around this rear facing spur. I get the impression that the front facing spur is more common, as you tend to find a lot more hits when you search for "heel bone spur" for that one than for the rear facing Achilles spur.
It is safe to say that all three of these suck. But I've become more familiar with the Achilles facing spur, which I'll talk about here. I'll next talk about how mine came to be, or how I noticed a problem. I'm starting here; the day before my surgery to have this removed.
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