The foot saga continues

There are some species in the world, like starfish, that have the ability to regrow a limb if it is cut off or damaged in an accident. I'm really wishing that humans had that ability!

I know most of you have been keeping up on the foot saga, but if not, here's the recap: in August my foot started hurting, a lot, in the ball of the foot. Three different boots, one failed cortisone shot, an allergic reaction, a nuclear bone scan, and an and two doctors later, it still hurts.

So, my foot doc in Lawrence referred me to a doctor in KC for a second opinion. Dr. Laha (pronounced Lay-hay) was super duper nice and seemed really knowledgeable. You can see his website at http://www.kcfoot.com/. I went over there this morning for my first appointment. He noticed right away that my second metatarsal is shorter before even looking at the x-rays (I would call that "wicked smart" wouldn't you?). He poked and prodded and it was fun for all, especially the shooting pain that results when someone touches the part of my foot that hurts. He thinks that overall I never had a stress fracture, and it's been a neuroma this whole time.

I left the office back in my moon boot - I know, you guys think I'm just trying to copy Bella from Twilight, but it really helps. I also got a prescription for an anti-inflammatory and orders not to do much with my foot for the next couple of weeks. In the meantime, I have an appointment with the allergist to rule out whether I was actually allergic to cortisone or if it was a preservative or something used in the particular brand. Since I'm allergic to Opti-Free contact solution but not Renu, the preservative could very well be the culprit. Hopefully, they will find that I'm not actually allergic to the cortisone and they can try a different brand.

If the cortisone shots don't work, or, if I actually am allergic to them and can't have them, the next step is surgical removal of the nerve. Fun times! He said I did have a couple of other options - one is an experimental treatment that sounded cool until he told me it was over $1000 and insurance doesn't cover it, and it doesn't always work, and the second is to learn to live with it. Um, not liking option two so much either - if you've seen me walk you understand why!

I really do appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers. This has been a frustrating process for sure, but hopefully we are finally getting somewhere!