FAVORITE FOOT CARE/REPAIR REMEDIES

[garyc254]

Word of mouth seems to be the best way to learn about remedies for blisters, bruises, bunions, cuts, hot spots, etc.

What are your favorite products or home remedies?

Besides my beloved Bunga sleeves, when I start getting a hot spot on my foot I use Spenco's Adhesive Knit. www.spenco.com

I can't use it on open blisters, but once they've healed I've found nothing better to protect the tender flesh. The Adhesive Knit is much better than their 2nd Skin.

It's a little expensive (but better than pain). I cut the pads into thirds, put one section on, and it lasts for at least a week even through showers, baths, and skating.

I had to ask my local druggist to order them for me and now buy 6 boxes at a time.

[quarkiki2]

When I was doing ballet en pointe (blister shoes from hades, btw), I lived with a box of cornstarch next to my bed to dry out weeping blisters. I used to leave little (I was only 14 at the time) white footprints on the carpet, tee hee!

I was a masichist back then. I didn't like the way lambswool or foam pads felt in my shoes so I didn't use any padding in them. I had blisters upon blisters, but I guess I preferred that to feeling like I couldn't feel the floor. Heck, for a while I even used footless tights! 8O

[Elsy2]

Back when my daughter had skates that didn't fit her heels tight enough, we had to treat constant blisters. I used the spenco 2nd skin overnight, then would use Band Aid blister block pads during skating, putting a tiny piece of gauze over the blister and the blister blocks on top of that.

I've heard that if you use a strip of 3M micro tape over places that tend to blister, you can eliminate the friction and avoid future blisters. Worth a try if you are getting them in the same place over and over.

Now that she wears customs, we don't have any blister problems...never! And the bumps she used to have on her heels have regressed to normal too.
My skates fit very well too, and I never have them either. But I can't go without my Bunga ankle sleeves.....

[flippet]

I second the Band-Aid blister blocks....hubby skated without socks once, and got blisters on his heel that were more like craters. 8O We put that on them, and they healed better, faster, and were WELL protected...they provided great padding while skating. They're quite waterproof too, and stayed on without slipping until we took them off.

[Mrs Redboots]

For blisters, the colloid gel plasters you can buy are the best thing since sliced bread - Scholl make them in two sizes. And here in the UK Boots do their own brand, which are cheaper than Scholl's.....

[TashaKat]

[quote:7685ff8e1b="quarkiki2"]When I was doing ballet en pointe (blister shoes from hades, btw), I lived with a box of cornstarch next to my bed to dry out weeping blisters. I used to leave little (I was only 14 at the time) white footprints on the carpet, tee hee!

I was a masichist back then. I didn't like the way lambswool or foam pads felt in my shoes so I didn't use any padding in them. I had blisters upon blisters, but I guess I preferred that to feeling like I couldn't feel the floor. Heck, for a while I even used footless tights! 8O[/quote:7685ff8e1b]

Cornstarch? I never heard of that one! When I did pointe work we weren't ALLOWED animal wool :( Now there are those gel caps which look like heaven ;) We had to dance until our toes bled and THEN put surgical spirit on them ...... to harden the skin! It hardened the skin alright, you looked a right sight in sandals AND it didn't make pointe work any the less painful :( BTW I'm NOT advocating putting surgical spirit on!

Re blisters ITA with Annabel the colloid gel plasters are fabulous. For the 'top of the boot' abrasions I use 'mepore' surgical dressings, they're soft and stay on well AND not only stop the boot from rubbing but also stop the welts from hurting when you skate again ...... they're a pig to pull off, though, so I would advise shaving the area first if you try these! Oh, and apart from that BUNGA PADS, BUNGA PADS and BUNGA PADS ..... or, my particular favourite ..... custom boots :)

L x

[backspin]

To help w/ the callouses & skin peeling off your heels & big toes (I seem to "molt" a couple of times a year like a snake!), Mary Kay's "Satin Hands" system works great. The thick balm is wonderful to put on at night to let your skin heal when it starts to crack & bleed--ouch!

[db]

[quote:dc03d9a6f8="backspin"]To help w/ the callouses & skin peeling off your heels & big toes (I seem to "molt" a couple of times a year like a snake!), Mary Kay's "Satin Hands" system works great. The thick balm is wonderful to put on at night to let your skin heal when it starts to crack & bleed--ouch![/quote:dc03d9a6f8]

I can't use any sort of moisturizer on my feet due to chronic athlete's foot, so I use a pumice stone at the end of every shower and it works very well to get rid of the dead skin before problems set in.

[backspin]

**backspin scurries to write [i:b75e9d401a]pumice stone[/i:b75e9d401a] on her shopping list for the next time she's out.** Great idea, thanks!! :D

[jasmine]

db, I can help with athlete's foot because I picked it up AT THE ICE RINK not so long ago, and it has taken months to get rid of it. I think the wretched little fungus likes to live in the damp rubber matting, so don't let socks or bare feet touch the matting.

My pharmacist recommended to use Daktarin Gold cream on the feet, and to use Daktarin Spray to spray inside shoes and skating boots (because the fungus likes to live there too). Also to change to clean socks/tights regularly, and wash the feet at least once a day.

I also occasionally soak my feet in water with a few drops of Tea Tree oil. I didn't use pumice on the Athlete's Foot area for fear of spreading it, because I believe that when it forms a hard skin there are fungus spores preserved in the skin. If you have hard skin around the little toe area and soles of feet in this area, use the cream on that too, and on your toe nails (the fungus can turn the nail a yellow colour),

Anyway, touch wood, it is pretty well beaten now. Wish you success with your own battle!

[db]

[b:7d3a098a52]jasmine[/b:7d3a098a52]
Thank you for trying to help, alas, I have had this thing for about sixteen years. I have a badly infected big toe nail which, I believe, keeps seeding the big toe. The means required to rid myself of the toenail problem are so extreme that it is easier to just live with it. I've been treating the skin infection with a prescription since its inception.

It was misdiagnosed initially, and by the time I saw another doctor, the entire ball of my foot was blistered and bleeding. My new doctor told me that the spores are everywhere and one is either susceptible or not.[/i:7d3a098a52] No one else in my home got it from me, including my husband and (then) small daughter, so I do believe this. It took six months for my foot to return to normal. I've worn white cotton socks ever since, don't use the pumice on affected area, am scrupulous about washing and drying my feet, and use the medication as needed to keep it in check. Maybe someday I will be willing to take the drastic measures necessary to fix the toenail, meanwhile, I have a really good pair of nail clippers and don't let my girls wear my shoes.

[jasmine]

db,
You have all my sympathy, it sounds horrible.
But it did take me quite a while to find the Daktarin Gold, which is a new formulation. I was using Scholl and Mycil and found that the Athletes Foot would appear to go, but then came back. The latest pharmacist told me that I was reinfecting myself through my shoes, which is why I now spray them every time I put them on. The cream and spray together have apparently worked the trick for me (fingers crossed). (I had no previous history of fungal infections)
good luck!
J

[blue111moon]

Better than a pumice stone, I've found are the rectangular foam blocks used to sand fingernails. They're sold in the nail file section of Walmart and CVS. I think the finer grit is gentler on my poor abused feet than a pumice stone and they can be used on wet or dry skin.

If you have a farm supply store anywhere around you, look for "Udder Balm." It's a lanolin-based jelly-like substance designed to treat the cracking and chapping of milk-cows' udders during harsh weather and works both to soothe the skin and prevent infection from any splits or cracks in the skin. It works great on sore, dry feet as well. Be sure to put on cotton socks over it, though, as it is very greasy and can stain carpets and bedding. But it works wonders.

I keep a box of bandaids and a pack of the BLister Block pads in my skate bag for emergencies.