Drop Foot

[AJC]

This past Saturday, I was putting down new flooring in one of our spare rooms, which required a lot of kneeling throughout the day. When I got out of bed the next morning, something didn't seem quite right - nearly fell down the stairs after a misstep with my right foot. A little more testing with my right foot and I had a sudden epiphany -- I've got drop foot. Sure enough, a trip to the doctor's confirmed my suspicion -- classic symptoms, I can't put weight on my right heel and raise the front of my foot. It simply won't move.

I suspect (hope) my condition isn't nearly as severe as Jaylon's -- the doctor did the reflex testing (tapping) on both my knee and ankle and both responded. I can feel the top of my foot (albeit, slightly numb) and the doctor did say she expressed hope it was going to return to normal sooner rather than later, but let me tell you something, it's not a pleasant feeling. No pain whatsoever, but nearly tripped and fell about three times while walking the dogs, your toes tend to catch on the ground because it's hanging lower than you'd expect.

Never even heard of drop foot before Jaylon and now I'm actually dealing with it. How weird is that?!

If it's any weird coincidence/consolation I tore my plantar facia about two days after Peyton Manning did. It was 6-7 months before I felt normal again.

 

[sweetness0986]

Let us know when your nerve starts to fire.

 

[TheSport78]

Three days of ibuprofen (more for any swelling which might be inhibiting the nerve), and strengthening exercises with an elastic band. If no improvement, wait a little longer. If no improvement after a couple of weeks, phase 2, discuss surgical options, etc. Here is what reassures me though -- I don't recall having this the night before, when I was doing all the floor stuff, only the next morning. That tells me that the nerve became inflamed during the night and just a matter of waiting for it to calm down. I would think if I had actually damaged it while kneeling, the symptoms would have presented themselves immediately. I could be wrong but that's what I'm going with.

Interesting though, the doctor was not concerned about physical exertion heading forward -- she recommended staying away from any workouts involving quick steps (treadmill) because of the lack of sure footing and potential for falling but didn't seem concerned at all about other types of workouts and that the more movement, the better. Nevertheless, I've decided to relax for a few days at least, my nerve needs a vacation.

Get a Rx for physical therapy, man.

 

[tyke1doe]

Interesting tidbit from Peter King's MMQB column:

Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith has a tough road to hoe to play with drop foot. But he wouldn’t be the first. Ex-Eagles cornerback J.R. Reed played three NFL seasons with the condition after suffering nerve damage in 2005.

 

[percyhoward]

Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith has a tough road to hoe to play with drop foot.

That's pretty funny Peter. It's "tough row," like in a garden.

To hoe an actual road would take a lifetime of enthusiastic hoeing.

 

[GhostOfPelluer]

That's pretty funny Peter. It's "tough row," like in a garden.

To hoe an actual road would take a lifetime of enthusiastic hoeing.

You think a row is difficult to hoe, I couldn't imagine hoeing a road.

 

[Afigueroa22]

Sympathy drop foot.

 

[JohnsKey19]

Interesting tidbit from Peter King's MMQB column:

That's amazing. To play a reactionary position requiring elite athleticism such as CB with drop foot doesn't even seem possible. I'm curious as to the degree of function in that foot/ankle compared to what Jaylon has at the moment. This gives me hope that Jaylon can be a good LB, even if he's confined to more of a SLB.