Of the many conditions which result in a change in the shape or position of the toes, the curly toe stands out as a more unique deformity that is treated in a somewhat different manner than a standard toe deformity (like a hammertoe). This article will discuss this unique deformity, and ways to treat it effectively.
Due to a variety of reasons (but mostly because of one's arch structure), the toes can gradually develop a change in their shape over the course of many years of standing and walking. The most common change is the development of the hammertoe, in which the first joint, or 'knuckle', of the toe pulls upward, while the middle of the toe flexes downward. Although rarely painful in and of itself, a hammertoe deformity can allow for excessive pressure from the top of a shallow shoe onto the toe. A corn will develop on the skin where the toe joint is prominent, which can eventually lead to pain. Another change that often develops is a rotation of the little toe towards the toe next to it. Often called a curly toe, this condition is the combination of a hammertoe deformity, and an actual inward rotation of the toe. The result of this abnormal toe position is usually a very painful corn that forms due to the pressure from the shoe on the toe, where the toe bone is now prominent due to the toe rotation. The difference between the corn that forms in this condition as opposed to that of a regular hammertoe is that this corn is less on the top of the toe than it is more along the side of the toe. The involved skin is still the 'top' of the toe technically, but the corn appears on the side because the top of the toe has rotated to the side. In this case, not only does the top of the shoe irritate the corn, but the side does as well. A second pattern of corn can also form along side the outer edge of the nail where pressure from the ground builds up due to the toe's rotation. This corn is often mistaken for an ingrown nail due to it's closeness to the nail edge itself. Removal of the side of the nail in this case will only temporarily relieve the symptoms, as the toe pressure from the rotation will allow a corn to form again despite the nail edge's removal.
The little toe is not the only toe that can curl inward. This can also be seen in the other smaller toes, although the fourth toe (the one next to the little toe) is the primary toe outside of the little toe to develop this. However, this toe does not tend to develop the same sort of painful corn as the little toe, due to the unique position of the little toe on the outside of the foot.
Treatment of this condition is fairly straight forward. One either conservatively lives with the condition or one has the toe straightened out surgically. Self-care with gentle filing of the corn with an emery board or pumice stone after bathing can flatten the corn and limit it's potential to cause pain. Taping the toe out of a rotated position has limited benefit, and may actually cause additional discomfort. The use of a wider and deeper shoe seems to give the most benefit by reducing the external pressure on the toe. Padding the toe with gel, foam, or felt pads can provide some pressure reduction, although they need to be applied daily. Topical corn removers should be avoided as they contain skin acids that can potentially harm the surrounding good skin and create a chemical burn on the toe.
Surgery to repair this condition is possible, and is usually quite effective. This fairly simple procedure combines a fixing or straightening of the hammertoe deformity (by removing a small amount of bone near one of the toe joints), as well as a procedure to straighten out the toe rotation. Fixing the rotation can involve plastic surgery techniques to re-rotate the skin back around, or a technique to partially fuse the little toe with the base of the toe next to it to keep it stable and straight. The plastic surgery technique uses various skin incision orientations to effectively push the toe back into a non-rotated position. The fusion procedure removes part of the space in between the little toe and the fourth toe, and then stitches the skin together. Once this heals, the bases of the two toes will be as one. This has no effect on the way the foot functions in walking, and cosmetically is barely noticeable. The end result is a little toe that cannot rotate out of position any longer. Recovery is fairly simple for both the bone and skin part of the procedure, with most people able to return to a normal shoe within three to four weeks. Complication rates are low, and the toe tends to stay in the corrected position for life.
The curly toe deformity is common, can cause discomfort in shoes, and yet is easily treated. Anyone suffering from this toe deformity should see their foot specialist (podiatrist) for evaluation and treatment options specific to their toe.
Dr. Kilberg provides compassionate and complete foot and ankle care to adults and children in the Indianapolis area. He is board certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery, and is a member of the American Podiatric Medical Association. He enjoys providing comprehensive foot health information to the online community to help the public better understand their feet. Visit his practice website for more information.
Thursday, March 7, 2019
Thoughts Are Things, So Choose Them Carefully
Every day, we will have specific thoughts that will help us in making a decision about a different aspect of our lives. Often, these decisions can be made on impulse which although seen as exciting due to their spontaneous nature, can potentially have bad affects. However, if we make the time to take all aspects of the situation into consideration, we can ensure that our decisions have our best interests at heart and fewer consequences along the way.
One of the main aspects of our life which can be affected by our thoughts is our health and fitness. The way in which we treat, abuse and nourish our bodies can all have lasting affects but the reasons as to why we choose to look after ourselves in this manner can stem from our thoughts. There are a wide range of factors which will influence our thoughts and the time in which we will have them. These can be our circumstances, conditions, emotional state, our knowledge about health and fitness and so forth. However, it is not just about our influential factors, but also the type of thought and/or decision which we are going to make. A thought can be labeled as critical, important or non important. Our health can greatly depend on the foods we eat-specifically foods which nourish us and foods which have no real benefit to us other than taste. Food is intended to fill us up when we are hungry and help us function and survive but our thoughts can often alter the times in which we eat and the foods which we choose to eat.
When we are faced with a limitation on food, this will help determine which foods we will eat. On the other side however, if we are exposed to a vast amount of food types, this will also affect what we choose to put in our mouths. However, one of the main factors which will influence what we eat is taste. The taste of food is what makes us primarily put it in our mouths as for obvious reasons, if food generally tasted unappealing, we wouldn't rush to purchase it. However, the ability to purchase specific foods due to financial reasons will also greatly affect the foods in which we eat. In short, those who readily have every type of food available to them and access to money may be more likely to choose 'bad' foods, should they choose to listen to the wrong thoughts. For many, the foods which we eat can be greatly tied to our emotions, but another factor for us reaching for food can be stemmed down to boredom which can often be caused by other thoughts on our mind.
In order to make a wise choice to help our health and fitness, we firstly need to use our initiative to make a choice in the first place. One of the worst ways in which we can damage our health and fitness is by delaying our decision making which is often referred to as procrastination. We are all guilty of giving into this lazy and sluggish form of time wasting but some more than others will allow it to consume their life, causing them to choose the wrong option which can have disastrous results. Procrastination is when we choose to use other distractions to put things off. For some, this thing which they choose to stall is the time to take care of themselves. Partaking in exercise in order to help their overall health and fitness, making the right decision to choose the right foods and other aspects such as taking the step to quit smoking/drinking/drugs can all affect our health and fitness if we do not choose our thoughts assertively in order to help ourselves.
Allowing ourselves to procrastinate will not only have an affect on our health and fitness physically, but also mentally. The more we choose to pick the wrong thoughts from our minds and opt for the easier option, the higher the chance that our thoughts and decisions will have a bad affect on us. We can become frustrated or disappointed in ourselves which could potentially lead to stress, anxiety or even depression. The more we become affected by these conditions, the higher the chance that other aspects of our lives can become greatly affected. By simply choosing to listen to the right thoughts in our minds we can begin eating the right foods today; taking that first step into consistent exercise today and help ourselves better our lives overall, not just our health and fitness.
One of the main aspects of our life which can be affected by our thoughts is our health and fitness. The way in which we treat, abuse and nourish our bodies can all have lasting affects but the reasons as to why we choose to look after ourselves in this manner can stem from our thoughts. There are a wide range of factors which will influence our thoughts and the time in which we will have them. These can be our circumstances, conditions, emotional state, our knowledge about health and fitness and so forth. However, it is not just about our influential factors, but also the type of thought and/or decision which we are going to make. A thought can be labeled as critical, important or non important. Our health can greatly depend on the foods we eat-specifically foods which nourish us and foods which have no real benefit to us other than taste. Food is intended to fill us up when we are hungry and help us function and survive but our thoughts can often alter the times in which we eat and the foods which we choose to eat.
When we are faced with a limitation on food, this will help determine which foods we will eat. On the other side however, if we are exposed to a vast amount of food types, this will also affect what we choose to put in our mouths. However, one of the main factors which will influence what we eat is taste. The taste of food is what makes us primarily put it in our mouths as for obvious reasons, if food generally tasted unappealing, we wouldn't rush to purchase it. However, the ability to purchase specific foods due to financial reasons will also greatly affect the foods in which we eat. In short, those who readily have every type of food available to them and access to money may be more likely to choose 'bad' foods, should they choose to listen to the wrong thoughts. For many, the foods which we eat can be greatly tied to our emotions, but another factor for us reaching for food can be stemmed down to boredom which can often be caused by other thoughts on our mind.
In order to make a wise choice to help our health and fitness, we firstly need to use our initiative to make a choice in the first place. One of the worst ways in which we can damage our health and fitness is by delaying our decision making which is often referred to as procrastination. We are all guilty of giving into this lazy and sluggish form of time wasting but some more than others will allow it to consume their life, causing them to choose the wrong option which can have disastrous results. Procrastination is when we choose to use other distractions to put things off. For some, this thing which they choose to stall is the time to take care of themselves. Partaking in exercise in order to help their overall health and fitness, making the right decision to choose the right foods and other aspects such as taking the step to quit smoking/drinking/drugs can all affect our health and fitness if we do not choose our thoughts assertively in order to help ourselves.
Allowing ourselves to procrastinate will not only have an affect on our health and fitness physically, but also mentally. The more we choose to pick the wrong thoughts from our minds and opt for the easier option, the higher the chance that our thoughts and decisions will have a bad affect on us. We can become frustrated or disappointed in ourselves which could potentially lead to stress, anxiety or even depression. The more we become affected by these conditions, the higher the chance that other aspects of our lives can become greatly affected. By simply choosing to listen to the right thoughts in our minds we can begin eating the right foods today; taking that first step into consistent exercise today and help ourselves better our lives overall, not just our health and fitness.
How to Treat an Oral Yeast Infection
An oral yeast infection is also referred to as thrush. But no matter what you call it, it definitely signifies a problem, and an uncomfortable one at that. Finding out you have an oral yeast infection is usually not hard to discover on your own. If you are unsure about whether or not you have thrush, then read on to discover some of the causes and symptoms of the infection.
One of the most obvious symptoms of these infections shows up in the form of thick white patches. Those who have had them will tell you that it is not something to be taken lightly. If you ever get one, you are going to discover that up underneath those thick white patches lies bleeding and redness. There is absolutely nothing pleasant about it.
Those who have one are going to have a hard time eating and drinking due to the fact that the infection is so painful. Oftentimes, an individual who has an oral yeast infection will become dehydrated as a direct result of this. It is highly recommended to seek treatment as soon as possible to avoid any of these unnecessary complications.
Another downside is that they can strike anyone at anytime. Most of the time, it is infants and the elderly who are considered to be more at risk. The elderly will most likely develop an oral yeast infection under their dentures. To avoid the development of these infections in infants, it is imperative that you boil their bottles and pacifiers frequently to avoid the buildup of harmful bacteria.
Types of treatments include natural treatments, conventional treatments, and anti-fungal treatments. If the infection has persisted over an extended period of time, more serious and milder treatment may be necessary to avoid and/or treat a possible systemic infection.
It is important to note that this kind of infection can be contagious and spread from one individual to another. It can also be passed back and forth between a mother and child during feedings and manifest in various areas of the body. It may help out to keep extra tidy while you have one.
Some of the things that may make the infection worse are consuming things which feed the yeast. Beer, bread, and foods high in carbohydrates may cause your oral yeast infection to spread quicker, as well as make the yeast multiply much more than usual. The end result is more pain, white patches, bleeding, and redness. An overall extremely tender sensation is very normal when suffering from an oral yeast infection.
One of the most obvious symptoms of these infections shows up in the form of thick white patches. Those who have had them will tell you that it is not something to be taken lightly. If you ever get one, you are going to discover that up underneath those thick white patches lies bleeding and redness. There is absolutely nothing pleasant about it.
Those who have one are going to have a hard time eating and drinking due to the fact that the infection is so painful. Oftentimes, an individual who has an oral yeast infection will become dehydrated as a direct result of this. It is highly recommended to seek treatment as soon as possible to avoid any of these unnecessary complications.
Another downside is that they can strike anyone at anytime. Most of the time, it is infants and the elderly who are considered to be more at risk. The elderly will most likely develop an oral yeast infection under their dentures. To avoid the development of these infections in infants, it is imperative that you boil their bottles and pacifiers frequently to avoid the buildup of harmful bacteria.
Types of treatments include natural treatments, conventional treatments, and anti-fungal treatments. If the infection has persisted over an extended period of time, more serious and milder treatment may be necessary to avoid and/or treat a possible systemic infection.
It is important to note that this kind of infection can be contagious and spread from one individual to another. It can also be passed back and forth between a mother and child during feedings and manifest in various areas of the body. It may help out to keep extra tidy while you have one.
Some of the things that may make the infection worse are consuming things which feed the yeast. Beer, bread, and foods high in carbohydrates may cause your oral yeast infection to spread quicker, as well as make the yeast multiply much more than usual. The end result is more pain, white patches, bleeding, and redness. An overall extremely tender sensation is very normal when suffering from an oral yeast infection.
Taking Proper Care of Your Muscles
If you have ever worked out or spent any amount of time at a job that was a strain on you physically, then you know what it feels like to have your body pushed to the limits. Some of us either have so many responsibilities, or do not know when our bodies have had enough that it gets to the point that you can pull a muscle or you can have those moments where you just completely lose the ability to lift anything and your body starts to just give out. These things can happen at the worse possible times and when it does you hope there is someone around to help you out but, there is not always someone there. It is quite hard to scream with two hundred and fifty pounds of weights on top of you and to depend on someone always being around to spot you would be suicide. That is why the proper care of your muscles are so important.
Taking proper care of your muscles is not as difficult as some might imagine. One good way to keep your muscles happy is to feed them well. What I mean by this is the right nutrition helps stimulate growth in your muscles. So make sure to eat foods that are high in proteins they not only speed up growth but also lessen the amount of time that your body may feel sore from over working. Getting the proper amount of sleep is also very key to muscle regeneration. So make sure that you are getting to sleep and getting the right amount to let your body rest. If you need to you should invest in the right bedding for the job. Something like a featherbed on top of your mattress would go along way. Also down comforters are a good way to keep you warm without being to much of a heavy strain on your body. Being that you work out a lot you probably want to use duvet covers over your bedding. A duvet set is a great way to protect your bedding from the sweat and bacteria of a long hard days work. But, one of the key most important things you can do is hydrate yourself. One of the biggest mistakes many athletes and people who work at strenuous jobs make is that forget to hydrate and if you do not do that then it can lead to a fatal error.
Taking proper care of your muscles is not as difficult as some might imagine. One good way to keep your muscles happy is to feed them well. What I mean by this is the right nutrition helps stimulate growth in your muscles. So make sure to eat foods that are high in proteins they not only speed up growth but also lessen the amount of time that your body may feel sore from over working. Getting the proper amount of sleep is also very key to muscle regeneration. So make sure that you are getting to sleep and getting the right amount to let your body rest. If you need to you should invest in the right bedding for the job. Something like a featherbed on top of your mattress would go along way. Also down comforters are a good way to keep you warm without being to much of a heavy strain on your body. Being that you work out a lot you probably want to use duvet covers over your bedding. A duvet set is a great way to protect your bedding from the sweat and bacteria of a long hard days work. But, one of the key most important things you can do is hydrate yourself. One of the biggest mistakes many athletes and people who work at strenuous jobs make is that forget to hydrate and if you do not do that then it can lead to a fatal error.
How to Build Counselling Relationships
The counselling relationship is the essence of the helping process in counseling, and I think it begins, at least in the clients mind, before there is ever any attempt to set up an appointment.
So my first contact with a client will probably be by phone call, and I need to remember to create a cordial, and welcoming tone of voice and sustain it.
No day dreaming allowed, no matter how many times I have returned client phone calls and scheduled an initial appointment.
There may be questions and I need to remember the ambivalence or even resistance that the client may be experiencing, and respect it, while setting an expectation that positive results, which will be defined by the client, will flow from our counselling relationship.
I also usually schedule a free consultation for our first session, and I indicate to my caller that we will talk about the fit between my skills and their issues and create some kind of plan for our continuing work.
However, if the client launches into a full scale telling-of-the-story, I need to be prepared to ask that we go into that during our face to face meeting, rather than over the phone, so boundaries are OK.
When my client arrives, I like to cheerfully greet them, invite them into my office, get them settled with coffee or water, and ask them what has changed since their phone call to me.
I am setting an expectation that change is already happening and at this point oftentimes my client will tell me the story and chronology of their problem.
At this point in the counselling relationship, my job is just to listen.
And listening does have some discreet skills, most importantly my repeating the clients words to myself, and then back to the client at appropriate moments so that the client knows I am listening, and I can double check that my perceptions are accurate.
What I am striving for in the counselling relationship at this moment is for the client to feel safe.
Usually at our time together progresses, I can see my client begin to relax, and perhaps the energy intensity lessons, and I can move into some suggestions about directions our future work could take.
You will note that I have not talked about payment, because most folks who are interested in continuing will offer information about payment, and those who are still shopping will not, and sometime one session is all that is needed.
Perhaps this one session counselling relationship was all that was necessary.
I like to be very encouraging, because I have seen folks rebuild their lives, come back from the Gates of Hell, so to speak, and I know powerful change can happen.
I know that belief comes through in my consultations.
Of course, as we make our plans then the usual intake and confidentiality issues need to be clarified, and another appointment scheduled.
So the biggest part of the counselling relationship thus far has been my creating a belief about how I am going to behave which includes paying close attention to my visitor.
Perhaps at the end of our consultation, or at the next session, I begin to give the client information about "road maps" as my old friend and mentor Liz Ann Corbitt called them.
I have watched many clients visibly relax when they find out that there is some kind of theoretical explanation for what they are experiencing. Knowing that there is a beginning and an end of counseling at least, is extremely helpful to a clients confidence about their ability to effect change.
And then I can talk about how recent research into brain function, particularly functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) has impacted our understanding of human behavior, and we can even talk about how recent information about neurogenesis and neuroplasticity impact the client's situation.
So there is lots of encouragement involved in my particular style of counselling relationship.
I also indicate to clients that books like Brainfit for Life offers a compelling model for a brain fit life, and if you follow that model, almost all counseling situations are impacted positively, so please check it out.
If you are attending to the pillars of brain fitness, you will be making changes in counselling issues.
Michael S. Logan is a brain fitness expert, a counselor, a student of Chi Gong, and licensed one on one HeartMath provider. I enjoy the spiritual, the mythological, and psychological, and I am a late life father to Shane, 10, and Hannah Marie, 4, whose brains are so amazing.
So my first contact with a client will probably be by phone call, and I need to remember to create a cordial, and welcoming tone of voice and sustain it.
No day dreaming allowed, no matter how many times I have returned client phone calls and scheduled an initial appointment.
There may be questions and I need to remember the ambivalence or even resistance that the client may be experiencing, and respect it, while setting an expectation that positive results, which will be defined by the client, will flow from our counselling relationship.
I also usually schedule a free consultation for our first session, and I indicate to my caller that we will talk about the fit between my skills and their issues and create some kind of plan for our continuing work.
However, if the client launches into a full scale telling-of-the-story, I need to be prepared to ask that we go into that during our face to face meeting, rather than over the phone, so boundaries are OK.
When my client arrives, I like to cheerfully greet them, invite them into my office, get them settled with coffee or water, and ask them what has changed since their phone call to me.
I am setting an expectation that change is already happening and at this point oftentimes my client will tell me the story and chronology of their problem.
At this point in the counselling relationship, my job is just to listen.
And listening does have some discreet skills, most importantly my repeating the clients words to myself, and then back to the client at appropriate moments so that the client knows I am listening, and I can double check that my perceptions are accurate.
What I am striving for in the counselling relationship at this moment is for the client to feel safe.
Usually at our time together progresses, I can see my client begin to relax, and perhaps the energy intensity lessons, and I can move into some suggestions about directions our future work could take.
You will note that I have not talked about payment, because most folks who are interested in continuing will offer information about payment, and those who are still shopping will not, and sometime one session is all that is needed.
Perhaps this one session counselling relationship was all that was necessary.
I like to be very encouraging, because I have seen folks rebuild their lives, come back from the Gates of Hell, so to speak, and I know powerful change can happen.
I know that belief comes through in my consultations.
Of course, as we make our plans then the usual intake and confidentiality issues need to be clarified, and another appointment scheduled.
So the biggest part of the counselling relationship thus far has been my creating a belief about how I am going to behave which includes paying close attention to my visitor.
Perhaps at the end of our consultation, or at the next session, I begin to give the client information about "road maps" as my old friend and mentor Liz Ann Corbitt called them.
I have watched many clients visibly relax when they find out that there is some kind of theoretical explanation for what they are experiencing. Knowing that there is a beginning and an end of counseling at least, is extremely helpful to a clients confidence about their ability to effect change.
And then I can talk about how recent research into brain function, particularly functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) has impacted our understanding of human behavior, and we can even talk about how recent information about neurogenesis and neuroplasticity impact the client's situation.
So there is lots of encouragement involved in my particular style of counselling relationship.
I also indicate to clients that books like Brainfit for Life offers a compelling model for a brain fit life, and if you follow that model, almost all counseling situations are impacted positively, so please check it out.
If you are attending to the pillars of brain fitness, you will be making changes in counselling issues.
Michael S. Logan is a brain fitness expert, a counselor, a student of Chi Gong, and licensed one on one HeartMath provider. I enjoy the spiritual, the mythological, and psychological, and I am a late life father to Shane, 10, and Hannah Marie, 4, whose brains are so amazing.
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