Your feet are a very important part of your body. They are also the body part that exerts a lot of effort in helping move you get from one place to another – carrying you through the day-to-day activities you will have to accomplish. When you give it some thought, once your feet give up or suffer through tremendous pain, it is certain that your comfort and ability to do what you need to do for the day will be affected.

Foot pain is something that everyone will ‘get’ to experience. Just think of those times when you have stood on your feet for too long or walked too far – without doubt your feet will have suffered. This is normal and may resolve on its own with no or very little treatment at all.

However, when the pain is extreme and recurring, this is when you will need to give it more thought. With the help of a trusted medical professional, you can have insights into the best treatments to provide relief for your foot pain.

In this article, we will highlight the top six treatment options that can help reduce the effect of foot pain.

1. Perform Heel And Foot Exercises

Heel and foot exercises can be performed to help relieve foot and ankle pain. These exercises can be crucial in alleviating soreness and improving overall health and flexibility. Foot exercises are gentle enough, such that they will not cause any further pain but also are effective enough to help ensure your muscles are able to give the best support to your feet.

While most foot exercises are quite easy and simple to perform, this does not mean that you should self-medicate, as you may perform the wrong exercises and possibly do more harm than good to your feet. Generally, the following exercises may help improve mobility and flexibility for the feet:

• Toe raise, point, and curl.
• Big toe stretches.
• Toe curls.
• Marble pickup.
• Sand walking.

These exercises may also work for those suffering from strain in the Achilles tendon. If you want to see a specialist, you can go ahead and find a plantar fasciitis Idaho falls clinic or wherever you are located.

2. Soak Your Feet In A Foot Bath

One of the best home remedies you can do for your foot pain is to soak them in a foot bath, as you may be able to reduce any swelling in your feet and relieve sore muscles. You can even mix things up by varying what you soak your feet in, with the goal of ensuring that all the ingredients or components are geared towards giving your tired and painful feet the TLC they need.

To ensure you will enjoy the maximum health benefits of a foot bath, be sure to be guided by the following tips:

	1		Use different temperatures of water to encourage better blood circulation in your feet. You can start with hot water for ten minutes, and then cold water for another ten minutes, finishing off with five minutes more of bringing your feet back to hot water.
	2		Use a herbal soak with a varying mixture of herbs and other ingredients, depending on the effects you wish to achieve with your feet.
	3		Create a lavender foot bath for sore muscles using dried lavender, if available in your local market. As an alternative, you can also opt for a few drops of pure lavender essential oil. Soak your feet for around 15 to 30 minutes to achieve the best results.
	4		Use Epsom salt to relieve inflammation in your feet, which may be causing the pain. You can do this by putting two to three tablespoons of salt in a bath made from hot water. Soak your feet for around 10 to 15 minutes.
	5		Create a cucumber bath for pain relief due to swollen feet and stiffness. You can extract the juice of the cucumber and add it to the water which you have prepared for your foot bath.

3. Foot Massage and Reflexology

When performed by an expert, a foot massage is also another effective way to ease foot pain, and the reason is simple. The feet, albeit small, carry quite a significant weight since they literally bear the weight of your entire body. A foot massage and reflexology session can also be akin to killing two birds with one stone. It is not just your feet that are able to relax, but even your mental and physiological well-being as well. It is therefore a good pamper session you should treat yourself to.

Aside from giving your feet a relaxing massage, there are other benefits such as:

	Improves Blood Circulation	Good blood flow can be impeded, particularly when you have been maintaining a sedentary lifestyle for too long, or your feet have not been moving around quite a lot during the day.
	Promotes Better Sleep	Because of the physical discomfort and painful sensation coming from your feet, your sleep quality may also be affected. You may be able to have better quality and more peaceful sleep when you first allow yourself to go through a soothing and relaxing foot massage.
	Makes Your Feet Healthier	When the pain persists or starts to occur more frequently, this is another telling sign that your foot health may no longer be as good. One way to make your foot possibly healthier is through a good, massage that can improve your foot and ankle’s strength and flexibility.

4. Rest and Elevate Your Feet

Elevating your feet is a very good way to relax and encourage better blood circulation. As simple as it may be, however, it can do wonders in giving painful feet some much-needed relief. It brings quite a host of benefits like:

Provides Pressure Relief	When you stand or sit for extended periods or live a sedentary lifestyle, you are actually exerting a lot of pressure on your veins. Elevating your legs is a great way to relieve that pressure.
Reduces Inflammation	If your feet are suffering from inflammation and have shown signs of swelling, you can help reduce it through the simple act of elevating your feet.
Relieves Muscle Tension	You can tell that your feet are painful because of muscle tension when there is tiredness and soreness in the lower body. When you elevate your legs a couple of times in a day, you are ‘draining’ the tension in your hips, legs, and feet.

To ensure you achieve the intended results above, here are important tips to abide by when elevating your feet:

• Raise your legs at least above your heart.
• Keep it raised in the elevated position for at least fifteen minutes.
• Rotate your ankles and feet, as you elevate your legs.

5. Over-The-Counter (OTC) Pain Medication

Like any other kind of pain, it is not uncommon to immediately reach out for OTC pain medication. These are the pain relief medications that many households will have in their home first aid kit. These medicines can provide immediate and short-term pain relief.

However, it is important also to note that it may not be advisable to take OTC medication for extended periods. If the pain persists (e.g. seven days or more), this fact should be a telling sign that the OTC medication is no longer sufficient, and you may need to seek the advice of a medical professional.

6. Use Arch Supports

Arch supports, also known as orthotics, refer to the support you can place in your shoes to help stabilise when walking, standing, jogging, and even running. This can help provide stability to your feet, such that pain may be reduced or even eliminated. Arch supports are available at almost any health supply store, or you may want to ask a medical professional for a custom fit/advice.

The Causes Of Foot Pain

Now that you are aware of some of the various foot treatment options available, it is important also to touch a little on the causes of foot pain. There is no universal cause for foot pain and the cause can differ for a variety of reasons including lifestyle factors and genetics.

When you meet with a medical professional, you will likely be asked about the circumstances which may have led to the foot pain, so the right causative connection can be addressed. Some of these most common causes include:

• Lifestyle Choices: For example regularly wearing tight, closed and high-heeled shoes.
• Common medical issues: This can include nerve damage on the feet, foot ulcers or sores, pregnancy, calluses, and warts.

Conclusion

Foot care and treatment for any pain or discomfort is very important. In fact, this is something that you should not just take for granted. If the pain is bearable and does not come too often, then you may be okay with letting your discomfort self-heal. When it starts to become more frequent and more painful, then that is a telling sign for you to absolutely take your foot pain seriously. Most importantly, try to refrain from self-medicating. If there is anything you are unsure about, the list of treatment forms above should never be a substitute for sound medical advice. Take heed of what the medical professional prescribes and follow the treatment plan.