I’ve been dealing with issues in my left foot for the past 3 weeks, with varying symptoms. When I wake up I usually feel a stabbing pain between the ball and arch of my foot when pressure is applied (probably 4/10 on the pain scale, but enough to my my mind subconsciously try to limp). The pain will often disappear if I am seated for 20 minutes or so, and come back after walking for a similar amount of time. Also, when I wear shoes the pain often subsides and I feel a very uncomfortable feeling on the top of my foot similar to the feeling of swelling… without any noticeable swelling, which feels as though it builds up in pressure if I don’t relieve it through stretching the top of my foot. This bothers me significantly since my job requires me to be on my feet, walking briskly, for 9+ hours a day… so I either limp rapidly or try my best to ignore it and stretch it when possible.
There are periods of time where the issues disappear for unknown reasons while walking. Taking my shoes/ socks off and sitting also alleviates the issue fairly rapidly till I have to walk for more than 15-20 minutes. This has made it very difficult to see the doctor, since my foot usually feels better by the time I actually get to see someone… which I have wasted money on 9+ doctors visits with no results
.
I would go more into the history of my issue, but the word limit is restricting… so I will try to go into it briefly.
I had a hairline fracture, about 6 weeks into the healing process I had to walk about 3-4 miles a day for college. This caused a swollen foot each day which I relieved by elevating it for a couple of hours. After the semester ended my foot would swell up every time I woke up/ walked on it for 15+ minutes, similar to now. After 2.5 years of seeing doctors the problem magically disappeared, with no diagnosis/ blood clots/ fractures found in my 9 doctor visits.
After working 3 years the issue reappeared to what it is now.
Based on your information, several investigations have been done without a problem having been diagnosed except for that hairline fracture some years back. In my opinion, an MRI should be done to rule out a fracture or other problem. An orthopedist can also be consulted to rule out a mechanical problem with your foot. Properly adapted Orthopedic Shoes may also help alleviate the pain. If MRI is all good and there is no mechanical problem, then the problem is probably caused by a damaged Nerve or Neuroma. Corticosteroid injections at the pain area will then be the treatment of choice.