Stiffness and physio

Everyday living
1

Hi everyone,

I have recently had physio due to foot drop and stiffness, however she advised that I actually haven’t got foot drop but the stiffness is stopping me from lifting my leg as easy and therefore I would catch my feet. When she looked at me legs/feet one wasn’t lower than the other and she seems to think this should be the case if it was foot drop. Basically she said my strength is not bad at all but the flexibility in my right ankle in terms of bending is less than the left and looks stiff when I try to bend it towards me. She has given me some exercises to strengthen this and my lower leg as this is also a little stiff. But she recommended that some medication may help with the stiffness as it does do it when I am in the same position for two long. Just wanted your opinions? Xxx

2

hi lisa

stiffness in my legs makes me walk like a zombie.

medication helped a little but i came off all my neuropathic painkillers because i didn’t like the side effects.

i have recently learned how to use therabands.

these are great, you sit on an upright chair, hold the band and push it out with your foot.

carole x

3

sounds as if you have a good physio.

I would do the exercises, not sit in the same position for too long and keep ‘wiggling’ my feet.

Would only take the medication as a last resort.

4

I have just seen a wonderful physio who knew loads about M.S. and is treating me for trigger finger. He added that to help my stiff feet, toes, fingers and wrists that do not work properly, it would help me to do exercises with an elastic band lifting each finger from each finger but also and this is the best bit, buy a hard small ball and run my palm round the ball and press in as much as possible. I have been doing this even with the back of my hand and with the bottoms of my feet, not sure what it is doing to my feet but they really feel much better and looser after I have done this for a few minutes.

5

Hi Hebe,

Is Trigger Finger an MS thing? I developed one a few weeks ago and thought it was just a random thing thing that will go away.

6

I don’t think it is. I have a friend who had hers operated on a while back. She doesn’t have MS.

Sue

7

Most of my meds are for the stiffness, it’s not unusual from what I understand. My worst accident to date was because I stepped off a step and my supporting leg didn’t bend! That was top-step of the staircase at home. It could have been far worse

Sonia x

8

Hi Shaz, not sure. I have various things that come and go but I don’t think anymore about if they are related to M.S. or not, I just seek treatment for that isolated thing. The physio is treating the hand/finger as a single thing but gave me lots of other tips that have been helpful.

Blasted physio, walked all up to the GPs to have physio at 11.30 to get there and find the physiotherapist had forgotten to write my name down grrrrrrrrr. The receptions was very nice and sorry and then offered me another two hours later phhht, one journey a day I suggested was plenty so I go back in a few weeks. And gggggrrr the bins weren’t emptied so feeling quite well at the moment due to the burning frustration.