Can You Exercise With Morton’s Neuroma?

Yes, exercises can be carried out and there are special exercises to strengthen the muscles in the arc of the foot. Proper support to the arch of the foot can reduce the pain and strengthening of the arch muscles reduce the stress on the ball of the foot which also reduces the pain and the other symptoms associated with Morton’s neuroma. So, there are stretching exercises, strengthening exercises and balance exercises that you can do during the initial periods of the disease to reduce the symptoms. These exercises are really beneficial and you can improve your condition without any medications and injections. You need to consult a doctor or a qualified physiotherapist who can teach you the exercises, and then at home you can do the exercises.

Exercises can be done with Morton’s neuroma; exercises are actually part of the treatment plan as exercises should be done in order to strength the muscles in the arch of the foot. This helps to relieve the symptoms and prevent Morton’s neuroma recurring. Therefore, exercises should be done if you have Morton’s neuroma with some certain precautions as these can be painful when you start doing it. First let us see what the treatment options for Morton’s neuroma are and see how exercise can help to in the treatment.

Usually start from the simple treatment methods and if those do not respond then go to the advanced treatment options.

• Changes in your footwear – low or no heel foot wear without narrowing or covering the front. Wear broad-toes shoes which allow the toes to spread out.
• Wear footwear with arch support. This is a type of padding included to support the arch of the foot in order to remove the pressure caused by the nerve.
• Do muscle strengthening exercises for your foot.
• Reduce your bodyweight if you are overweight. This can reduce the Morton’s neuroma.
• Take regular rests/breaks if you are doing work which increases the pressure in the neuroma until it improves.
• Massage the affected area and the other parts of the foot.
• Regular ice massage on the affected area.

These life style changes and home remedies can be carried out with the drug treatment methods for a fast recovery from Morton’s neuroma.

Pain killers – take NSAID’s such as ibuprofen or naproxen for the pain. You can apply topical cream as well to reduce the pain and swelling as well.

Corticosteroid injections – a steroid is injected to the area of the neuroma to reduce the pain and swelling associated with it. This can only be done few times as injecting it multiple times can cause serious side effects.

Alcohol sclerosing injections – alcohol injections have shown to reduce pain and the size of the neuroma after injecting it to the area of the neuroma. These injections are given every 7-10 days and needs about four to seven cycles of such injections to see an improvement in the symptoms.

If all the other treatment methods fail and if symptoms persist for 9-12 months then surgery can be an option to relieve the symptoms. Surgery is effective in relieving pain, but it can cause permanent numbness in the affected toes. The main principle of the surgery is to remove the nerve or release the pressure on the nerve by cutting the surrounding tissue.

Yes, exercises can be done with Morton’s neuroma; exercises are actually part of the treatment plan as exercises should be done in order to strength the muscles in the arch of the foot. This helps to relieve the symptoms and prevent Morton’s neuroma recurring. Proper support to the arch of the foot can reduce the pain and strengthening of the arch muscles reduce the stress on the ball of the foot, which also reduces the pain and the other symptoms associated with Morton’s neuroma. So, there are stretching exercises, strengthening exercises and balance exercises that you can do during the initial periods of the disease to reduce the symptoms.

Also Read:

• Are Birkenstocks Good For Morton’s Neuroma?
• Is Surgery For Morton’s Neuroma Successful?
• What Helps Morton’s Neuroma Pain?