Boots Are Made For Walking

My boots won't fit me right now. Neither will my sneakers, shoes, or flip-flops. The only thing I can wear right now that fits is a pair of slippers, gifted several years ago, that were a size and a half too large. Fortunately, now that my left foot is inexplicably swollen to twice its size they fit just dandy.

Friday night my left big toe was a little tender and I chalked it up to wearing my sneakers for the first time this Spring -- #1 and I had been walking around the neighbourhood a lot that day running errands, so it stood to reason that my feet might have been adjusting to the more seasonally appropriate footwear.

Alas, it was not to be. I passed a sleepless night, during which my toe began to swell, and convinced myself I had gout. After icing my foot for a few hours and donning a snug pair of comfy shoes, I made it into work and got through 5 hours without any big foot issues.  By bedtime, though, my toe was huge and red.

Yesterday was awful.

I barely slept the previous night due to the pain and woke exhausted. I hobbled to the drugstore to by a hot water bottle so I could try heat instead of cold. I also broke down and phone the Telehealth Nurse On Call service for advice. They told me to go to my after-hours clinic as by then I'd tried everything I could do on my own. I try not to go to the clinic if I can avoid it -- preferring to see my Dr directly -- but desperation had me limping into line. A possible diagnosis of an infection was made, but no obvious wound or anything that could act as a conduit for bacteria. Two prescriptions and a requisition for bloodwork later, I was sent home to try and get through another sleepless night.

Today my foot is a throbbing ball of pain, with red extending into the main part of my foot and my other toes. Hobbling is difficult at best and I'm really sleepy. I had a couple phone calls from my Dr in follow-up to the clinic and nurse appt/call, and will apparently have to wait until tomorrow to see if it is, in fact, an infection and how she wants to treat it.

Meanwhile, I'll just sit here and throb -- painfully -- through one more night.

ETA (March 24th, 4pm):

Bloodwork came back negative for infection and gout, though we'll be following up with another check on uric acid levels next week. There was a slight indication of inflammation associated with my arthritis so, after a quick consult with my rheumatologist (down the hall from my doctor's office), we've decided that this is a joint-specific flare-up of my arthritis.

I haven't had a significant flare-up in over 10 years and my last one was primarily attacking my SI joints and cervical spine. I still have weather-associated discomfort and swelling, but a flare-up is different in that my arthritis starts attacking my joints. I've a 5-day rx for prednisone to bring down the swelling and will be fit in for a consult with my rheumatologist somewhere in that span to see what's going on.

I did a no-no in desperation and took one dose of Aspirin and one dose of Advil over the past few days. I've now got petechia all over my feet, calves and knees and a permanent note in my file that I'm not to be prescribed ASA, ibuprofen, or any other standard NSAIDs (like Celebrex, which I was on for about a year around 2000). I've known I was sensitive to them, as I'm a "bleeder", but didn't realize it was *that* big of a deal. Apparently it is. Who knew?