Q: My feet swell, especially in the summer months for quite some time now. The Dr put me on Lasik which delivered little to no results. Lately I was asked to increase to 2 pills in the morning and the results are the same. I have eliminated foods in high sodium and salt and I am exercising 3 times a week, yet my feet look like elephant feet! The Dr. ran test on my liver & kidney and it came back as functioning correctly. What else can I do? I am helpless!
A: Support stockings can help prevent feet swelling. They are readily available in department and drug stores. For severe swelling custom made prescription hose are available. You should discuss this with your doctor. A reputable provider of both custom and non-prescription support hosiery is Jobst.
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Have you had your thyroid checked? The cause could be an over-active thyroid (hyperthyroidism). A simple blood test will let you know if this is the case. Medication for an over-active thyroid will take care of the swelling if this is the case.
My wife has the same problem. It helps when you sit or lie down prop your feet up higher than your chest when possible. Try getting off your feet as often as possible.
My father had this problem during his last year or so with his Congestive Heart Failure. In his last couple of years, he spent all his waking hours in a comfortable office chair at his bedside desk.
The Doctor’s instruction was that for AT LEAST for 10 minutes out of every hour, he GET UP FROM HIS CHAIR, AND WALK around for the FULL 10 MINUTES.
Dad did NOT follow the Doctor’s instructions. It was not rebellious in nature; he would just lose track of time and forget to walk.
The compression stocking helped a LITTLE, BUT… when one sits for hours, this swelling can occur.
My personal suggestion for you is to WALK even more than 10 minutes per hour, AND use the compression stockings to help the venous system in your legs to prevent pooling of fluids in your legs, and facilitate returning of blood to the heart.
ALSO, lying down in between the walking stints, and elevating the legs above the level of your chest and heart, will also help to move the fluid away from your legs.
These can help, BUT… if like my Dad, you FAIL to walk enough, and elevate the legs enough, then you can’t expect the fluid build-up in the legs to not occur.
Electrical vibrating messaging equipment is very useful because it cause compection and expansion of your musscle, thus helping muscle to expell the retained fluid. I saw some have get benefit by using the same
Has your doctor put you on Calcium Channel Blockers? If the answer is “yes” ask no further. The cause of your swelling must be the medication (calcium Channel Blockers). If it is getting too much then ask your doctor to replace it with something else.
However, people on CCB’s for some considerable time, find it difficult to control their blood pressure by other medication.
I have the same problem, but frankly, wearing tight support hose is painful, so I wear those loose “diabetic” socks.
I take Atenolol and a Calcium Channel Blocker, and both can have the side effect of edema, or swelling. I tried to get off the CCB before, working with my doctor, and my feet felt so good I honestly felt 10 years younger, but alas, my BP started going through the roof. I’m seeing a cardiologist in a couple of weeks, to see if he can help me get off the CCB. I’m convinced it’s the culprit. I hate taking pills, because they all have unpleasant side effects, and I take them solely because they treat the symptoms of BP and high cholesterol. It’s a vicious circle, unfortunately. I wish you the best of luck, and if you find some solution, please be good enough to pass it on.
I was starting to get some edema in my feet, too. Am in complete agreement with Johnny and would extend his recommendations further. I started walking as much as 50 minutes, at least 4 times a week or more. Now, I have cut back a little to about 40 minutes or so, and have very little swelling, except some when I sit and watch TV for too long. Walking is definitely the way to go; you can start with 20 or 25 minutes. A little uphill as part of this regimen also really helps. As Dr. Rowena will attest, we have one-way valves in the venous circulation of our legs, and when you walk, your leg muscles acts as pumps to push fluid up through the veins; the fluid can’t go back due to the valves. This helps clear interstitial fluid from the surrounding tissue, hence reducing swelling (edema). After a while, you kind of get addicted to your walks and feel so much better after each one. This is great in combination with use of the Resperate device, not necessarily right after a walk due to potential venous pooling in the legs which can be dangerous, if you’re not careful after doing any vigorous exercise. Hope this helps.