Foot Pain

[Melibea12]

Hi I'm new to this site, but I have been have foot and some joint pain for a year or two now. The foot pain is like a large nail going through the ball of my foot or my ankles are hard to put pressure on. Also, hive do get stomach upset when I eat a lot of regular bread, pastas,etc. I'm trying to go completely gluten-free, but its hard. My dad has the same trouble as well. Any advice??

[LauraTX]

If you suspect you may have a medical problem with gluten, definitely go see a gastroenterologist about it BEFORE you go gluten free.  The tests they can do for gluten intolerance and celiac disease need you consuming gluten to be accurate.  Same thing with your dad.

 

As far as your foot pain, the ball of foot pain you describe is classic symptoms of a mortons neuroma.  I get those, so bad that I cannot wear anything that looks good or I seriously can't walk.  I have to get special insoles that have a raised bump under the ball of foot area and wear athletic shoes.  When the problem first started happening I went to a podiatrist and he did cortisone shots to help the acute problem and got me set up with insoles to prevent future problems.  If it gets bad enough it can require surgery.  The ankle pain is another issue that you definitely would benefit seeing a podiatrist over, as it can be related to your gait in response to the foot pain.  Only a doctor can assess that.

 

For recommendations on a podiatrist you can ask family and friends or ask your primary care doctor who they recommend.  For a GI doctor you can ask for recommendations from your primary care doctor or post on here in the doctors category to see if anyone can recommend a doctor in your area that is well versed in celiac disease and gluten intolerance.  Sometimes even GI specialists may not do full and proper testing before making or excluding a diagnosis, so keep us posted here and we can get you some resources to take with you to your doctors appointment when you have one.

 

If you want to just continue eating gluten free and not pursue a diagnosis, just understand that if you feel the need to be diagnosed in the future, you will need to start eating gluten again and deal with the symptoms it causes you.  I wish you the best of luck getting all of this figured out!