Ladies, call me chauvanistic for assuming this, but I need your help.
I wear leather boots all day at work. Being such, the skin on my heels has dried out and cracked so much that I literally call my condition “stigmata”. Yes, I bleed. . .
Is there a product or some sort of item you can recommend that I can buy that’ll help (I dare say this as a straight male) moisturize (there, I said it), the heels of my feet? It’s too damn painful for me to ignore anymore. . .
Udder balm doesn’t work. That shit stings when I work it in. Some other things just don’t work in and are so oily that I literally slide around in my socks. Help, please.
Tripler
My dogs are barkin’, and you may be the only ones to take 'em for a walk. . .
Dude, you need moleskin. The antifungal cream is a good idea, as is Zinc Oxide ointment (like Desitin), and many old folks swear by Eucerin, but moleskin patches will prevent the friction.
Crazy glue is the thing when you have a painful fissure. Gluing the cracked surfaces together will reduce the pain.
To improve your heel skin, you might try carmol 20. It’s an OTC cream that moisturizes and is especially good on thick skin. I’d recommend putting it on 3-4 times per day.
Eucerin, aquaphor or vaseline are good bets too. You might try applying a thick coat before bed and sleeping with socks on.
And although most cases of cracked heel skin are not indicative of underlying disease, there are several systemic and or cutaneous diseases that manifest this way. I’d suggest that you see a professional if your feet still trouble you in a month or so.
Fungus doesn’t cause the type of cracking you describe. While I’m sure the fungi gain a greater foothold in this setting, so do bacteria. I’d worry more about bacterial infections (like Staph and Strep). These organisms can cause celullitis and deeper infections like osteomyelitis. If you are otherwise healthy (no diabetes or circulatory problems) odds are that no evil infection will come your way.
There are different kinds of eucerin (it’s a brand name for a line of products). AFAIK, the entire line is OTC. The moisturizing cream I referred to is this one (the one in the little tub). Aquaphor is another Eucerin brand product that I also recommend highly. It’s OTC, with product info here.. On the other hand the most important ingredient in either of these is the petrolatum. Vaseline is 100% petrolatum. Take your pick. Any of these is a fine choice. And I’d still recommend using carmol 20 and a pumice stone to reduce the thickness of the dry outer skin layer that predisposes to cracking.
At this point, damn near anything you use will burn, because you’re rubbing it into an open wound. You’re either going to have to numb them somehow (Oragel leaps to mind, but there may be medical reasons not to apply that to an open wound), then get rid of some of the excess skin, then deep moisturize. They make these razor thingies for peeling the thick dead skin off your feet that might work well for you, or use a pumice stone. Make sure you soak your feet long and well in warm water before using either of these things to soften the hardened skin. Slather on the oiliest stuff you can find, then wrap your feet in plastic and put on socks. Yeah, you’ll be sliding around in your socks, but that’s the whole point, so get over it already.
You’ll need to moisturize frequently, like 3 times or more a day, and your skin will still be horribly dry for a while. As it improves, you can back off on it a little. Once your heels are no longer cracking open, you can try using a little salt scrub on your feet. You can buy expensive ones off the net, or you can make your own at home with cooking oil and some coarse salt (like kosher salt). Add some salt to some oil (the proportions depend on personal preferences), add fragrance oil if you want, then scoop some up and start scrubbing your freshly washed feet. Let the stuff sit on your skin for a few minutes, then rinse. You’ll have a film of oil left on your skin. Do not wash this off. Let the oil soak in, which won’t take long if your skin is really dry. The salt will exfoliate without being so harsh as the pumice stone, and the oil will deep moisturize.
Okay, this is going to be the fun part: what does exfoliate mean? Is this something I should be doing anyway? I gather it has something to do with removing the old, dried skin.
As far as the oil, do you mean just Wesson or Crisco? Or, can I just melt down a stick or two of butter?
I’m a guy. I don’t know about exfoliation. It sounds political or something.
Tripler
News Flash, 1984: Gorbachov exfoliates from the Soviet Union to the US. Film at 11.
Here’s something to try: before you go to bed, puncture a perle or two of vitamin E, and apply the oil to your heels. Let it sit for 5-15 minutes, then wipe it off. The vitamin E is an anti-oxidant and promotes healing.
Exfoliate means to slough off the dead skin, but your feet wound way beyond that. You should get to a foot doc and see what they recommend. They can do wonders right there for you, then recommend how you can keep up a regimine at home.
If not, a pumice stone (look in the nail area of a drug store) is good for exfoliating and getting dead skin off, but really- if it’s to the point of cracking and such, a visit to the foot doc would likely be well worth it.
I do give my husband pedicures at home with a foot bath (you can get one at Wal-Mart or any place like that). I soak him, scrub his feet with stuff that has little pieces of sand or what have you in it to exfoliate, pumice him after his feet soak, then clip nails and buff. You could always start getting yourself regular pedicures, which sometimes are better then sex.
Tripler, I suggest you go to a neighborhood salon and get a sports pedicure. You may even want to call up first to tell the manager about your problem. Once she gets up off the floor from laughing at you (just kidding!) she can advise the technician doing the work to scrape off that dead skin with a vengeance. I don’t think it will do any good to moisturize dead skin, because it will be a waste of product if the dead skin can’t absorb it.
Also, you might want to consult a dermatologist; they might be able to recommend someone who will concentrate on re-habbing your feet instead of doing the perfect french pedicure. You might have to have a pedicure once a week until you get your feet in shape, and cut back to once every couple of months for maintenance.
I know this sounds insane but I think you’ll need the pedicures with winter right around the corner.
Wow. Zette, medstar, I don’t think I’ve ever even considered a pedicure. I mean, how will the guys at work think of it?
Unfortunately, I don’t have access to a dermatologist. I know it sounds nuts, but I just can’t make it. Being dumb question #2 about cosmetics: Where do I get a pedicure? Do I call one of them day spa places (assuming I can find one)? How long do they take, and how much do they cost?
Keep in mind, yer talking to a guy that spends 12 - 14 hours a day on his feet, waist deep in construction work. I defer only to infantry ‘grunts’ for footcare.
Tripler
But I did get some antibiotic ointment, and my ‘stigmata’ don’t hurt so much anymore.
You could go to a day spa which would do a great job. But I suggest going to a neighborhood full-service beauty salon because the prices should be cheaper. I think a good pedicure takes about an hour and costs about $30.00-$50.00 plus about 20% for a tip. It’s expensive and takes a long time but I feel it’s a necessity in the winter. You’ll feel like a new man. Incidentally, you might find that some of the guys at work get pedicures too. The nail technician will also trim your nails which discourages ingrown toenails.
i would get some boots that breath not that leather crap
then get a good pair of socks
one that wick out moisture
notice i said boots that means more than one pair
always rotate your footwear give them a chance to dry out
For many years I had a fungal infection in my foot which did cause that sort of cracking. Well, at its worst, at least, which thankfully wasn’t too often. At its best it just caused the skin to peel.
And this isn’t just a matter of dead skin, if he’s bleeding from it. By the way, “stigmata” is plural; the singular term is “stigma”.
Gonna have to disagree, Chronos. I’m not saying that someone with cracked feet can’t have fungus. I’m saying that the fungi are not causitive. In my original post I was shooting from the hip, but after reading yours, I consulted Fitzpatrick’s Dermatology in general medicine. The sort of cracking described is simply not a recognized manifestationt of tinea pedis.
When you had this, did treatment with only anti-fungals reverse the disease?
IIRC, vitamin E is too large a molecule to penetrate the outer layer of dead skin anywhere on the body, let alone on heels in desperate need of exfoliation. All of the shampoos, moisturizers, etc that contain it are just using it to sell, not because it actually does anything when applied externally.
I’d soak em in the bath then pumice em (get the stones from the drug store near the nail clippers) then put on moisturiser that has tea tree oil in it because at least then you are getting some anti-bacterial in there. If that doesn’t do anything, get to a doc.
Good luck.
in this setting, so do bacteria. I’d worry more about bacterial infections (like Staph and Strep). These organisms can cause celullitis and deeper infections like osteomyelitis. If you are otherwise healthy (no diabetes or circulatory problems) odds are that no evil infection will come your way.