Painful Achilles tendons

[HoneyButterPopcorn]

My ankles are pretty stiff in the mornings.

I get pains on my Achilles tendons (so up the back of the ankle) throughout the day - if I sit for any length of time I'm like Frankensteins monster for a few steps before it eases up.

I have put on a shit ton of weight (due to ill health and my body hating me) so maybe that's a factor too?

I don't wear heels or slip ons - would one of those heel support things (I have seen Dr Scholl ones that fit in your shoe and lift your heel slightly) but they are often described as 'arch support' (my arches are absolutely fine).

Anyone tried them?

I have similar at the moment. Ask for or get some help from a physiotherapist. I've found raised heels helpful and also those ankle compression socks which you can get from chemists or sports stores.

It might be calf related (so I've been given exercises which have helped) or it might be fluid gathering in the feet and ankles, this is called oedema. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/oedema/

There are various causes. One of them is diabetes and I wondered if as you said you had put on weight, you might be pre diabetic?? Definitely see a GP if you can.

Hypothyroidism is another thing which can have Achilles tendon problems as a symptom. (And weight gain)

Have you tried stretches?

That’s me!

My thyroid packed in about a year ago and my vitamin D levels dropped as far as they can go! Weight ballooned up, muscle aches (thighs), every symptom in the book, I got! It started with symptoms that made then thing I had a problem with my heart (loads of tests) the.

My doctor assumed it was menopause and she eventually referred me to a gynaecologist who said (I paraphrase here) ‘your doctors is an idiot, you are classic thyroid - your have every bloody symptom - is she smoking crack or what?’. Turns out it’s hashimotos and it took me ages to get the right prescription - I think it’s ok now (needs to be checked soon)

She also asked why she hadn’t bothered to do anything about my vitamin D levels (they’d done a test but just told me that they were ok).

Yes I’m doing stretching classes a couple of times a week and doing stretches in the office every day (my colleagues probably think I’m mad when I start doing my ballet stretches in the kitchen).

Ah, well that may be it. DH has Hashimoto's, in the past he's guessed he may need a review and slight dosage increase when his tendons start hurting again.

He sometimes does exercises - standing with the balls of his feet on a step then raising and lowering.

The words of my mother are ringing in my ear ‘old age doesn’t come alone’!

Can I ask about other symptoms, this sounds like me.

Heart investigations then HRT but still the issues.

I wonder if my GP is also on crack.

Symptoms - top to bottom! Dry sore scalp, dry skin, exhaustion, dizziness, aching muscles. Insomnia - which when tag teamed with exhaustion is fun. Stiff ankles. Bit of constipation. Weight gain. Feeling like I'm on slomo. Odd tingly fingers. Nails and hair all dry and brittle.

Emotional- depression, weepiness, short temper....

And of course this was at the times when my periods just tailed off (no issues there, they just tailed off).

Fan-fucking-tastic I say!

Oh and when they changed the make of my pills I spent two days weeping like a crazy woman. I only realised it started the day my pills changed later. So that was great...

Thank go I have very understanding family and colleagues!

@HoneyButterPopcorn thanks ok back to the GP I have most of those.

I thought my ankle pain was due to walking the dogs longer over rough ground to try and shift the 10kg that's piled on in the last 6 months. Hair I've been going through new shampoo brands to find one that make it look like it's not all about to snap.

Sleep I out down to oeri, gut issues peri and tiredness as above.

Humm i wonder why nobody did blood tests and just told me "weight gain happens with peri menopause" I keep saying not this bloody fast.

My bloodline were done mostly because of the heart thing then I mentioned that all my sisters and both rents had thyroid issues (I thought I’d dodged the bullet to be honest) and my doctor kept pushing ‘it’s your age - drink herbal tea and have therapy’.

i had the proper blood tests at the hospital with the gynaecologist (who was raging that the doctor hadn’t considered my thyroid being an issue). I had even told her that my sisters also have very low vitamin D (one has injections) and she didn’t think it was an issue. The phlebotomist who was taking the bloods was lovely and when I mentioned that she said ‘I’d better check for that too’.

then when I was having a thyroid check up they forgot about the vitamin D until I asked them to check it.

When the surgery pharmacist called me with the results she actually told me that since my numbers were now scraping the bottom of ‘normal’ I could stop taking the thyroxine and the vitamin D… I explained that you were on thyroid for life (pretty much) and that surely it was a good idea to take vit d to keep my levels up. ‘Oh yeah, you could do that…’

My consultant called me to check up and confirm its hashimotos, and wasn’t very impressed.

So the moral of the story is - read up, ask questions and keep pressing to tests and to see a specialist.

if I’d not pushed I’d be left thinking I had a problem with my heart. Sipping herbal tea and signing myself up to a shrink.

Hypothyroidism is, I believe quite common around the menopause - I have it too. But fortunately for me, because of DHs prior experience, I was aware of it. I'd had a bupa screening when I turned 50 which showed my thyroid levels to be at the low end of normal, so when I started feeling 'off' (somewhat depressed more than anything else) I went and asked for bloods to be done again and the drop in my levels were clear.

Thanks so much.

I'll get on it, sounds like a potential likely culprit, sorry to hijack your thread but is it just medication then?

I do hope your ankle pain eases up, before you spoke about your conditions I was going to say lots of ankle pain comes from weakness in the hips and knees, and hip flexor movements can really help if you sit lots. But I'll park that 🤣

No hijacking at all - we are all here to share experiences!

I’ve started wearing some heel insoles, and doing barre exercises and qui gong which are both pretty good for ankles and feet so I’m hoping that will help a bit. I am also off to see a podiatrist to see what he says (maybe he will say my shoes aren’t great - I met him a few years back when I was wearing some converse and his face was a picture as he scowled at them ‘they - they are not good for feet…’).

my ‘fantastic’ doctor told me that since my ankle pain seemed to ease off 30 mins after getting up, it wasn’t anything to worry about.

I’m seriously considering changing my doctor!

Ok so I did a barre class (lots of feet and ankle/leg work) and my Achilles/thighs hurt like hell overnight and I thought I’d done myself an injury.

this morning I was only a tiny bit stiff and have been for a run and my ankles are ok!

oh and my doctor advised to ice water for muscle aches. Since I can’t drink alcohol these days (another symptom maybe). Oh and another symptom was getting seasick/nauseous when exercising.