Heel callus?

F

fishmounter

New Member
I've got these big hard callused heels. They don't hurt, but then again I can't feel anything in those places, one on the outside edge of each foot. They are somewhat dark colored even when I wash them with warm water, soap and a scrub brush. I'm not sure if it's from walking barefoot around the house and yard (this is warm southern California), or if it's from my dark socks, my slip-on casual shoes or my flip flops. I'm thinking of using my hand held vibrating sander on these places to get rid of some of the hard calluses and make my feet softer and not so unsightly. I wonder why I got this? It sure seemed to happen very gradually. Is it my shoes? Or going barefoot too much?
 

Not crazy about nuts or seeds because of problems with Diverticulitis. I do eat fish, olive oil and green leafy vegetables, so I'm probably getting enough essential fatty acids in the food that I eat.[h=1][/h]
 

Heel calluses or any calluses are natures way of protecting the area from continued use. Going barefoot will surely cause them. Ethiopian marathon runners don't wear shoes. Their feet are heavily callused.

I have calluses on my hands from golfing without gloves.
 
fishmounter said:
I've got these big hard callused heels. They don't hurt, but then again I can't feel anything in those places, one on the outside edge of each foot. They are somewhat dark colored even when I wash them with warm water, soap and a scrub brush. I'm not sure if it's from walking barefoot around the house and yard (this is warm southern California), or if it's from my dark socks, my slip-on casual shoes or my flip flops. I'm thinking of using my hand held vibrating sander on these places to get rid of some of the hard calluses and make my feet softer and not so unsightly. I wonder why I got this? It sure seemed to happen very gradually. Is it my shoes? Or going barefoot too much?
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I think it's from walking barefoot or wearing shoes without socks, anything that causes irritation on the skin, it hardens as a defense. I know my heels get worse in the summertime, when I'm barefoot in the house a lot.

Your best bet is to give yourself some long foot soaks in hot water. You can put something in the water like Johnson's Foot Soap powder or Epsom salts. You can also add olive oil or coconut oil if you like. Once you dry your feet thoroughly, you can use a pumice stone or file to smooth off the callus, or you can use the stone in the foot bath and then rinse the excess skin that comes off.

All these things can be bought in a drug store, or Walmart, etc. You might be able to safely use the sander, but very gently and only on the outer most hardened areas.....don't go down to where the skin is more natural and softer.

You'll have to do this treatment slowly, maybe once or twice a week until all the hardened callus is gone and the bottom of your feet feel soft. There are thick creams made for this that you should apply after every bath and pumice treatment. One brand is Flexitol Heel Balm, it a super concentrated moisturizer and exfoliator, but there are other brands out there too.

If you can sleep with socks on, apply a thick layer of heel cream on your foot right before you go to bed, cover the foot with a small plastic bag or saran wrap, then cover it with a sock. You'll see good results in a week or so if you do all these things, then next time, just don't let the callus get out of hand.

If you want to get a quick jumpstart on it, just go somewhere and get a pedicure, I think you can get one that is given by people like doctors or nurses, no polishes or nonsense, just bathing, callus removal, and massage with cream.
 
I go barefoot any time I can, always have. The problem with big overgrown callouses is that when they're too hard and thick they tend to crack, and they're very painful when they do.

My remedy is pure unrefined shea butter, massaged in every night until the callous softens enough to be flexible. It's great for elbows and knees, wherever skin tends to be rough. I had a strange patch of skin that was like a huge thick callous on one of my elbows that a dermatologist said was psoriasis. I didn't believe him and I didn't want any part of the antibiotic cream he was peddling so I used shea butter on it and it went away. You don't want the lotion bases or other crap they put shea butter in, just the pure unrefined butter that's harvested from African trees.
 
Shea butter is good Jane, that's one of the things I used to use overnight on my feet when my heels got rough. Bought a huge jar of shea butter and another one of vitamin E cream from Sam's Club, lasted for years, still have some of the vitamin E cream, both were too greasy to use daily on face, etc.
 

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