We know that, especially living near New York City, life can be constantly moving at high speed. There can hardly be time to stop and grab a slice of pizza sometimes!

But when you live with a condition that asks you to slow down and take some time during the day, it is imperative that you listen. This is especially true when it comes to diabetic care and treatment for your feet.

If you live with diabetes and currently do not have any injuries or wounds on your feet, great! You still need to pay attention to your feet to help keep it that way.

And if you live with diabetes and currently do have any injuries or wounds on your feet, that is not something you should hold off addressing for one second longer than you need to!

Why You Need to Make Time for Diabetic Wound Checks

In an ideal situation, problems will force you to make time for them. Sprain your ankle on Broadway and you likely won’t be on schedule to make it to that Hamilton showing anymore.

With the ways diabetes can interfere with your feet, however, our body’s warning signals can be diminished or outright disabled.

This happens due to the nerves in our feet becoming damaged due to restricted circulation and other consequences of diabetes. They are not receiving enough of the nutrients and healing factors from our blood to remain healthy and repaired, and will gradually languish over time.

It can reach a point that you get a cut on your foot and don’t even feel it, because the nerves responsible for sending that pain signal to your brain are out of commission. Your foot is essentially numb to it, and you continue walking on that little cut because you don’t even know it’s there.

When not identified and given opportunity to heal, that little cut can grow wider and deeper the longer force is applied to it. That small cut can turn into a larger wound or ulcer, which is not only much more damaging to the foot as a whole, but greatly increases the risks of serious and sometimes even life-threatening infections.

Reaching this point never has to happen, though—not with some due daily diligence and expert podiatric help when you need it!

How to Seek – And What to Do If You Find

No matter what stage you are with diabetes, daily foot inspections should become a habit now.

They’re easy to do. Just find a time when you can take a look at your feet (such as right before bed or after a shower, when your feet tend to be bare anyway) and give them a look. If you need some help seeing, a hand mirror or the help of a loved one are valuable.

Look for anything that’s out of the ordinary, such as:

• Cuts
• Sores
• Discolorations
• Ingrown Toenails
• Warts
• Corns or Calluses

And that’s it. Seriously. Just a minute or two and you’re out the door!

What If I Find Something?

If you find something, no matter how small, don’t ignore it!

Ideally, you should give us a call and report what you’ve found. We might tell you to keep an eye on things for the next couple days to see whether your body is able to heal things up naturally. Or, depending on how far things might have progressed, we might schedule a time for you to come in for treatment.

As soon as you see any type of wound on your foot, take the time to give it some initial attention. Rinse the area under warm, running water to help remove any debris. Do not use hydrogen peroxide, iodine, or soap, however—these can cause irritation.

Do apply some antibiotic ointment to the area and cover with a sterile bandage. Replace the bandage daily.

Just because you’re taking some measures, however, does not mean you shouldn’t let us know what’s going on! Even if we do not ask you to come in, we still have a record of what’s been happening, which can be very important information when making future recommendations or treatments.

Ongoing Diabetic Foot Care

While we at Brook Valley Podiatry can address diabetic wounds and ulcer if they develop, we still much prefer our patients to never have to deal with them in the first place!

In addition to daily self-inspections, having a regular professional checkup will help prevent many potential complications from occurring. We can keep track of the condition of your feet over time and recommend measures such as physical therapy, custom orthotics, or diabetic shoes to help keep your feet protected and strong.

We also perform vascular testing services to keep track of how blood flow to your feet is changing over time, as well as Neurogenx nerve pain treatment to help maintain nerve health and relieve pain due to neuropathy.

Our goal is to keep you ready for the hustle and bustle of life, but you can’t do so if you’re always running around! Take a moment to call the experts at Brook Valley Podiatry. We can help you develop the best plans for diabetic foot care that will serve you well into the future.

Schedule an appointment with us by calling (845) 352-7507. You can also reach out to us electronically by filling out our online contact form.