The most common cause of ankle pain is an ankle sprain. However, many people are given poor advice and told just to rest ice and take ant-inflammatory to decrease pain and swelling. This can lead to ongoing ankle pain, decreased balance and re-injury down the road. An ankle that does not properly restore movement and strength can also lead to plantar fasciitis, hip pain, knee pain and back pain. Ongoing ankle problems can range from just starting to slow your running down, or aching after running or sport, to it being so severe and debilitating that it is affecting all aspects of your life, and causing you to stop many activities you enjoy such as running and walking.

Many people think that their ankle pain will just go away on its own, only to find it is painful and or swollen following a run.  Many people even have ankle pain for more than 6 months, and then they finally give in and want a solution to fix their ankle pain.

Many people have stopped running, doing sports, going to the gym and has even avoided walking for long periods because of their ankle pain. Unfortunately, inactivity leads to weight gain and more ankle pain. These people remember the days when they used to be active, but now the ankle pain stops them.

Some people have ankle pain that aches at night, or gets extremely stiff at work after sitting for prolonged periods making it difficult to walk.

Many people have been to their Doctor for ankle pain and been told they need time off work, to relax, and pop anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants or even worse opioids.

Did your Doctor do an MRI and say they found nothing? This is also very common. Or maybe they took an X-Ray and said you have Osteoarthritis and you should stop running.

Or maybe your Doctor told you that you are not made to run and should stop. This is the worst advice because this usually leads to an inactive lifestyle and does not fix the problem.

Does any of this sound familiar?

Ankle pain is a common condition in Toronto however what are some reasons your Ankle pain is not going away?

• You have not done any treatment for your Ankle pain and thought it would just go away……but it’s not
• You have recently sprained your ankle and can barely put weight on it and are not sure what to do about it
• You are progressing a running gym or sports program too quickly
• You have a muscle in-balance from a previous ankle sprain and the ankle continues to be unstable.
• Your ankle joint continues to be stiff or “locked up” from a previous ankle sprain.
• You took your Doctor’s advice to pop pain pills and rest however this did nothing
• You tried treatment from another health care professional or physio and it did not work
• You went to another health care professional or physio and they used a heat pack, IFC or TENS (that tingling machine)
• You tried massage however found you would feel a little better and then the pain would just return
• You went to a physio however they just gave you some exercises which seemed to do nothing
• You went to a clinic where you did not get enough 1 on 1 attention because the health care professional was treating multiple patients an hour
• You went to a physio clinic and rarely saw the physio and received treatment by assistants only to be told many treatments later that you need to do your exercises more by the physio when they finally reassessed you.

Ankle pain can lead to life-long inactivity which can lead to being overweight, and chronic illness. 

An ankle sprain that does not recover can lead to plantar fasciitis, knee pain, hip pain and back pain

Bad advice from some health care professionals stops many people from running or their preferred form of exercise

Talk to a Physiotherapist on the phone

Did you know there are many causes of Ankle pain?

• You have sprained the ligaments in the ankle causing immediate pain and swelling
• Tight calves which restrict movement
• A stiff ankle joint from a previous ankle sprain that was not properly taken care of
• An unstable ankle that was not strengthened or stability trained
• Peroneal muscle tendonpathy from poor alignment or ankle instability
• Glute weakness leading to poor alignment
• Increasing mileage or exercise program too quickly
• A ankle/foot pain became stuck because of poor recovery from a previous ankle sprain
• Running with poor biomechanics, massive heel strike, and slow cadence
• There are many other types of ankle pain and for best practice ankle pain physiotherapy treatment an accurate assessment and diagnosis must be made by a quality registered physiotherapist.

The good news is there is help for all of these types of ankle pain

How can you fix your ankle pain in Toronto?

• Make a commitment to getting your ankle pain better! You need to take the first step!  You can contact Shawn Williams Physiotherapy in Toronto and either book an appointment or simply start with a Free phone consultation or Free On-site Consultation.
• Stop sitting in prolonged positions without breaks or switching positions
• Get some quality ankle pain physiotherapy, which includes ‘hands on treatment” in combination with exercise
• If you are a runner get some quality physiotherapy from a registered physiotherapist with experience in running injuries
• Do not accept advice from a health care professional that tells you to just rest and take pain medication
• Do not get a cortisone injection as this will not fix the cause of the problem and can cause damage to your ankle joint.
• A correct diagnosis from a quality registered physiotherapist will be the first step to getting an accurate treatment for your ankle pain.

A Manual Physiotherapy Approach may be the best option for your ankle pain.

How long are you going to live with your ankle pain before you make a decision?

Many of our patients have had ankle pain for months or even years and then found out that it resolved from ankle pain physiotherapy treatment only to wish that they had received treatment sooner.

The longer you wait to start quality ankle pain physiotherapy treatment the longer the ankle pain will stay.

Here are some things that set Shawn Williams Physiotherapy apart from other physiotherapy clinics:

• Full hour sessions with one on one care directly with a Registered Physiotherapist.
• Rare and highly effective Manual Therapy techniques from an internationally recognized post-graduate training program.
• A multifaceted approach to get you back to your active lifestyle quickly.
• A Mobile Physiotherapy service that is provided in the comfort of your own home or your office.

Shawn’s treatment approach uses a combination of manual therapy, manipulation, integrated dry needling, acupuncture, Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization, myofascial release, therapeutic exercise, education and evidence based practice to get you back to the active life you deserve.

If you are in Toronto and would like to know more about how we can help with your ankle pain call or text 416-660-4187.  Free Phone Consultations or On Site Consultations are available.

Read more about Shawn and how his greater than decade experience can help you resolve your ankle pain. Check out Shawn Williams Physiotherapy Home Page and Blog.