When I first started having problems with my swollen foot I bought a compression bandage and wrapped around my foot. This helped to reduce the inflammation somewhat but the real benefit is the reduction of pain. I’m surprised how much compression helps with pain management, it’s more effective than anything else that I tried. Advil didn’t help my situation at all, taking Aleve at night when I went to bed was a little better. But overall, compression and elevating it were the two things that worked best.
Compression bandages work fine on your foot as long as you are going to be sitting or laying around. As soon as you start walking around the layers begin to move around and it’s hard to keep them in place. After using them for a couple days I found it necessary to find a different solution. That’s when I started doing some research on compression socks as there are quite a few different varieties to choose from. The ones I tried first were the Jobst compression socks which are actually dress socks. The toes don’t have any compression so since my toes were swollen I actually cut the toe section off and stitched them up. Since I’m not a fan of knee highs I cut the top section off as well. My wife and kids have been laughing at me all summer because I wear these little black socks all the time. Their favorite is when I wear them at the lake with my Orthotic Sandals, that really makes their day!
The other type of compression socks I found was the compression toe socks which have the individual toes in them.
I found that these worked extremely well at night, but they irritated my feet when I wore them with shoes. That’s why I stuck with my custom black beauties by day and wore the toe socks when I slept at night. I have also been using the toe socks for doing yoga as they had good enough grip whereas most socks are too slippery. Runners use these compression socks after running marathons to keep swelling to a minimum. I must say I like wearing them, they make your legs and feet feel pretty good.
So there you have it, my observations and thoughts regarding the best compression sock solutions for swollen feet and toes. During the day I found the custom crafted dress compression socks to be the most comfortable and effective when wearing shoes and at the compression toe socks were unbeatable.
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