Just an odd little question... Sort of medical I guess?

[Trekker4747]

I'm not sure why but for some reason I have the odd... "need" to always clench the toes on my right foot, as if I'm making a fist with it. I'm really not even sure why it's partly automatic and compulsive and partly I can't "not do it."

It just seems odd and while it may seem trivial it tends to be painful and stresses my toes but it's hard to not do it. I can if I try and think about it but, well, I'd have to focus a bulk of my concentration to not do it.

I'm not sure why I do this, what it's indicative of, or how to even stop it. Some flat-bottomed socks/inserts or something? I'm not comfortable wearing shoes around the house so that's not an option. A brace or something?

Could this be a sign of something or is just sort of a learned automatic stimulus thing like chewing on the end of pencil or biting your finger-nails that you just have to un-learn?

 

[Locutus of Bored]

How's the circulation in your feet and toes? Do they ever go numb?

 

[Trekker4747]

How's the circulation in your feet and toes? Do they ever go numb?

Not unless I sit on them too long and they "go to sleep", but under normal circumstances? No.

 

[Australis]

I do something like this, I always thought it was just a need to stretch my tendons, make them a l;ittle more flexible.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Well, John McClane was making "fists with his toes" to relieve tension in Die Hard right before Hans Gruber and friends showed up, so perhaps this is a sign of an imminent terrorist hostage situation that turns out to be a smokescreen for a massive robbery. Just keep that in mind next time you're at work.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I think this is a problem only if you can't stop hurting yourself. If you stop foot-fisting* once it starts hurting, not really a problem.

* - I strive to entertain as well as inform.

 

[Saga]

my advice to you is to start drinking heavily.

 

[Admiral_Young]

From my own experience this shouldn't be causing you stress or pain. My big toe on my right foot is fused from my last surgery so I can't really "clench" as normal people can. I mean I can to a degree, but it's very limited and not painful or stressful.

 

[SPCTRE]

I checked with WebMD and they assure me it's cancer and/or a brain tumor.

 

[think]

I used to do that with both feet but not like 47 times in a row or anything just fist the foot so the big toe and other toes would have there little knuckles get cracked then someone said that cracking the knuckles would cause arthritis so... it took a bit but I stopped.. Now i just clinch my jaw when I sleep self hypnosis stopped that once but ,,, it is back now and much worse.. I am losing teeth and such... :&

 

[Trekker4747]

From what I gathered it may be related to stress which... sure.

 

[Melakon]

Keep clenching those toes until you can pick up your house keys with them.

 

[RoJoHen]

From what I gathered it may be related to stress which... sure.

Oh, everything is related to stress.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I used to do that with both feet but not like 47 times in a row or anything just fist the foot so the big toe and other toes would have there little knuckles get cracked then someone said that cracking the knuckles would cause arthritis so... it took a bit but I stopped.. Now i just clinch my jaw when I sleep self hypnosis stopped that once but ,,, it is back now and much worse.. I am losing teeth and such... :&

Cracking knuckles has been shown not to lead to arthritis.

Anyway, I clench my toes too. Not really good for my shoes, but otherwise harmless.

 

[propita]

Similar/different question:

I wake up in the night sometimes, stretching. You know, the kid of stretch you have when you're waking up? That full-body, arms over your head, stretch down to your toes (that's the similarity, curling toes in a stretch) kind of thing. And then I go back to sleep.

What is that about?

 

[SPCTRE]

I used to do that with both feet but not like 47 times in a row or anything just fist the foot so the big toe and other toes would have there little knuckles get cracked then someone said that cracking the knuckles would cause arthritis so... it took a bit but I stopped.. Now i just clinch my jaw when I sleep self hypnosis stopped that once but ,,, it is back now and much worse.. I am losing teeth and such... :&

Cracking knuckles has been shown not to lead to arthritis.

Yeah, the sound is mostly that of small pockets of partial vacuum in the synovial fluid, collapsing rapidly. Completely benign.

 

[CorporalClegg]

Do is tend to happen when you're trying to sleep or even watching TV? My guess is it's some small manifestation of RLS/WED.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

^ Yeah, my first thought was that it sounded like a form of restless leg syndrome.

 

[Spot's Meow]

It reminds me of a type of stimming that I have seen with autistic children. I'm not saying that's the cause for you, just that your description reminded me of that.