In the last year I've been diagnosed with bone spurs in both heels (under the foot and sticking into my Achilles tendon) and have flare-ups of pain that make it difficult to walk much at all. I've gone from being a keen walker who could easily walk all day to someone who can barely put any weight on my heels when it's bad. As far as I can ascertain from my doctor and physio, there's nothing much that can be done to help and it's a condition I'm going to have to learn to live with.
My partner of 21 years is really struggling with this. He's fitter and stronger than ever after retiring at 60 a couple of years ago. Over the last few days of beautiful weather I've been having a really painful time with a flare-up of inflammation. I sent him off with friends for a few days, walking and kayaking and cycling without me. He came back yesterday and he's prowling around the place, chiding me for not going out into our garden to help him with all the weeding and maintenance (we have a large, lovely garden that I used to be very involved in). He's just made a huge show of washing my car for me and has basically said that if I'm not capable of doing some light work in the garden or cleaning my own car, then what use am I? Trying to explain that walking is, at the moment, very painful for me doesn't help. He says he knows, and he wishes he knew when I'd be over it. I point out that I may never be over it: it's something I'm probably going to have to live with for ever. He's just slammed out into the garden again muttering. Has anyone else been through anything similar? I can't help but feel that we're going to have to separate. I can't go on like this.
Kate Garroway-Care at home costs