Plantar Warts
I can happily say that my plantar warts are gone right now. I didn't use crazy treatments to achieve success. I went through pretty much every over-the-counter remedy known to humanity (and some crazier ones as well - banana peel taped to your foot anyone?) I finally found the remedy - holistic charms placed overnight on the warts coupled with daily prayer wishing... okay I'm just kidding.
My plantar warts came into existence five years ago when I attended an army reserve course and used
communal showers. Although I heard the dire warnings of fungi and viruses waiting to attack human feet, I didn't care... I hopped into those showers on a daily basis with nothing on my feet, confident that I wouldn't contract any of those terrible diseases. A couple of months after the course ended, I noticed a small lesion on my right foot (I realize this is a left foot, but you get the point) demonstrated by the white dot in the photo to the left.So I said to myself "this is pretty disgusting looking, and these things hurt when I run - I should probably burn these off with some acid or something." I went down to Walmart and picked some up. I started by putting over the counter acid patches and liquids on the wart, but nothing worked. After awhile, the warts began to spread across the "pad" and ball of my right foot.
All my effort did nothing. In fact, the warts got bigger and spread to my other foot. A couple of years had passed since the warts first showed up. I started going crazy. I soaked my feet in hot water for an hour every night for a good month and followed the soak by sawing down the warts with a foot file. Following that, I put acid or some other product on the wart. Large chunks of my foot sole came off along with pieces of the wart. It still didn't work. I went through periods where the warts seemed to be losing the battle, so I would ease off on the treatments (because my feet obviously hurt as well), and a couple of weeks later things would need treatment again.
I would sometimes give up for a month or two - just allowing the warts to do their own thing. I had read that usually the warts will just die off, and that sometimes it just takes awhile for your immune system to kick in. I was like "that sounds like it sucks less than burning my feet with acid every two days so I'll give the immune system thing a try." I however, am an avid runner, so the warts would grow, become pretty irritating to run on, and I would break down; soaking, filing, and re-starting my cycle of warts. During this time period I attempted to use the following remedies:
I think the filing actually did more to just spread the warts around over my foot. The photo to the right demonstrates where the warts had spread as of approximately January 2008.
I decided it was time to sort things out. I was frustrated, my feet were uncomfortable to walk on, and I basically just hid them in socks all the time. I decided to ignore my anxiety and went to see a podiatrist.
Here is the main thing I want you to remember if you ever go into a podiatrist's office: They are foot doctors. They basically just stare at gross foot problems all day long. There is no reason to be embarrassed, shy, or uncomfortable with them as they have seen the absolute worst that the human foot has to offer. You sit in a big chair with legs that raise up so the podiatrist can examine and work on your feet. The doctor came in, looked at my feet and said "these are pretty bad, hey?"
"Yeah" I responded back. This was the start of a treatment process that spanned January - June 2008. The podiatrist used a scalpel to cut down the wart (scraping the surface of the wart). It was an uncomfortable sensation, but it definitely didn't hurt 95% of the time. Even when it would hurt, it would only be a little bit, nothing that would make me scream out in pain. After scraping down the warts, he applied a solution called Cantherone-Plus. It didn't hurt right away, but caused some pain two-three hours after application (it takes even longer for some people). Basically this solution is a blistering agent extracted (or synthetically created) by beetles. It causes the area of skin to which it is applied to blister. This cuts off the blood supply to the wart, and causes a pocket of fluid to collect beneath the wart. When the blister calms down, it peels off in the same way as a regular blister. Let me be clear - the blisters fucking hurt. I was lucky, because I did not have blisters on my heels, but I was basically out for a couple of days after having this stuff applied. No running, painful walking - generally not fun at all.
On some of the smaller warts, the podiatrist used a product called silver nitrate sticks. I didn't know it then, but these sticks would eventually be the product that would solve my foot problems once and for all.
I went to the podiatrist prior to leaving for a summer posting with the military. The podiatrist gave me one final treatment with the cantharone and sticks and suggested I take along some silver nitrate sticks of my own to use during my time away. In Canada, these sticks can't be purchased without a prescription - but some pharmacies don't care if you tell them your doctor suggested them. You can also find them on eBay or here from a pet supply store: http://www.petsupplies4less.com/Silver-Nitrate-Rx-100-Sticks--pr--012181?utm_source=google_base&utm_medium=cpc
My summer job was in an isolated place that only had gravel roads - so I did a lot of running on gravel. It hurt the plantar warts. I think that the trauma to my feet may have factored into the healing just because it might have destroyed the capillaries nourishing the wart infected tissue.
When they started hurting, I decided to give the sticks that I had brought along a try. I didn't apply it gingerly. I used one stick per wart. It takes time to rub it all in. Basically you just dip the stick into some water and then rub it on the wart. It takes time for the stuff to dissolve into the wart. I suggest doing it before bed as it will give it time to sit on the sole of your foot.
The weird thing about this material is that it does not hurt. It does, however, stain skin a silver-black colour, and it takes about 4-6 hours for affected skin to change colour. Wear latex gloves - otherwise any water that comes into contact with your hands will change your skin colour. So be sure to have something protecting your hands or people will ask questions and you will look like you don't wash your hands. (Haha). I used the product pictured below - Grafco silver nitrate applicator sticks. They are about 6 inches long and worked within about a month (with one treatment).
I hope this works for you. It worked for me and I have now been free of warts for six months. In the near future I will write a post which explains how to apply this step-by-step. Good luck in getting rid of your warts.
