The big toe seems like it's pretty usefull

September 29, 2006 2:37 AM

Every time I bend over and touch my toes, my left big one goes numb. That can't be good, right?

Sometimes after sitting in front of a computer too long, my legs get really stiff, and I find that I have to get up and stretch for a bit. Today when I was doing this, I noticed my left big toe felt a bit weird. When I reached down to touch my toes, there was a mild pain in it. After a few more times it just went numb. Luckily, once I stopped doing that, feeling was returned. Upon further experimentation, though, I've found that this happens every time.

I'm 20 years old, and I have a pretty slim build. But I also avoid exercise like the plague. If asked, I'd probably describe my circulation as "not very good, but good enough to keep me alive".

Is my toe going numb something to be concerned about, or have I just been watching too much House M.D. lately?

posted by Drunken_munky to health & fitness (10 comments total)

I doubt it's to do with circulation, but rather with the obstruction of a nerve after it exits your spinal column. It could be that you have particularly tight muscles or tendons or the like surrounding that nerve (in your lower back for example), so when stretching the nerve is compressed, not allowing impulses through, causing numbness.

FWIW I have the same sort of thing in my shoulder, where my circumflex nerves get squashed when I lie on my side with my arm extended, and my upper arm gets numb. For me though, I think it's related to a dislocation a few years ago.

Of course, rather than posting on AskMe you might go and see a doctor, probably better advice to be had there...
posted by claudius at 3:30 AM on September 29, 2006

I could, but that actually requires me to go see a doctor. It's much easier to do this first. Really, I guess what I'm asking is "does anybody have any experience that indicates to them that I should take the time to have this checked out?". But thanks, anyway, your comment actually does make me feel a bit better.
posted by Drunken_munky at 3:51 AM on September 29, 2006

When I sit in certain positions my toes/leg might go numb after some minutes. Never that quickly, though.
posted by rxrfrx at 4:14 AM on September 29, 2006

It's your sciatic nerve being pinched. You can try another experiment to see if it's serious: Standing straight, raise your toes on both feet, now try walking with your toes raised. Do the toes on the left foot fall down without your consent? Go see a doctor, I had similar and ended up missing 3 months of work and any numbness was nothing compared to the pain I went through. Oh, and it happened to me partially because I bent over to touch my toes way to fast with my legs straight.
posted by furtive at 5:19 AM on September 29, 2006

Ditto to the above, ditto to see a doctor. It's not a huge deal, but a session or two of PT would do a lot of good in terms of preventing anything worse. Some regular morning stretches should stave this off in the long run. Don't worry, no serious exercise is needed, although it wouldn't be a bad idea, either.
posted by beagle at 5:38 AM on September 29, 2006

I've got the pinkie finger version of this thanks to an elbow injury. All above are correct, this is a nerve getting compressed somewhere, not a circulation thing. It might just stay the way it is -- but it might get worse, and if the muscle stops getting signals from the nerve for a long time, it can start wasting, which can't be reversed. In which case you would get a definitive answer to the question at the top of your browser frame. Nerves are not to be messed around with. See your doctor.
posted by escabeche at 7:14 AM on September 29, 2006

I agree with furtive, that it sounds like the sciatic nerve. I have a herniated disk that is pressing against the sciatic nerve, and it causes pain that goes down one leg. Years ago I thought it was the leg that was stiff. It would bother me from time to time. Then this year the pain was bad, and they did an MRI and saw that the disk was herniated.
See your doctor. Improve your posture. Strengthen your abs(they support your back muscles).
posted by fhqwhgads at 7:33 AM on September 29, 2006

I can not tell you with out sending two of my colleagues out to your home to look for poisons, toxins, molds or drugs.
However, since I can not dothat I personally do not think you should worry about this unless as long as the sensation returns immediately. It could be a nerve inpingment at a number of place--very unlikely it is vascular as it would probably not shut down and return that fast. Toe touches are notoriously bad for you if you do have any lower back or sciatic problems. Do not do them. If you want to strech you legs, back or butt there are much safer ways. Google "safe back leg stretches"..
posted by rmhsinc at 11:12 AM on September 29, 2006

may to many typos-and I meant straight leg toe touches from a standing position--a no no-- as are straight leg sit ups
posted by rmhsinc at 11:14 AM on September 29, 2006

When I fall off the wagon about doing stomach muscle exercise I often get shooting pins&needles up one leg near the end of long walks. Odds are good that if you're avoiding all exercise you've got weak stomach muscles. Do some exercises - what is now a bit of weird numbness can turn into full-blown back pain. Even if you hate it, it doesn't take a lot to keep enough tone to avoid pain.
posted by phearlez at 9:38 AM on October 2, 2006