Stubborn Plantar Wart No More - Success!

Hey all! I just wanted to drop in and give a quick update and show how the stubborn plantar wart, AKA verrcuca, and sometimes referred to as planter's wart, never came back. In fact, the spot where it once was is completely free of any mark or scar!

Last time I updated after photos the wart was gone, but you could still tell I had one there at one point as there was a mark on my skin from the healing process. That mark has completely vanished now and there's no sign of a scar. I'm very glad I didn't resort to freezing/lasering the wart which could be expensive AND leave a scar.

Just a reminder of what really worked for me (it's a very inexpensive and effective regimen!):

1. Duct tape 24/7 for a couple weeks (I actually used Gorilla Tape which can be found HERE)

2. Epsom salt soaks daily (You can get epsom salts HERE)

3. Salicylic acid pads starting week 2-3 & used 24/7 along with the duct tape covering the pads (Very cheap. The ones I used can be found HERE)


Here are the progress photos:


One before photo from December 4, 2013 (**I had already been using the duct tape method, so I had made a little progress, but was nowhere close to getting rid of the wart. However, it looked MUCH worse berfore)

And three After photos from today, August 4, 2014 (Although I had been trying different treatments it only took a few weeks of the duct tape 24/7, epsom salt soaks and salicylic acid pads to do their work on an other wise incredibly stubborn plantar wart)

Another improvement I've noticed is that the area just feels stronger and more normal. A few months ago I was still aware of the spot although the wart was gone. Every now and then I would worry a little bit about the wart coming back. It seems now that my fears can be put to rest because the wart is long gone and I almost never think about it and never have that uncomfortable awareness of the area.

So there it is! COMPLETELY gone! I feel so incredibly relived now that I'm able to go to the beach and the pool this summer and not worry about grossing people out with a big old plantar's wart on the bottom of my foot. If you're struggling with warts of your own I suggest you try the method I used as outlined in the older posts and rest assured that YOU CAN DEFEAT THE WARTS!

**Please post below if you have any questions or comments! I'd love to be able help in any way I can!

Happy wart slaying!

-Rob

***UPDATE***

So I really hit my plantar wart hard after writing that initial post and guess what? It's GONE! 

I didn't stick to the regimen I laid out in the first post, but I did rely on some if it. I used some epsom salt soaks the first few weeks, followed up by picking at the wart with tweezers (I made sure to sterilize them both before and after). I also used some oil of oregano, 10% hydrogen peroxide, Apple Cider Vinegar and eventually salicylic acid. 

Here's what I believe was the meat and potatoes of my regimen.

1. Keeping the wart covered with duct tape 24 hours a day for a few weeks, only taking the tape off to pick it out and apply one of the anti-wart agents listed above.

2. Good old salicylic acid... Believe it or not Dr. Scholl's Extra Thick Corn Removers came through big time for me. I didn't have much success the first time I tried something like this, but these guys worked awesome. It could have been because I was softening it up and getting deeper so that the acid could penetrate better, but I really think it was because of the design of the pad as well. See the cover pad actually displaces pressure to be around the wart (or corn I suppose) when you step down so it gets slightly pushed out of your foot and against the acid pad instead of back into your foot as is the case when nothing is uses, or even when tape is used. I started using these after I had used the tape for a while and was digging deep into the wart. After the acid does its damage to the wart (and surrounding skin to some degree) it will look ugly and start peeling. At this point keep at it with the regimen and persevere!

These are the pads I used... Dr. Scholl's Corn Removers, Extra Thick Pad  <---

3. Patience! It took months after hitting this thing hard to really disappear, but the good news is it continued to disappear more and more even though I wasn't keeping it covered with duct tape any longer or soaking.

And that's how to get rid of a plantar wart!

Here are the After Photos! (Go to my original post to see afters):

These 2 are from April 8, 2014

 




These 2 are from today, May 5 (Cinco De Mayo!)... sorry for the blurriness of the 2nd one.

     

So what's left now is just a little mark of where the wart had been, but there's no wart to be seen and no pain or discomfort. I don't feel anything there anymore. I hope to see that mark gone as well after some exfoliation from walking on the beach this summer.

I'll keep you updated. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions!

The aim of this blog is very simple.

1. Share with you my experience, struggle and successes with a very stubborn plantar wart

2. Help you to find an effective treatment to rid yourself of a wart(s) or plantar wart(s) you're struggling with

Let's begin!

My History

I had a patch of small warts on the bottom of my toes on one of my feet when I was a around 10 years old or so. They were not embedded, but raised. I tried cutting them off with toenail clippers which only caused them to spread. What eventually worked to rid myself of the warts was epsom salt soaks. I remember doing a soak every night for a couple weeks and the warts slowly disappeared, never to return again. Or so I thought...

Dun dun dun!!


Spring 2012 - When I shed my winter socks and broke out the sandals for the warm weather I realized there was a rough and somewhat sensitive spot on the bottom of my foot by my big toe. So I checked it out. It looked like a callus and I thought little of it. It certainly did not remind me of the raised warts I'd dealt with as a child. I figure it would go away on its own within a few weeks.

Time went on and the callus (as I referred to it) refused to leave. So I started messing with it. I poked it around removing some of the top layer of skin and realized it was deeper rooted than I had thought. Still I just gave it time and it got no better. In fact it got worse.

I mentioned it to my father one day who suggested "It's probably just a plantar wart."

I immediately felt offended and frightened that he might be right. I had never heard of a plantar wart, but the "W" alone grossed me out and I hoped my old nemesis had not returned.

My father explained to me what a plantar wart was and how he had had one or two throughout his life that he treated by simply gritting his teeth and digging the warts out.

I felt some relief in thinking that they would be somewhat easily removed as long as I could stand a little pain.

Unfortunately they proved a little less easy to remove than I thought...

Digging didn't do much besides irritate the wart. Although it didn't spread I suppose if I wasn't careful I could have spread warts all over my foot. I suggest you try some of the other treatments that have helped me prior to trying to just dig out the wart.

*If you decide to perform minor surgery on your wart or plantar wart, please be VERY careful to disinfect the surrounding area, your tools and and part of your body that comes in contact with the wart or surfaces the wart has contacted.


Fall 2012 - The wart remained and had fluctuated in degree of sensitivity in correlation with my diet as well as how much direct irritation it encountered from exercise, everyday walking, barefoot walking (beach walking riled it up the most) etc.

One thing that I actually started appreciating about the wart was that it had acted as gauge on how specific foods affected my health in general. For instance anytime I ingested refined sugar, or even overdid it on something like fruit my wart would start to throb and increase in size. Now I already knew that sugar wasn't good for me, however certain foods like high cocoa content dark chocolate (which many health gurus claim is tremendously healthy due to antioxidants and polyphenols) fed my wart so gluttonously that it would throb for 2 weeks afterwards.

On the other hand, one thing that I really did NOT appreciate about the wart at this point was the affect it was having on my body overall. I started developing ankle pain along with some corresponding pains in my knee, hip and back. You see I was compensating for the sensitivity of the wart and favoring the outside of my foot when I walked and stood. I was creating an imbalance that was manifesting as ankle pain and working its way up through the rest of my body. Because of this I made a conscious effort to walked more balanced


Spring-Summer 2013 - It'd been over a year since I first noticed my warty friend and I hadn't made any noticeable progress. The size and sensitivity of the wart fluctuated violently, but I was content that it had not significantly affected my life besides the joint pain I had run into.

I had read about duct taping warts to destroy them, and had tried tried it for short periods of time since then. It seemed to help a little bit and definitely affected the wart in some way, but I had yet to make any real progress with the treatment.

I was getting fed up and started to be more disciplined with my wart treatment.

From then up through mid summer I tried to stay on top of duct taping the little guy and trying my best to suffocate it. I also started trying some other treatments like topical apple cider vinegar (ACV), salicyclic acid (SA), oregano oil, and colloidal silver (CS). They all seemed to help a little bit and the longer I kept the wart covered the more it progressed.

One thing to note is that the SA created much more sensitivity and made the wart look much uglier than earlier. This was probably an indication that it was working, however, it was sandal weather and I didn't want to make the wart more noticeable so I eased up on application. Part of this was also because I was using some of those SA treated bandaids and they did not stay in place very well. I felt the duct tape worked better.

I also began epsom salt soaks like I had done when I was younger and this helped. It seemed to draw the wart out from inside my foot where it could be treated more easily and deprived of oxidation for efficiently by the duct tape.

Fall 2013 - After making a coordinated attack on my foe, the enemy troops had drawn back, but just enough to recoup and reload. I mean, I was making some progress! The wart was smaller and less sensitive, but still there and still a nuisance. I decided to start trying to keep duct tape on my foot as often as possible and combine this with epsom salt soaks when I could get to it. After all life is busy.


December 2013 - I've made some good progress! I felt compelled to start sharing my progress with the web world so you can benefit from my experiences.

This wart has been stubborn, but it's going away slowly. I've kept duct tape on it most of the time and intermittently dig it out, treat it with hydrogen peroxide, oregano oil or ACV and try to get an epsom salt soak in when I can.

Going forward I'm going to take a few weeks and do an epsom salt soak every day, dig out the softened wart/skin and treat it with ACV. Then I'll cover it with duct tape and let it sit until the next day. If that's not enough I'll go the SA route again, only I'll sue gel under duct tape. the next option is to use liquid nitrogen to freeze it out completely.

This is what the wart looks like as of today, December 4, 2013



I wish I had taken picture in the beginning to show the improvement I've made, but I hadn't even thought about blogging about this or even documenting it for myself. I tried just ignoring the thing for the most part. Anyway, I'll be sure to take photos periodically going forward to show the progress I make.

I'm confident that with some or all of these treatments I'll be able to destroy the wart once and for all! It seems to be all about consistency and discipline with the treatment you choose.


What I found that works:


-Suffocation via duct tape or some other adhesive

-Epsom Salt Soaking

-Hydrogen Peroxide

-Apple Cider Vinegar

-Colloidal Silver

-Salicylic Acid (causes a worsening in appearance and sensitivity but it is effective)

-Oregano Oil (not as effective as the rest)

-Healthy Diet consisting of:

• organic, grass fed, free range, unprocessed meat, 
• organic vegetables (I do better with cooked. It's a trade off as you lose enzymes, but breakdown anti-nutrients and plant toxins that impede digestion and assimilation of some nutrients.
• unrefined sea salt (minerals must be intact. Celtic is a good brand)
• healthy unrefined fats from coconut oil, MCT oil, meats, and quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil (must be cold pressed and pass the tests indicated by Mark Sisson here)
• very small amount of fresh fruit if necessary for carbs
• NO processed foods (It's more about exclusion of low quality food than it is inclusion of healthy food. Get rid of the toxins in your food first)
• No refined forms of sugar
• No grains (if a must your best bet it going to be the less allergenic grains like buckwheat, quinoa or rice. But try to minimize them at the least)

*The diet suggestion is a general guideline for how to eat. I've researched and experimented intensively with diet for the past 6 years to determine what I believe to be truth and folly, both in general for humans and how it pertains to my body specifically. You know your body better than anyone so if you're not well versed on the power of proper diet then use this a starting point and adjust as needed. In my and countless others's experiences diet is the most important factor for any health regimen. It is the foundation on which to build your fortress. 

I'll be posting updates on my progress periodically with photos and lists of what I've been doing to treat the wart until it's gone.


What causes warts?

Now one last issue to address. Warts don't just come out of thin air. They are related to a virus known as HPV or Human Papillomavirus. There are multiple types of HPV, but they are all considered viruses and incurable. In other words, one you have it you have it for life. This makes recurrence of warts a concern for a lot of people.

We don't want to spend so much time, money and effort on ridding ourselves of a wart just to have three more pop up right? Well, that should be the main convincing argument for adopting a healthy diet. By keeping the immune system strong you'll be able to at least suppress the virus and hopefully avoid any new breakouts of warts.

Now, I don't necessarily believe that HPV is incurable, but I'll delve into that in another post. Let's focus on the wart that's showing its face right now and tackle the bigger issue on the side! Thanks for reading!

Happy wart slaying to ya!

-Rob