Finding Pain Relief by Hiking Barefoot

Today, I’m thrilled to share a deeply personal and inspiring guest post from my friend Joan. Joan’s journey to healing is a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit, and the surprising ways nature can help us reconnect with our bodies.

After enduring years of pain and frustration, Joan discovered barefoot walking (also called “earthing”) and found relief where conventional medicine had failed.

Whether you’re a skeptic or curious adventurer, I think her story will give you something to think about next time you hit the trail… shoes or no shoes.

My Journey to Barefoot Walking/Hiking: Finding Relief Through Earthing

By Joan

For over two years, I’ve been a barefoot walker and hiker. This journey began out of desperation, when I was experiencing constant, debilitating pain throughout my body, particularly in my left leg. I could barely walk.

My health issues were the result of three major accidents I had between 2012 and 2019. Also from running long distances for many years, I think.

On 2012, I had a bicycle accident shortly after learning to ride at the age of 58. I fractured my spine, which landed me in the hospital for six days and restricted my physical activity for three months. I couldn’t run for a full year.

I was a long-distance runner for many years. I had completed ten full marathons, including the Boston Marathon. On 2017 and 2019 I had two severe car accidents that jolted me violently, which caused chronic pain all over my body.

However, my running career came to an end after a hiking trip in Sedona five years ago. I developed severe pain in my left leg that made it almost impossible to walk. It went on for over a year, and I had to give up both running and hiking. This made me incredibly sad, but I eventually accepted that my running days were over, but I didn’t want to give up my hiking too.

I saw four different sports medicine orthopedic doctors, but none could figure out what was wrong with my leg. The first doctor suggested it was a meniscus tear but he wasn’t confident enough to recommend surgery. He suggested that I should get a second opinion from one of his colleagues.

The second doctor agreed with the first, but I wasn’t satisfied, so I sought a third opinion. He prescribed a cortisone shot in my left knee, which helped for four months before losing its effectiveness. A second shot lasted only two months, and he referred me to a fourth doctor.

This last doctor told me to “be more careful and slow down a bit” and prescribed Mobic, a strong anti-inflammatory medication. It worked for four months before its effect wore off, and my primary care doctor warned me it could tear up my stomach if I took it long-term. I was getting increasingly frustrated and desperate for a cure.

The pain and inability to hike left me depressed. I missed my hiking friends and our time on the trails.

I was in tears every day, so I started baking cakes and cookies to bring to my hiking friends at the end of their trails, just to see them and feel a temporary sense of normalcy. It helped my mood, but my physical pain remained.

One day, while I was group texting with my siblings, my youngest brother in South Korea told me about barefoot walking, or what is often called “earthing” or “grounding.” I had never heard of it before. One of my sisters sent me a video with amazing stories from people who had tried it. I was skeptical, but I did some research and was surprised to find many positive reports.

So, I decided to give it a try, thinking, “What do I have to lose? It doesn’t cost anything and if it doesn’t work, I can always quit.” Because when you’re in that much pain, you’ll try anything.

For my first attempt, I went to a local baseball diamond. The course sand and dirt on the infield are perfect for massaging and toughening up the soles of the feet. I was astonished when, after just ten minutes of walking, I felt the tension literally draining away from my left hip. I was so shocked and impressed that I walked barefoot for two hours that day. I came home and felt great!

I decided to skip my Mobic that night and see what happens. When I woke up the next morning, I wasn’t 100% well, but I felt so much better and functional for the first time without the medication. I was completely sold. I haven’t taken Mobic since May 31, 2023.

After three to four months of consistent barefoot walking for two hours daily, all the pain in my body disappeared. My back, neck, and leg pain were gone. The pain in my left arm from a second COVID vaccine shot, which had bothered me for over a year, also vanished. The numbness and tingling I used to wake up with in my hands are gone, and my restless leg syndrome has been significantly reduced.

Today, I live a pain-free life, as long as I practice earthing every day. When I can’t do it for a few days, I feel my legs twitching at night, a reminder of what a difference it makes. You don’t know what it’s like to be free of pain unless you’ve experienced it as I have.

It’s ironic, because just before I discovered earthing, I saw a young man hiking barefoot and thought what a crazy guy! Then, I even saw some meetup groups for barefoot hiking and thought, “What a bunch of crazy people!” Now, I am one of them—and a living testament that earthing works, at least for me.

In South Korea, earthing is a huge phenomenon. A whiskey company CEO even built miles and miles of earthing trails with soft clay for people to walk on, complete with shoe racks and washing stations. The last time I was there in April 2024, I saw 50 tour buses bringing people just to walk barefoot on the trail. I wish we had something similar in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In the beginning, some of my friends teased me and called me a “cult leader” for trying to get them to try it, which made me laugh. Others started calling me the “barefoot contessa,” which I happy excepted both titles with honor. Many of my friends have tried barefoot walking themselves and some still practice it. I love my friends to pieces!

It’s not always easy, because some of the trails are very rough with embedded sharp rocks and gravel. I started on baseball fields and gradually worked up to hiking trails. I’m not doing it for fun or to show off. I started out of desperation and eventually it became part of my life.

And that’s my true story.

Thank you for your interest in my story. I hope it inspires others.

Happy trails,

Joan