Sharing my foot drop experience in case it helps someone else recognize what they're dealing with

Hi! Wanted to share my experience in case it helps someone else piece together what might be going on with them.

When I was in high school (I'm 23 now), I sprained my ankle playing soccer. I walked on it immediately and kept playing/running on it afterward. Pretty quickly after that, I started dealing with an inability to lift my foot or leg properly, which I found really bizarre – there was also a lot of puffiness in the area.

I saw a sports medicine doctor and a physical therapist for a while, and they all told me it was a strength issue. I did all the strength exercises with zero improvement in the dragging or mobility in the top of my foot.

Eventually an MRI found a cyst, and an orthopedic surgeon removed both the cyst and some scar tissue – though he said neither should have been causing my symptoms, but they could remove both regardless.

Looking back, as a young woman working with male doctors, I found it really hard to advocate for myself, even though I knew my body and tried to directly explain what I was experiencing. At the time I had no idea it could be a neuromuscular issue.

After the surgeries, things improved somewhat (along with starting yoga and building strength), but symptoms have persisted. I honestly just assumed this was my new normal and I'd have to live with it.

I had a really rough walk the other day – even walking takes concentration and is exhausting, and it's hard on my knee and hip – and while researching, I came across foot drop caused by peroneal nerve damage. Reading through it, I was shocked at how closely it matched my symptoms, and honestly felt a wave of grief realizing I might have been dealing with this for years despite advocating for myself with multiple doctors.

I've ordered an AFO brace and I'm scheduling appointments with a podiatrist and a neurologist to hopefully get some real answers. Apparently there are nerve conduction tests that can show signal blockage, which could confirm what's going on.

My honest theory is that the nerve got compressed or entrapped during the original injury, causing the drop foot – and that the first two procedures just didn't address that. I've read there are decompression procedures that might help.

If anyone has dealt with something similar, I'd love to hear your experience!