Heel pressure/ pain

[Chesapeake]

No matter which hammock I'm in or which way I hang it, every night I get woken up by hellacious pain where my heels contact the hammock body. Sometimes it wakes me up, other times Ill feel it when I get up in the middle of the night to pee, but it seems to happen almost every night. Some times it'll be both heels, or times just one depending on how Im laying. I normally don't move vary much at all when I sleep in my hammocks, and its the only place I can fall asleep on my back and stay that way all night. I don't get the pain anywhere but in my heels. I've tried raising the foot end more, crossing my ankles, doing the" figure 4", everything I could think of and still no relief. What am I doing that's causing this? Is it just because Im soooo comfortable that I'm not moving AT ALL and the pressure on my heels over the course of several hours is causing the discomfort? Tonight I'm trying the only other thing I could think of : steal one of my teenage daughters 500 pillows and slide it down into my Burrow. Its a small thermarest piillow, so its pretty comfy to begin with. Plus I'll get some extra warmth from it too I imagine. Does this happen to anyone else? Or am I just extremely comfortable for too long? What say you???

[lost4good]

I have felt the same pains, not every night, but enough that I started using a ThermoRest sit pad slightly inflated which has eliminated the pain. Hope that helps!

[johnspenn]

When i sleep in a hammock I typically move and adjust much less than when I'm in bed.

That said I have never experienced the kind of discomfort you're talking about. Not much help i know.

There's another current thread that is discussing someone's feet/heels falling asleep. Maybe his and your problem are related.

[Scouter811]

I had the thing this past summer during a week long summer camp. I was using my older grand trunk which is pretty short. I switched to a wide 11' long hammock in 1.6 beacon from Dutch. Fortunately it was quick to arrive and I was able to use it a week later at another summer camp event. I don't know what all helped but I think that the combination of a longer hammock, a wider hammock, a built in SRL, and a firmer fabric all helped me to get a better lay and resolve my heal pain. I think I tried a makeshift pillow from a sweatshirt on that first trip and I believe that helped. The problem I had with crossing ankles was that I found that just as uncomfortable as the heal pain.

I hope you find a solution. You may have already tried all this but at least know you aren't alone in this pain.

[brutalguyracing]

What hammock do u use?
Have you tried experimenting with hang angles



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[Phantom Grappler]

I have a WildernessLogics custom LiteOwl. Marty used 1.6 Hexon wide for my 12 by 6 hammock--very comfortable! There is some weight and bulk added and I needed a larger bugnet and my tarp is larger than average. This is my go to hammock!


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[Shug]

May take getting used to the full lengthUQ. Hammock may not expand as much. Think I have experienced the same thing from time to time.
Shug

[Dman62]

Just happened to me 2 nights ago. Been sleeping in the same hammock for about 10 months now. Strange.

[hutzelbein]

That's one of the many reasons why I like to have an old feather pillow under my legs when I sleep in my hammock at home. It takes a lot of the pressure from the heels and allows for an even more comfortable sleeping position. Calf ridges are a thing of the past with a pillow as well. When I'm hiking, I put clothes into a stuff sack and put that under my legs. Not as nice as a feather pillow, but it works.

[Phantom Grappler]

That's one of the many reasons why I like to have an old feather pillow under my legs when I sleep in my hammock at home. It takes a lot of the pressure from the heels and allows for an even more comfortable sleeping position. Calf ridges are a thing of the past with a pillow as well. When I'm hiking, I put clothes into a stuff sack and put that under my legs. Not as nice as a feather pillow, but it works.

Longer and wider hammock make calf ridge less likely--but calf ridge can happen in any hammock. Plus 1 on pillow under knees hutzelbein! Another way to get rid of calf ridge temporarily--while in hammock (on your back) pull knees up to your chest, then dig heels into hammock fabric as close to your butt as you can, then push heels downward (towards ground) as you extend your hips and knees back to your original sleeping position. This move will pull that wrinkle (calf ridge) out from under you. And you can similarly tug hammock fabric towards edges on your head end too.
Or you can go to a longer wider hammock--it ain't for everybody due to pack weight and volume if you're cranking out the miles!


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