Your FES experience just means the physio fitting it did not have the expertise to correctly position the pads and get all the myriad settings right for you, I am lucky that my FES is from UCLH Queens Square, the National Neurology hospital where their expertise in FES is incredibly high.
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Just a quick heads-up about the tingling and coldness you’re getting—I actually asked about this and was told that even if the splint feels loose, the angle of it can compress the nerve on top of your foot, so it’s worth checking with your physio to see if they can adjust that tilt just a fraction.
I’m the one with a touch of spasticity where my foot sometimes just has to point, and honestly I’ve learned not to fight it—if it’s screaming at me to point, I take the splint off, shake my foot out, and try again another night rather than forcing it.
Give yourself at least a few weeks of consistent use before expecting any changes, and try it on a weekend night first so you’re not wrecking a work night if it doesn’t go well. The cold is probably just your slipper coming off, but if that tingling keeps up, definitely get the angle looked at ; it’s not something to push through
Pando
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@mattyB Thank you for your comments re the FES. I am lucky where I live that there is a really good facility not too far away and the orthotics department are very experienced. They tried for many hours on multiple occasions to get
the FES to work but sadly for me it just didn’t. To even get my foot to have any movement at all (and that was just it turning inwards) it had to be on the highest setting and I could not tolerate that setting level as it was far too painful. I do have FND as well as having had a stroke so have multiple neurological issues going on which is probably why it didn’t work for me.
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HibRoland @Pando I did wonder if the angle of the splint might be causing the issue so I have altered it slightly and will continue to try altering it to see if it makes any difference. A wedge was supplied with it too so will give that a go aswell. I get a lot of spasms in my foot and like you say sometimes you just have to let it work through them and not fight against it. Hopefully some adjustments to the angle will help with the tingling but if it doesn’t’ I will have to revisit what I need to do. I’ve found a blanket to put over my foot for the cold
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This is a line of questioning I was pursuing with deepseek 
- Foot drop is not caused by muscles pinching the peroneal nerve.
- Rather, the common peroneal nerve (a branch of the sciatic nerve) wraps around the head of the fibula (the small bone in your lower leg) and is quite superficial there. It can be compressed or damaged by:
- Crossing your legs too long
- A tight cast or brace
- Knee injury or surgery
- Prolonged bed rest or positioning
- Direct trauma to the outside of the knee
When that nerve is compromised, it weakens or paralyses the tibialis anterior muscle—the muscle that lifts your foot up. That weakness is what causes the foot to drop (toe drag) when you walk.
So where did I go wrong?
I incorrectly suggested the splint itself might be compressing the superficial peroneal nerve on the top of the foot. While pressure there can cause tingling, it’s not the classic foot-drop nerve. The real culprit for foot drop is higher up, at the knee.
Why this matters for Mrs5K:
Her tingling on the top of her foot and toes is more likely:
- Pressure on the deep peroneal nerve (a branch that runs down the front of the shin and into the top of the foot)
- Or simply the splint stretching tissues that aren’t used to being held in that position, irritating sensory nerves in the skin.
Either way, your original warning stands: tingling = a nerve saying “stop that.” She absolutely should get the splint’s angle and fit checked, because nerves don’t like being stretched or compressed, regardless of which branch it is.
that sounds like a really sensible plan… adjusting the angle bit by bit and trying the wedge is exactly the right way to go, because even a tiny tilt change can take the pressure off that nerve without losing the benefit of the splint. I’m glad you’re not fighting the spasms either; I’ve learned the hard way that when that foot wants to point, you just have to let it do its thing and try again later rather than forcing it. The blanket for the cold is a great shout too, cozy and practical! Give the adjustments a few nights to see how they feel, and if that tingling doesn’t settle down, definitely get your physio to cast an eye over it. Keep me posted on how you get on
I was thinking the tingling might be because of stretching tissues that haven’t been in that position for a long time. That makes a lot of sense to me.
Last night I relaxed the angle as far as it would go and whilst I still had tingling it wasn’t quite as bad so am going to try that for a while before increasing the angle gradually & see how it goes.
Thank you for all your advice & support. It is really helpful.