Remember this picture from social media? As the story goes, the bride’s mother sent a picture of the dress and the couple disagreed on the color of the dress. It’s black and blue! No, it’s gold and white! The couple posted the picture on social media to have their friends weigh in on the debate. This went viral and virtually the world shared their opinion. Hashtags revealed a person’s stance on the topic #blueandblack, #whiteandgold – this became #dressgate.
So which team was right – blue and black or white and gold? We turned to the experts, neuroscientists, for an explanation. It is said the difference of opinions is based on how our brains perceive color and chromatic adaptation (color based optical illusion). Over exposure and white balance of the photo also played a role in what color a person saw. The actual dress was blue and black – sorry #white and gold.
What can we learn from #dressgate? As your foot and ankle specialist, when you present to our office, what you see regarding your foot/ankle and what we see may be two different things. For example, you have a complaint of heel pain. You ‘Googled’, ‘You-tubed’ etc and diagnosed it as plantar fasciitis. You recall a friend had the same problem so you call and ask them about their treatment. Armed with new information, you begin to treat yourself with little to no improvement. You remember that your cousin had the same problem. He/she told you that they went to the doctor and had to get ‘a shot’ and that took care of it. You decided to make an appointment for further treatment, wondering if ‘a shot’ will fix the problem. After being evaluated by one of our doctors, the diagnosis is completely different. How can this be?
Remember the foot and ankle unit is not an island unto itself so to speak. It is connected to the rest of your lower body. The prevailing response of pain and its location is your perception of what the problem is. In addition to that, you perception has also been influenced by what information people shared with you. Your input is vital in allowing us to properly assess and treat you. You see you problem as one thing (#whiteandgold) and it may actually be something else (#blueandblack). You have come to the right place for an explanation to weigh in on the picture of your foot/ankle debate. Your 1F2F doctor is an expert in this area. We are here to help you put your best foot forward. #BetterFeetforaBetterLife
