There didn't seem to be much swelling; I used anti-inflammatory pain killers & heat cream (the gentle massage seemed to help soothe the pain too). I didn't seem to lose any strength or flexibility in the joint concerned (ball of the foot) so I think it may have been bruising & strain rather than an actual fibre break. Just keeping the weight off the affected area helped, but it's kind of tricky when you spend half the day on your feet - I find that taking weight of one area tends to put more strain on other areas and eventually causes problems there too!
Thanks for all the advice Doc - I'm usually very careful to avoid damaging anything, but this just cropped up without warning. The pain's gone now, but I'll give it 'til next week before I start classes again to make sure.
A.
[/i]