Whats wrong with my toe?

I have pain in the plantar region of my large toe where the phalanges meet the metatarsals. This pain hurts when I stand on the balls of my feet and its a deep sharp pain. My toe has been like this since December 2010 and it has not gone away. The pain increases when I walk or run or after any other physical activities that involves feet. I really do not want to see a doctor for my toe I just want it to stop hurting. I am not sure what I did to cause this pain I just know it hurts.