Plantar Fasciitis

nickymaz

I've been struggling with plantar fasciitis for nearly two years. This injury is in my left foot and a heel spur has developed from it. It has kept me from running for pretty much that entire time.

I have been to several doctors, podiatrists and a physical therapist. So far nothing has done much to help, I've been assigned stretches, I have special insoles in my shoes and several braces. One thing that really bugs me is that each doctor has told me different things and even given my contradictory advice.

This just causes me daily pain and discomfort. I am a 30 year old guy and I really want to be able to run and do the things people my age should be able to do. I am in the military and I'm afraid the longer this issue goes on it may attract unwanted attention from the medical review board.

Anyone have any advice on this issue, anyone make a recovery? Thanks.

Ninkyou

I'm not sure what braces you've gotten, but I got an Ace night splint from Walgreens to wear at night and ooooooooooommmmmmggggg it helped so much.

kamyers1289

I agree with the night splint. I have freaking horrible PF, literally have broken down in tears from it. At the worst, my arches completely locked up and felt like rocks, so hard to the touch both of them. The night splints have helped to make it bearable. I also have custom orthotics and make my boyfriend give me massages in my arches all the time. For the record, the massage hurts but feel so good.

I've used a foam roller in my podiatrist's office before, which helps immensely for the stretching, btw. Maybe look into getting one. It's supposed to be majorly helpful for these kinds of injuries.

FP4HSharon

Go to this Live Strong page that has a number of articles of things to try for it, and most are pretty simple, like calcium & turmeric. Wouldn't hurt to try...

http://www.livestrong.com/plantar-fasciitis/

livedb

Riding the bike (and loosing lots of weight) seems to have helped mine out a lot. Try the bike if you cant run.
The Night splint was so uncomfortable i couldn't stand it.
I did find rolling a tennis ball under the arch whenever i was just sitting would help a lot too.

hereisgone125

I have had it all my life. I have seen different specialists as well, all with different opinions. My feet almost always hurt. Therapy and custom made orthotics didn't help. I can't cure it ,but the things that helps me relieve it the most is stretching my feet before I get out of bed. I sit up, take a towel and put it around my toes/ball of my foot and gently pull it back with both hands. It stretches my tendon and my legs. Night splits help, but are uncomfortable to sleep in.

When the pain flares up, I roll my foot on a frozen water bottle. Sometimes a warm soak in Epsom salt helps. Rolling my foot on a tennis ball helps. And when I'm in tears, ibuprofen helps. If you can, try to wear a shoe that has a little lift on it to absorb some of the pressure when your foot is hitting the ground.

spoiledpuppies

I'm about the same as you -- PF for actually about seven years for me, and now heel spurs. I also tried pretty much everything. Finally in the last several months, I started wearing Merrell Bare Access Arc 2 (bare form/barefoot shoes). They haven't solved everything, but I am running again for the first time. I don't feel any worse afterwards, and that's good enough for me. I don't expect to ever run much distance, but at least 5Ks for sprint triathlons will make a big difference, and I can totally do those now. (Note: if you do try these, definitely ease into them. They'll make you use muscles that haven't been used forever due to the hypothesized oversupport we're used to.)

The_Fat_Friend

Yoga Toes!!

I have this and it flares up in both my heel and my arch (yes, I'm special to have it in two places). Stretching (yoga toes), a hard ball (I use a kong ball that my dog doesn't like, I like the fact it has no give) rolled under the arch, and ice have all helped to alleviate the pain. When it gets terrible and lasts more than a couple of days, I go get a cortisone shot in my foot (most unpleasant experience).

Good luck - it is manageable, just have to find what works for you.

jonmscharff

My wife and I own a physical therapy practice and we treat this successfully all the time. The night braces usually are the most effective. However, take a regular water bottle and freeze it...then roll it back and forth on the sole of your foot.

Ice, ice, ice! It is very underestimated.

seliinac

For me losing weight has made it go away, although I only had it for about a year.

Unfortunately I met a woman of around 60 years of age who has had it for many years and does all of the above, including custom orthotics but still has pain. But my mother had it for years and she says it just went away. She doesn't know why.

I've heard of an ultrasound therapy where they 'shock' it. I know someone who had that done and it helped somewhat but not completely and not permanently.

boatsie77

I went through the agony for PF a couple times. The first time I did the orthotics, taping, ice massages, exercises, 800mg Motrin...in the end I had a cortisone shot in my heel. The first time it worked for a couple years, then it was back. I tried all the other stuff again, not wanting to get a shot--the suffering went on and on for 2 years till I just couldn't handle it any more and got another shot. That was about 10 years ago and it never came back (knock on wood). I do try to make it a point to stretch and massage my feet and wear Orthaheel flipflops and inserts in my shoes at all times. I avoid going barefoot and have dropped a considerable amount of weight. I pray that it never comes back again...I feel your pain--good luck.

xTattooedDollx

I have the same problem. I've found that stretching helps, my foit is always wrapped in KT Tape. I also always wear birkenstock shoes. I rarely have issues now. I'll try anything before I have surgery.

kathuggs

This video covers some treatment ideas for plantar fasciitis. Using trigger points has helped me tremendously. That and the frozen water bottle to roll my foot on.

http://sock-doc.com/2011/03/205/

ETA: I agree with xtattooeddoll about using KT tape. It's pretty awesome!

bsuew

I had Plantar Fasciitis and a torn Achilles tendon and 2 small bone spurs all at one time in my left ankle/heal. Yep I put off taking care of it for too long! I ended up wearing a boot for 19 weeks. The only time I got to take it off was when I showered. It was a LLLOOOOONNNNGGGG 19 weeks. I was thankful that I didn't have to have surgery to repair.

I agree with the brace to sleep in. Doctor said that night was the most important time to wear it.

I hope it gets better soon!

brendansmithptatc

I am a PT/ATC and treat this all the time. There are a couple of other areas to have looked at. Have a PT or Chiropractor look at your back and hips, even a very small problem with alignment can increase the stress in that area or create a minor nerve irritation that causes your pain to be worse (look up double crush syndrome). The other area is the muscles that flex your big toe, these have fascial connections with the plantar fascia and can cause problems. Extend your big toe with your foot in a dorsiflexed position. Hope this helps.

JWB42

I recovered from it several years ago, after the initial diagnosis I got a cortizone shot, then after a week went to physical therapy, did stretches at home as well as iced it. AT LEAST 20 minutes!! Very painful to get the shot and to ice it, Also, resting the foot is a must, you may have to give up your love of running because I understand how painful pf is. I also remember it having to do with my achillies tendon too. That needs to be massaged and stretched to help. I'm sure you know all this but I did recover, it was at least a year of stretching and icing it.
Good luck! Hope you get better soon!

nickymaz

Riding the bike (and loosing lots of weight) seems to have helped mine out a lot. Try the bike if you cant run.
The Night splint was so uncomfortable i couldn't stand it.
I did find rolling a tennis ball under the arch whenever i was just sitting would help a lot too.

Yes, biking and stair climbing are the two exercises I can do for cardio. I have a night splint but like you I have a really hard time hearing it for more than a few hours at night. Thanks for the advice.

Cherimoose

Questions for you..

Where exactly along your foot is the pain?

Does it hurt more when you first get out of bed in the morning?

Can you walk barefoot on carpeted floors without pain?

nickymaz

Questions for you..

Where exactly along your foot is the pain?

Does it hurt more when you first get out of bed in the morning?

Can you walk barefoot on carpeted floors without pain?

I feel pain primarily in my heel and arch. It does hurt more in the morning but quickly warms up and I am able to warm barefoot but it can be painful.

JessicaWhosit

I only recently found out about PF and have had doctors say 'yes' that is what I'm dealing with and 'no, but we don't know what's wrong with you'....from some things I've read here and on other sites, PF seems to fit the bill. I wake up and it's excruciatingly painful to walk. It goes away quickly, but those first few morning steps are killers. As I wake up and go about my day that pain subsides...

What seems to throw the Drs off is that my pain radiates up into my ankle and other parts of my feet. I've had xrays and other tests done to no avail. I'm now trying to find if losing my extra weight will help. I truly hope that it does.

Do the night braces help alleviate the pain in the morning? Could someone link me to an example of what you're using? Thanks a ton!

Cherimoose

It does hurt more in the morning but quickly warms up and I am able to warm barefoot but it can be painful.

Try to walk around in as thin a sole as you can tolerate, to allow the maximum amount of arch flexing. Most shoes have an excessively rigid sole, which - as you might not know - degenerates the arch, which causes PF. Shoes with a thin, flexible sole include Keds, Converse, etc. If they feel too firm, slip in a Spenco Comfort Insole (avoid lumpy insoles like Dr. Schols). Eventually transition to walking barefoot around the house. I used to have PF, and now i run in "barefoot shoes".

Do the night braces help alleviate the pain in the morning? Could someone link me to an example of what you're using?

The best night braces for PF pull your toes upward to stretch the arch - they don't just bend the foot at the ankle. I haven't found anything better than the Strassburg sock. If you find it's uncomfortable for your toes, wrap a spare CD or DVD in an ordinary sock, and slip it in the toes of the Strassburg sock. Avoid walking on it much, or the CD can break.

gmthisfeller

My wife and I own a physical therapy practice and we treat this successfully all the time. The night braces usually are the most effective. However, take a regular water bottle and freeze it...then roll it back and forth on the sole of your foot.

Ice, ice, ice! It is very underestimated.

+1

My wife has this, and her Doc and physical therapist both recommended frozen water bottles. Coupled with a night brace, she is good enough to run 2-3 miles daily.

Sphyk1

bump for later

Derf_Smeggle

Acupuncture, ice, and foam roller or tennis ball to help with stretching and breaking up adhesion.

jeepyj93

I have been off running since the spring due to a sore heel. the Dr's can't even agree what is wrong with it but I have tried stretching and had Orthotics made. Nothing has worked so I have now had Prolotherapy injections and they are working I have only had one and I can feel a huge improvement and having another treatment in Jan and hopefully I won't need any more. My Dr said he has had patience that were so crippled with PF they could barely walk and after 3 or 4 treatments were pain free. I am not yet pain free but it is only tender not so sore I can't walk like it was.

amynoelhall1

I ruptured my PF while jogging two weeks after giving birth (what was I thinking?!?). The recovery took about 16 months. Here's what helped me the most...

1) wearing orthotics 100% of the time. I have a pair in my slippers and was only ever barefoot in the shower. Now I will walk around the house barefoot sometimes, but mostly still use the orthotics. I like PowerStep and SuperFeet.

2) Voltaren gel. Much more effective for me than oral anti-inflammatories.

3) Medi-Dyne ProStretch Plus. This is a calf stretcher with an additional piece that draws the toes up and stretches the PF. I still use this regularly to keep any PF issues away.

Over those 16 months, I saw four doctors, did PT for 10 weeks, iced like crazy, bought a $500 night-splint (couldn't sleep in it), etc etc etc. But these three things plus rest and time are what fixed it.

walkinthedogs

I had very good luck with cortisone shots. I had PF in both my heels about 20 years ago and with the cortisone, religious use of orthodics and stretching has kept it away for 20 years. I know your pain and I'm sorry for everyone suffering with it. My relief came quick and I was lucky.

About 6 months ago I started having heel pain again, but it was different this time. Felt like a burning or pinching on the inside of my heel, numbness and at times intense shooting pain up the inside of my heel. Although the first doc said PF again, I wasn't sold, didn't feel like PF, and luckily 2nd doc came up with Baxter nerve impingement aka tarsal tunnel or some such. Similar to Carpal Tunnel (which I also suffer from). Got my 3rd, yes 3rd cortisone shot in my heel, but this time right on the Baxter nerve and voila, pain is virtually gone! Good luck, I hope you find what it is and what will work for you. Keep searching if you aren't getting relief, you should be getting relief if they are treating the right thing. Chronic pain sucks.

janicebinva

I know this pain. Mine is mostly under control after two years, but I still have problems when I walk a lot. Saturday I walked ten miles and now I'm paying for it.

I have to ask this: when you had physical therapy, did you follow all the therapist's directions? Do your stretches several times a day? Use the ice? Pull your toes back and run in the parts of the arch that are painful? My understanding is that the pain is caused by the tendons being pulled tight and so causing inflammation on the bottom of the foot. For some reason my calves and hamstrings have just always been tight. If I don't keep them stretched, my PF comes back. If I stand or walk for very long in high heels or in shoes without my custom orthotics, the pain comes back. So if you were not very vigilant, this could be your problem.

Here's something else: My brother, who is a nurse, just made me aware of a relatively new treatment you might want to look into. It's called Tenex Health TX. It "combines ultrasound imaging to pinpoint damaged tissue with the advanced TX MicroTip (TM) which precisely breaks down and removes only the damaged tissue that causes pain. this procedure is not invasive open surgery and can be performed in an office or procedure room". Frankly, this doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but I'm not a medical professional. Whatever podiatrist or orthopod you trust, you may want to see if they offer this and what they think of it.

Best of luck to you. I know what you're going through.

MyChocolateDiet

thank you for starting this thread. my foot's hurt for awhile after an old injury and sporadically. thanks to all your descriptions I found the following article and referring back to this thread and the advice feel I have successfully kept it at bay and know what to do if I get a flare up. http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/plantar-fasciitis-topic-overview

OP thanks for starting this thread and I hope the fact that mine stayed minimal by using various of these techniques instinctively helps you feel hopeful to get on better "footing" regarding your problem.


I am currently starting a running program that I am elated to be able to do after worrying about an old back injury and when that was resolved I wasnt' sure my feet would handle it. With careful stretching before and after as well as inflammatory reducing oils and potions...So far so good.