heel pain

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my heels (mostly my R) seem to be hurting. I don't get it. I switch up my shoes. They are all in pretty good shape and not worn out. I have been doing the elliptical except yesterday I walked home from the gym (1 mile). Today they're killing me. I guess I'll ice them after I get home from the gym/work.

Does anyone else have this going on? What do you do? What should I do?

Replies

  • jeeping_mom
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    Dr Scholl's makes a gel heel insert. They're about $5 (pair) at Walmart and are helping me :)
  • etarre
    etarre Posts: 147 Member
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    I had a friend who had a lot of heel pain, and her doctor said that it was planar fasciitis....might be worth checking out to see if the symptoms sound familiar:

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004438/
  • justyourtypicalgirl
    justyourtypicalgirl Posts: 136 Member
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    It's likely plantar fasciatus ... through many shoe changes and lots of advil...the thing that works the very best is the foot massage ball. It's about the size of a golf ball with lots of little fingers...it looks like a dog toy. you just roll your foot on it...that stretches that tendon and that releases the pain.
  • angisnee
    angisnee Posts: 236 Member
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    If it feels better with activity and worse when getting up after resting, it's probably plantar fasciitis. My doctor advised me to wear shoes all day, even around the house. Just something with good arch support and heel cushioning. No flip-flops or slippers. That combined with ice and lots stretching made my symptoms go away in a couple of weeks.

    Hope you feel better soon!
  • candlegal
    candlegal Posts: 220 Member
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    I have had Plantar Fasciitis and it can be extremely painful!!! I also had heal bone spurs-(ridges in the bones of your heal), also very painful, you could have that. Regardless, you should go to a foot specialist to get an exact diag. Meantime, make sure you wear really good shoes with good heal support, they are out there. New Balance makes athletic shoes with really good heal support, not too pricey. Merrell shoes are excellent for people with plantar fasciitis, I swear by them, just the regular "moch" shoes. They made ALL the difference in the world for my plantar fasciitis, honestly, they are worth every penny, I have owned about 4 pair- love them!!!
    Good luck!! Whatever you do, don't do nothing! Get to a doctor sooner than later to see for sure what it is:)
    Julie
  • bisky
    bisky Posts: 1,007 Member
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    I have had horrible heel pain and finally went to see the orthopod/podiatrist. I have plantar fasciatis and a bone spur. He made me orthotics and told me to quit playing tennis for 3 months :(....I have started bicycling again for exercise. I can't even walk dogs for 20 min. without being a cripple. He gave me exercises to do (stretching calf and ankle) and prescribed motrin for the inflammation.
  • knittygirl52
    knittygirl52 Posts: 432 Member
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    I, too, have had major problems with plantar fasciitis. One thing to know about it, and its associated problem--achilles tendinitis--is that they are overuse injuries. That never made sense to me, but when a dear friend who is a physical therapist took me to task, I listened and rested. Frankly, my situation was so bad that it took several months of rest. Then I quickly realized that my favorite exercise--walking--aggravated my issue.

    Now I'm going to say something controversial. I was at a store one day right after the Skechers Shape-ups came on the market, and I had to try them on out of curiosity. I almost began to dance in the store, because it felt as though I was walking on a cloud. (Here I should mention that I pronate, and even in Shape-ups must wear an arch supporting orthotic--so much for cloud walking.) I bought the shoes, and they have changed my life. As nearly as I can tell, the curved sole transfers the impact away from my heels and onto the middle of my foot. I now wear Shape-ups or similar shoes (everyone has them these days) 90% of the time--even to work. I work on a college campus and beyond my walking all over during the work day, I walk several miles most days for exercise. I now have NO trouble with my feet and I attribute much of my weight loss to those shoes!
  • EmpressOfJudgment
    EmpressOfJudgment Posts: 1,162 Member
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    I can't add much to what has already been said. I had plantar fasciitis before and it was awful. It hurt the worst when I first got out of bed in the morning. It sucks because all you can do for awhile is take it easy. That put a major kink in my training at the time.
  • nadia05
    nadia05 Posts: 5
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    My mom also has heel pain. She hasn't gone to see a doctor for it, but she uses the Reebok easy tone shoes and that helps alleviate her pain a lot.
  • barbs2fat
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    I have the same problem, mine trouble me after i have been resting either sleeping or sitting for long periods
    glad to see i am not alone. Must mention that this only started after i started doing exercise. Will take all the advice and see if this eases the pain. thanks
  • distant_dreamer
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    sounds like planter phasitis (no joke, maybe spelling is slightly wrong!) or dropped arches. i have this and agree it is really painful. anti-inflammatory pain killers like ibuprofen help and heel supports in ur shoes. if no better see ur dr!
  • sophjakesmom
    sophjakesmom Posts: 904 Member
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    [/quote]
    I had a friend who had a lot of heel pain, and her doctor said that it was planar fasciitis....might be worth checking out to see if the symptoms sound familiar:

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004438/
    [/quote]

    Agreed! I havd this and it hurts more in the morning when I first woke up. ice will help, so will inserts, but don't ignore it. I ignored it for about a year and ended up with a stress fracture on the top of my foot. (the whole, "heel bone connected to the foot bone" really came home to me. ) I ended up in a boot for 8 weeks. Which actually cured both the stress fracture and plantar fasciitis.

    Good luck!