Plantar Fasciitis & Heel Bump

kjarvo
kjarvo Posts: 236 Member
edited November 21 in Fitness and Exercise
This is a long post for advice from anyone that has had anything similar (I'm in the UK btw, so I am in our NHS which you can't generally refer yourself to anything medically unless you go private)

I have had plantar fasciitis (at least that's what I think it is) for 8 months now on and off. It is normally ok but if I wear ballet flats for a day it starts to hurt again so I try and avoid them. I normally wear doc marten shoes as they are more supportive. I have just moved house for a new job so I am walking a lot at the moment about 70 minutes + each day.

However, lately, it has come back even though I am wearing my doc martens everywhere. The pain is not in my heel, but it is more of a ripping feeling in my arch right in the middle. Sometimes it feels like a rip and other times it feels like when you have a blister on your arch and you stand straight and can feel the water going round the side and pressing against the blister (a bit of a disgusting explanation I'm sorry).

I have been to the doctor's but they just say straight away it is plantar fasciitis without really looking into it. I am getting my heel diagnosed because I have a bump like this:

problems-heel-bumps.jpg

which I have had an x-ray for and they said it is just inflammation/soft tissue.

One doctor said my arch is putting pressure on my achilles tendon and causing the bump. I went to a specialist musculaskeletal clinic and she said I have quite flat feet and this could be putting pressure on my arch and has arranged for me to get custom fitted orthotics. I also went to a podiatrist (I was referred to a few things) and she said straight away without me explaining that is was plantar fasciitis but I also don't have much stretch in my big toe but she said that my doc martens were a bit narrow and from what I have seen on the internet, some people swear by crocs which are wide fitting. So I don't really know what is causing it.

Has anyone else had a similar plantar fasciitis? Will I just be stuck with wearing orthotics forever or are there any alternatives? Does stretching your calves help and rolling or stretching the arch? or will this causing more tears

I like running and I would ideally like to run 3 times a week. I also like tap dancing and ballet which I am just getting back into. Will the ballet help strengthen my arch or will this cause further damage. I would also like to do pointe at some point in my life and do you think this is an absolute no no? (I forgot to ask this at the clinic, she didn't see a problem with me carrying on running though).


Thank you for any help

Replies

  • XavierNusum
    XavierNusum Posts: 720 Member
    I've know a few people, including myself, that have dealt with "heel spurs". Stretching, rolling and basic mobility has been the best medicine. In my wife's case she lost some weight, but I don't know if that is part of your issue. Try some of these stretches.

    towel_stretch_plantar_fasciitis.jpg
    3288727_orig.jpg
    This one with a frozen water bottle, baseball, lacrosse ball or starting out a tennis ball. (hurts less at first)
    youtube.com/embed/9c9HyJZx8bQ?hd=1

    and more videos here
    heel-that-pain.com/
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    kjarvo wrote: »
    Will I just be stuck with wearing orthotics forever or are there any alternatives? Does stretching your calves help and rolling or stretching the arch? or will this causing more tears

    Stretching the arch usually does help. The best approach is to stretch it hourly, and also wear a Strassburg Sock, to stretch both the arch & calf/Achilles while you sleep. If they don't have them in the UK, you can get it on Ebay.

    Orthotics, or insoles like Superfeet, can help prevent pain during exercise, but don't wear them for activities that don't actually hurt, because they will weaken your arch even more. PF is usually caused by wearing overly supportive footwear, which weakens & degenerates the arch. So try to gradually wean yourself of the Doc Martens, and transition to shoes with a thinner & more flexible sole. Feet need to flex often to stay healthy. :+1:

    The heel lump might be something called a Haglund's deformity:
    atyourfeetfootcare.com/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-haglunds-deformity/
  • happysquidmuffin
    happysquidmuffin Posts: 651 Member
    I had really bad problems with severe pain in the arch of my foot when walking and I believe it was plantar fasciitis, though never got it diagnosed. I think the problem was worsened by using badly made slip resistant shoes (had to wear them when I worked in a restaurant), and nowadays I notice a little tightness and pain if I walk around in flats or sandals too long, but now that I'm way more active and walk a lot in tennis shoes (no more restaurant job either), the problem seems to have mostly gone away. I've never had a lump on my heel though, that looks painful.
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
    I put supportive insoles in all my shoes. The ones I use are not custom. They are on he shelf. I get them at the running shoe store. (Superfeet, here in the US.)
    The insoles really help you from continually re-aggravating it, which is one of the reasons PF is so hard to get better.
  • bkthandler
    bkthandler Posts: 247 Member
    Also stretch out your calves. You can use a massage stick or even a rolling pin....also there is a channel on You Tube called sportskool that has a workout for foot and ankle pain.
  • angelexperiment
    angelexperiment Posts: 1,917 Member
    Hi. You need to go to a running store and be fitted fir shoes. Doc martins are geavy and do not have arch support. Your shoes are too tight you need a wide shoe with a mid sole arch support a stability shoe. I have this issue too. No flats. You need support in yoyr foot.
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