Heel Spur--no relief!

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TacoGibbons
TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have an awful heel spur--not a bone spur, just pain in my heel. I have changed my shoes and bought heel support inserts, but does anyone have any other advice for this god awful pain? Thanks in advance.

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  • strandedeyes
    strandedeyes Posts: 392 Member
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    ice it...take a bottle of water and freeze it and then roll your foot back and forth on it...

    wear sturdy shoes all day long (this is the toughy for me but its what the doctor said i should do)

    see a doctor
  • tammyquinnlmt
    tammyquinnlmt Posts: 680 Member
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    You may have plantar's fasciitis. I have it. I am a massage therapist and getting someone to release the trigger points in the calf really helps. I also use Kiniso tape to support it. I finally bought some Vibram five finger shoes which will help to support the foot and stregthen it. You can also go to a podiatrists and get a custom fit orthotic...but I'm trying to avoid that. I also aternate ice and heat in order to help the body flush out the inflammation. Hope this helps!
  • SUNSHINE1191
    SUNSHINE1191 Posts: 2 Member
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    See a podiatrist. I ran a 5k last March and immediately started to have heel pain which I ignored till July. The pain became unbearable and affected my exercising and my training my dogs, they are agility dogs. By waiting so long for treatment I ended up having surgery in November. I tried several rounds of steroid shots but unfortunately they didn't work. I am still under treatment for my foot and expect to be for the next 8 months. Please don't ignore the pain like I did. If I had sought treatment sooner I would not have had to have surgery. Good Luck.
  • janesmith1
    janesmith1 Posts: 1,511 Member
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    crocs & take either of these brands for supplements: Solgar Glucosamine & Chondroitin / or Schiff Glucosamine & Chondroitin.

    I have plantar fasciitis / heel spurs, I found this all out at heelspurs.com

    I've had it for about 15 years. I wear CROCS....and when I get bad flare ups now I take Solgar Glucosamine & Chondroitin - there are a lot of glucosamine & chondroitin brands out there, and I've wasted my money on them. I can verify that Solgar is the best one. I could not walk, I had to crawl out of bed to the bathroom.....and I took 9 or 10 at a time of the highest strength. But yeah I only wear crocs now. ONLY. I can even run in crocs - they are great!
  • TacoGibbons
    TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
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    Thanks for your advice so far everyone!
  • TacoGibbons
    TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
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    You may have plantar's fasciitis. I have it. I am a massage therapist and getting someone to release the trigger points in the calf really helps. I also use Kiniso tape to support it. I finally bought some Vibram five finger shoes which will help to support the foot and stregthen it. You can also go to a podiatrists and get a custom fit orthotic...but I'm trying to avoid that. I also aternate ice and heat in order to help the body flush out the inflammation. Hope this helps!


    I used to be an avid barefoot/5 finger runner. I swore by them for a while, but then I recently (1 month ago) did a downhill run in them after 2 weeks of no running and thus started the pain. Doesn't help that I wear the same boots everyday and the heels wore out. I stopped wearing the boots and 5 fingers, but it's not enough.

    I think I might go to a massage therapist or ask my PT for help (I have a post-surgery wrist I am working on) and get my calves massaged. I heard not stretching your calves can be a huge culprit for pain.
  • TacoGibbons
    TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
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    See a podiatrist. I ran a 5k last March and immediately started to have heel pain which I ignored till July. The pain became unbearable and affected my exercising and my training my dogs, they are agility dogs. By waiting so long for treatment I ended up having surgery in November. I tried several rounds of steroid shots but unfortunately they didn't work. I am still under treatment for my foot and expect to be for the next 8 months. Please don't ignore the pain like I did. If I had sought treatment sooner I would not have had to have surgery. Good Luck.

    You convinced me--I just had surgery on a wrist injury...I never want to go through recovery again. Thanks for your input...I'm looking up Pods right now. Eek! I hope you're all better--what have you changed since surgery to avoid pain/inflammation?
  • LG61820
    LG61820 Posts: 372 Member
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    For exercises and non-pharm pain relief advice check out the videos on heel-that-pain.com. I swear by their heel inserts. I have also found that a liquid glucosamine/chondroitin supplement is more effective for me than a tablet form.
  • TacoGibbons
    TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
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    Podiatrist appointment on Monday--yay!
  • jsofia
    jsofia Posts: 2
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    what ahppened at the podiatrist..i have a heel spur & has killed my work out
  • vampymegs
    vampymegs Posts: 39
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    I hope you find recovery soon. I have plantar faciitis and have found some comfort. I had 13 weeks of physical therapy, steriod treatments and bought a night splint. I go back to get deep tissue masasges on my calf to release tension at times but that does add up $$$. Good shoes are key, footsmart dot com carries some great products at decent prices ... they even have flip flops with arches :)

    good luck to you
  • marnijojo
    marnijojo Posts: 235 Member
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    I had terrible heel pain for years. I finally saw a podiatrist and he prescribed orthodics (custom made inserts, which were expensive). They helped a little, but not much.

    We tried anti inflamitory meds (mobic), stretching, taping, but nothing really helped. The meds tore my stomach up. I was actually considering a very major surgery where they would have to cut the achilles tendon....then he asked if he could try an experimental procedure - what did I have to lose - I was practically crawling to bed every night because the pain was so bad.

    He used a laser treatment that is normally used for nail fungus - totally painless and non-invasive. It penatrated the bone and reduced the inflamation and thus the pain. After 4 treatments (at $100 each), my pain was gone and by continuing to wear the orthodics, I am 100% pain free!!

    After getting rid of this horrible pain, I was able to start an exercise program, including running and have lost 46 lbs. Good luck to you and I hope you find releif soon.
  • marnijojo
    marnijojo Posts: 235 Member
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    Good grief, after reading my post, it sounds like some kind of commercial! haha
  • TacoGibbons
    TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
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    No no no--you don't sound like an infomercial at all! In fact that really does give me hope if this pain continues on down the line.

    I'm sorry I never got to this post for an update:

    So I went to the podiatrist who x-ray'd both my feet. It turns out I have 3 bone spurs. One on my L. big toe, a BIG one in my left heel (not the one that was bugging me to death) and one in my right heel. He said that is not the bone spurs causing the pain but instead plantar fasciilitis in my right foot.

    Cool.

    I do have insurance, but after recently breaking my arm in a cycling accident and having to have surgery I cannot afford the treatments he offered. (I have a new $4,000 deductible to meet...good timing, huh? because my insurance switched back over to my parents at the first of the year (thanks, obama...but bad timing). He recommended custom insoles, Physical Therapy and a night splint, but I opted out due to funds. He also explained a lot about my feet which was really interesting to me. Apparently a lot of my breaks (I have broken bones in both my feet, ankles and toes upwards of 5 times) didn't heal correctly and for this reason I SHOULD NOT run barefoot (or even walk barefoot) ever again. Balls...that was my favorite hobby for a while.

    So, instead of buying his stuff I went to a shoe store and bought some insoles (Superfeet--Green Insoles--good for my problem) and a pair of really cute Keens. They have helped a lot--while they were VERY expensive I really like them and they have been holding up. The insoles are amazing and I use them in all my shoes now. I highly recommend them. Although--they do get PRETTY stinky and I don't usually get stinky feet so that says a lot.

    I have continued running, but now I wear gym shoes. I plan on going to a nike/running store and finding a better pair that will help even more with my heel.

    My heel hurts everyday, but it's not as bad as before. It gets me down at least once a day and I kinda hate myself for taking for granted the feeling of walking without pain :(

    I am about 20 lbs over weight so hopefully loosing weight will help my feet and when I have more money I might try out the sleeping splint he recommended...although I've considered fashioning my own. It simply stretches your calve as you sleep. Which has helped a lot, too. At least 5 times a day I am stretching my calve for a minute at a time.

    Sorry this entry is all over the place...I'm in a rush and my thoughts are all over.
  • LG61820
    LG61820 Posts: 372 Member
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    I have Plantar Faciitis and have had it for about 2 years. I have a coworker whose wife got it, she's going to an orthopod - no relief. My boss had surgery on both legs, she was guaranteed a cure - no relief. I went to heel-that-pain.com and read all about the self care methods they teach. I also ordered their heel inserts for under $30. I take Inflame Away each day. When things flair up I drink a liquid glucosamine/chondroitin supplement. It is not cured, but most days are pain free or pain tolerable.

    Until you get it under control I would suggest that you put on shoes as soon as your feet hit the floor in the morning and wear shoes all day. At this point I can go barefoot for a time, but I sometimes pay a price later in pain. I also got full insoles from the running store. I wear these in any shoes that the insole is removable and they help a great deal. Dedicated running stores have staff who are familiar with these kinds of problems and can make solid recommendations.

    Good luck to you!
  • TacoGibbons
    TacoGibbons Posts: 136 Member
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    Also wanted to share something: I just woke up COMPLETELY pain free in my heel for the first time in months. I even stood up out of bed and walked without an ounce of pain. I think I owe this all to Jillian Michael's Yoga Meltdown Level 1--I did it last night before bed. I am SO adding this to my w/o routine 3x a week! If you are tight all over or you have Plantar Fasciitis DO THIS WORKOUT NOW! o__O
  • KendalBeee
    KendalBeee Posts: 2,269 Member
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    thanks for this post.....I ignored the pain for a month before I went to see the doc. A week and a half later, it's still not better. I was contemplating just "working through the pain" but after reading all this, I know I need to go back to the doctor and get more help.

    thanks again

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