Plantar Fascitiis

Where did you get the custom inserts? I've recently developed it and it's a *kitten*

I have had plantar fasciitis, off and on, for many many years.
I used to play soccer.
At one point, I decided I have finally had enough. I could not continue to hobble around for days every time after I ran. I had to see a doctor and seriously consider surgery.
So, I got on the internet and googled: PF and surgery.
EVERYthing I read said, 'Oh yeah, the surgery often works. But you'll never really walk or run the same again.'
Yikes! I did not want that.
But then, in the course of these searches, I came across an scientific journal article by a Dr. DiGiovanni from Rochester, NY. In the article, he said that stretching definitely is a central part of rehab and recovery. But it doesn't work for a lot of people.
So he devised a way to improve the stretch. Instead of having people stand on a step and let their heel drop, or prop themselves against a wall, with one leg back, and push. He had them use their hand. He had them sit, cross one ankle over the opposite quad, grab the front of the lifted foot, and pull back to feel a stretch along the bottom of the foot, with the toes bent back too!
Bending the toes back with the stretch is key because it intensifies the stretch.
He performed a trial. He recruited something like 100 people with intractable PF. They all had to have had their PF for at least a full year and been unable to get it better with any of the conventional stretches/methods. He had them do his stretch for something like 8 weeks, three or so times a day.
At the end of the trial, almost 90 percent of these people said their PF was either gone or "vastly improved."
It has worked for me too. Nothing else ever did. I do the stretch and I have Superfeet insoles in all my shoes. Insoles prevent you from aggravating the condition -- setting recovery back. PF heals slowly. You need the protection of arch-support insoles.
Internet search: DiGiovanni and plantar fasciitis stretch. You'll find descriptions of how to do it and pictures. (I now do the stretch by getting into "hero's pose" [yoga], with my toes on the floor and the sole of my foot facing the wall behind. It is a bet easier to do because you are doing both feet at once and, I think, the stretch is even better!)
Good luck. I was scared off of doctors and surgery by what I read.

About that stretching before you get out of bed in the morning.
Very important, it turns out.
The plantar fascia does not heal very well during the day because it is always getting tweaked and torqued as you walk and run. So, the tears cannot mesh and start to mend.
At night, they do, however. At night, the bridged and the knitting of the damaged tissue does begin to occur. Only, it occurs short. Your foot has no pressure on it at night, and the bed covers over your feet make you point them down. Hence, the healing that occurs tends to occur in a shortened position. It is weak. So, you step out of bed in the morning, Much of the healing that took place over night tears again.
It's why the night boot works. The boot holds your foot with the sole in a more elongated position. It's why, the army, which once was the world's expert on PF, because they got so many chubby, out-of-shape kids in boot camp, and put heavy packs on their backs and marched them, used to give its soldiers with PF a pair of stiff, new boots to wear in bed at night.
Stretching before you put your foot on the floor in the morning helps prevent that reinjury from happening.

I have suffered twice from this and first time I went through all the usual - tennis ball, frozen bottles, special inserts etc. However, the one thing that fixed it both times was Cortisone injections into my heal. This was an almost instant fix, I kid you not. Injections one day, not sore the next - absolutely amazing. Don't waste your time with all the other fixes that don't work, ask your doctor about Cortisone injections today. You might think that the injections would be sore but for anyone who has suffered from Plantar Fasciitis, the injections are nothing compared to the original pain.

I had PF for about a year. I tried all the things recommended with no relief. I finally went to the podiatrist where he had custom shoe inserts made for me. They helped a lot, but I still had pain. After a few weeks, he gave me the steroid shot and that took care of it. That was almost 2 years ago and still no more pain. He also told me that my PF was from my daily treadmill workouts and to stop doing them, which I did.

CarolPre wrote: »

I had PF for about a year. I tried all the things recommended with no relief. I finally went to the podiatrist where he had custom shoe inserts made for me. They helped a lot, but I still had pain. After a few weeks, he gave me the steroid shot and that took care of it. That was almost 2 years ago and still no more pain. He also told me that my PF was from my daily treadmill workouts and to stop doing them, which I did.

My husband had to do the cortisone shots and he wished he would have done them sooner. It was the only thing that worked for him.

Tried30UserNames wrote: »

I did all the traditional things to try to fix mine. Nothing worked very well. When I finally got my hypothyroidism diagnosed and got on medication, it was one of the first symptoms that went away. Plantar Fasciitis is a very common symptom of hypothyroidism.

Ditto here. As soon as my thyroid was treated, the pain vanished.

thebuz wrote: »

I had it in both feet for over a year. Mine was resolved with acupuncture surprisingly as physio was not helping. My Physio suspects it was tight calves that caused it and now if I even feel a twinge I do the following stretches for a few days and it goes away. While inserts are great for many people the underlying cause can also be tightness from hips to calves putting strain on your feet.

That's why my podiatrist told me to stop using the treadmill. It was causing a strain on the leg muscles.

CarolPre wrote: »

thebuz wrote: »

I had it in both feet for over a year. Mine was resolved with acupuncture surprisingly as physio was not helping. My Physio suspects it was tight calves that caused it and now if I even feel a twinge I do the following stretches for a few days and it goes away. While inserts are great for many people the underlying cause can also be tightness from hips to calves putting strain on your feet.

That's why my podiatrist told me to stop using the treadmill. It was causing a strain on the leg muscles.

So not actually addressing the source of the problem. That's disappointing.

Oh also look into making sure you are using appropriate shoes for the appropriate activities. This also helped considerably. I never found a need for finding the right shoes until I worked out consistently for a long period of time. Running shoes don't work great for much more than running so I got myself a pair of running shoes and a pair of crossfit/ heavy support on the outside for weight training shoes.

Oh, my gosh. Plantar fasciitis is horrible. I've had mine since January--thankfully, only in one foot! I tried everything: stretching, stopped running, used a tens machine on my foot, massaged my foot multiple times daily, iced my foot, dorsal and posterior night splints, used a golf ball for foot massaging, bought various over the counter shoe inserts.

None worked.

Finally, after 4 months, I went to a podiatrist and BEGGED for treatment. I have had the series of 3 cortisone injections. #1 and #2 did not work. The 3rd one worked--it's been 6 weeks and it's awesome! Thank goodness, because you can only have a total of 3 cortisone injections on each foot. I'm probably 90% better and I continue to massage my plantar fascia.

The other things that helped me:
1. Wearing Hokas at work and for my workouts. Get rid of clogs. No flat shoes/ flip flops
2. Get a pair of hard soled house slippers like haflinger's. Avoid walking barefoot. At all.
3. Get yourself some Superfeet shoe inserts (can be purchased at REI). While you're at it, get a pair of Superfeet flip flops, if you love flip flops. Game changer and they look good, too.
4. Have a pair of custom orthotics made
5. Continue to ice, stretch, and massage your foot even when it starts to feel better
6. Stretch your calves--tight calves can cause plantar fasciitis
7. If you're a runner, get your gait/ stride assessed at a running store, and get good shoes that help correct your gait problem
8. ALWAYS stretch your plantar fascia before you take your first step in the morning

I hope that some of this helps you. Others have given some really awesome suggestions, too.

Cheers!

I agree with the above post about weaning off insoles if possible. PF is often from wearing shoes with overly stiff, supportive soles (= most shoes), which prevents the arches from getting the "workout" they need while walking. More on that here, from a podiatrist. I'd avoid insoles for any activities that don't cause pain, wearing shoes with soles that easily flex. And if you don't walk enough, manually stretch your arches hourly, at least.

I'm a rebel: yoga 2-3x a week, Birkenstocks at home (no flats at work!!), and had already been only using Brooks Ghost w SuperFeet for running (fitted at FleetFeet). I stopped running just to be safe. Lost weight using MFP. Pain is gone! No shots- but if it came back, I would reconsider bc it is miserable.