Plantar Fasciitis- Anyone else in the same situation

I use to have it to. The 2 things I found to work the best was stretching (physical therapist gave me some exercises) and losing weight. One of the stretches I did was to put my toes on a step and push my heels down. Another one was to sit on the floor with my legs straight out and put a towel around the balls of my feet and pull towards me. Both stretches would hurt while doing it but then would feel better.

http://www.aafp.org/afp/2001/0201/p477.html

I froze a water bottle and roll it under my foot after exercise. The stretch where you are standing in front of a wall and leaning forward has helped me the most. I don't know how to explain in properly so maybe you can google it.

I had it for over a year. I got it from running in regular running shoes. I switched to Vibrams and it worked itself out. I also did and still do, a lot of stretching for that area. You can find stretches and exercises for it on Youtube.

I looked this up on the internet to see how I could treat this at home also. This is what I did: 1] found some really good shoes that have a lot of cushion in them. 2] put the Dr Scholls insoles in them. 3]found some good stretches and exercises to help stretch out my foot. I still have some pain but not at much as before. I totally understand how you feel, my doctor told me that I needed to do water aerobics or swim. Swimming is not an option since I have an old shoulder injury. I have lost 55 lbs and hope to lose the rest with using the above techniques to keep the pain away. Good luck with your weight loss!

I've had this for years! What has helped me is rarely going barefoot/sockfoot. I have a pair of Croc flipflops with arch support that I wear all the time in the house. All my shoes are decent quality and have arch support. I also invested in good sneakers for the gym and running. I did wear custom insoles for years but since buying proper sneakers I haven't had to wear them. The other thing that helped was losing weight. I guess less stress on the foot

Good luck ... hope you can finds ways to cope like I have.

I suffered with it quite some time ago and a physical therapist told me to fill a water bottle half way up and freeze it. Once frozen use it to roll the arch of your foot on to stretch it out and the ice brings the inflammation down as well......it's a two for one exercise. Stretching your calves will help tremendously as well. Foam rollers work really good for stretching your calves and other muscles for that matter. Strengthening the muscles in your feet/ankles/calves using a Bosu works REALLY well too! Good luck I hope that it heals soon.

I worked out through plantar fasciitis for about a year and a half. I ended up developing a heel spur and just had surgery to remove it and loosen my fascia about 4 weeks ago. I would highly recommend that if your doctor tells you to reduce the intensity of your workouts, you should listen. I did not and it ended up with surgery. Do the stretches, ice your feet, wear the insoles and reduce your intensity (that isn't to say stop working out entirely - you can still lose weight at a reduced intensity) or you could end up like me - barely able to walk 4 weeks post-surgery.

I get it off and on with seemingly no consisitency. It sucks! MIne 'seems' to be related to overdoing it with running, an extreme heel scrub pedicure and flip flops (which I live in).
I started to roll my foot over a tennis ball for a couple of minutes at a time and its been about a month since I have had any pain. I would totally listen to your doctor!

I had it, until I recently lost 18 pounds.

First, don't be discouraged by the pain. It does not take a big weight loss to feel much better. My pain completely disappeared after I dropped 15 pounds. As for treating the pain, follow the advice of your podiatrist but I can tell you what helped me.

1. ALWAYS wear shoes. I kept crocs by my bedside for nighttime bathroom trips. The ONLY time I went without shoes was in the shower. Avoid flip flops, they tighten the plantar fascia and make things worse in the long run.

2. wear a night splint. I see they sell them on Amazon and drugstores now. Read some reviews and pick one. Back when I got mine, I had to order through an orthopedic surgeon and it was expensive and massive. Now, the splints are smaller, easier to sleep with. A night splint makes a huge difference, esp in your AM pain.

3. Before you stand, after sitting for a while, do plantar fascia stretching exercises...look them up, they're all over the web.

4. After you've been walking, or on your feet for a while, ice the fascia. I found a frozen water bottle works best for this.

Good luck and keep up the good work!

EDIT: BTW, it's an inflammatory process and it will burn itself out but I had my last round of PF for about 3 years, so it can take a while. Plus, like I mentioned, losing weight was a tremendous help.

I used to have PF - luckily weight loss and regular activity made it go away.

Not sure where you got your insoles or if you had any guidance but I'd suggest going to a good athletic/running store with staff who are actually trained in knowing how to get the perfect fit for your feet and your stride.

Don't just wear good supportive shoes when you're working out, wear them as much as you can. If you're wearing heels a lot, try wearing flatter shoes with as much support as you can get. They might not be super cute but if you want to continue being active, you need to take care of your body first.

I have it too....terrible pain. Mine hurts worst in the morning & after working out. My doc gave me a **** of Ketalog(sp?)...anyway the **** hurt like hell!!! Given right in the arch of my feet!! It did help though - immensely!! And I did the towel stretches & frozen water bottle rolls too!! Good luck....it certainly isn't fun.

I struggled with it for over a year. I have been pain free for 6+ months

The suggestions here are all spot on. You need to be disiplined and do the stretches, ice, massage every day.

Loose weight and get fitted for quality running shoes

I used to have this for a couple of years. Once I purchased a comfortable pair of good fitting well-cushioned shoes, it went away. I have spurs on my heels, but I haven't had heel pain in years, and I am severely obese. It's all about wearing good shoes. Merrells were the brand that worked for me. You may have to find your own. I didn't need inserts either.