Plantar faciitis

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shannon_stallone
shannon_stallone Posts: 136
in Fitness and Exercise
Has anyone ever had this??? I've been ignoring going to the doctor, but I"m finally giving in after a month of pain....For people that have experienced this what symptoms have you had?? I'm almost 70% sure I have it or it could be a stress fracture I don't know....Its awful pain, radiating around my entire foot around my toes...I'm a server and I love doing my cardio but have found I have to rest my foot to get any kind of relief

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  • tam120
    tam120 Posts: 444 Member
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    When I had it, it was in the heel and up the back of my foot not radiating around my foot and def not in my toes. I suggest going to the doc and get a diagnosis.
  • chrissaucier
    chrissaucier Posts: 271 Member
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    I have had the same a few times,once in my heel and now on the ball of my foot to my toes. I find anti-inflammatories- like motrin and naprosyn help some, but stretching the bottom of my foot on a tennis ball helps the most.
  • Larius
    Larius Posts: 507 Member
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    I have/had PF bad. Daily stretching relieves all symptoms for me. I find the runner's stretch works best. 30 seconds each side every morning and I was good in 2 weeks. Attempting pic below...
    runners-stretch-224x300.jpg

    Edit: This stretch should not be painful at all. If it is, don't do it. Something else may be wrong.
  • AZTrailRunner
    AZTrailRunner Posts: 1,199 Member
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    I had it this year. Hurt mostly in the mornings, heel pain, but not into the toes.

    I frequently stopped to stretch my calves.
    I would roll my foot around on a tennis ball
    I would stand with my toes on a step, and drop my heels.
    I wore my Vibram Five Fingers (to stretch the calves and tendons).

    It usually stops hurting during a run because you are stretching the tendons in the bottom of the foot. It's when they tighten back up while sitting/ sleeping that the pain returns on your first few steps.

    Mine came and went for several weeks before going away altogether.
  • Hfxgal
    Hfxgal Posts: 57
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    Yeah, I had it about two years ago,,,,it took almost 6 months before it was better. Both my mom and I had it at the same time, so we hobbled around like two old ladies...lol
  • LngHrDntCr13
    LngHrDntCr13 Posts: 41 Member
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    I haven't been to the doctor yet but I'm 99% sure that I have plantar faciitis. At work I'm on my feet all day. The pain starts off in the center of each heel and it spreads to both sides of each foot. It spreads up the foot but it doesn't make my toes hurt. The ball/arch of my feet ache terribly. I take tylenol & ibuprofen to deal with the pain but even those don't make it go away completely. Massage is what I've found to help the most. I read online somewhere that the doctor can give you cortisone shots in the heel to help with the pain. I'm kinda leary of that though. . . :noway:
  • ecaz
    ecaz Posts: 115
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    See a doctor, but in the meantime roll your foot on a frozen water bottle to help relieve the pain.
  • pattymahaney
    pattymahaney Posts: 1 Member
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    it's usually the arch of your foot where you will feel it most and it is alot worse when you first get out of bed in the morning. my doctor had me put a dish towel on the floor in front of my foot and then i used my toes to pull itowards me. you have to do it every day, but it does help. the only medical treatment is a cortisone shot, so i would try this first
  • shannon_stallone
    shannon_stallone Posts: 136
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    It goes all the way to my ankle....I wish I knew what it was....how do they diagnose plantar faciitis??
  • jennyrebekka
    jennyrebekka Posts: 626 Member
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    I have Plantar Fasciitis in both feet. It doesn't directly affect the ball of your foot or the toe box area, BUT the pain you are having may be causing you to put extra undue pressure onto the ball of your foot....and that may be what is causing that pain. Either way, go to see a podiatrist.....but be forewarned - - there are no quick fixes.

    If the podiatrist thinks it is plantar fasciitis, order one of these......they are the most comfortable (yet effective) way to stretch that tendon while you are sleeping.

    www.thesock.com

    Good luck..........
  • kaimi2011
    kaimi2011 Posts: 141 Member
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    subscribing because i think that's what i have. :( for like 3-4 months now after i attempted to run on the treadmill. :(

    thanks for the running links and runners pose stretch. i will work on that. :)
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,670 Member
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    I have had the same a few times,once in my heel and now on the ball of my foot to my toes. I find anti-inflammatories- like motrin and naprosyn help some, but stretching the bottom of my foot on a tennis ball helps the most.
    Tennis ball is too soft for me. I use a golf ball.
  • AZTrailRunner
    AZTrailRunner Posts: 1,199 Member
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    I used a piece of PVC pipe (3" diameter, 12" long), and would roll it back and forth. I found that to work thee best for me since it covered more area at one time than the ball.
  • julidav
    julidav Posts: 188 Member
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    I was sent to Physical therapy for it. Rolling your foot on a tennis ball or frozen water bottle is a couple of suggestions. They give you exercises to stretch the muscles. In my case they tried using ultrasounds a couple of time. They finally used corisone but not the shot. They hooked up an electrical device that would help get the cortisone into the heal. I have felt it coming back so I'm back to stretching it..
  • tam120
    tam120 Posts: 444 Member
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    I had a cortisone shot a few years ago, only worked for a few months. I read in runner's world mag that rolling your foot on a frozen golf ball helps.

    Doc will examine your foot and probably take x-rays, they can normally tell just by description of the pain, where it is and when it happens. It's worst in the am and after sitting for a long period of time. You really should see a podiatrist.
  • karenmi
    karenmi Posts: 242 Member
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    Yikes! I had Plantar's in my left foot from 2006 to 2008 and it was terrible! The pain was from my heel through the arch of my foot but, as I found out, was caused by tightness in my calf. I tried everything - orthotics, physio, laser therapy, shock-wave treatments, stretches, the tennis-ball thing, frozen water bottle - anything for relief.

    I couldn't walk more than a few blocks at a time and couldn't exercise, walk my dogs, walk to work, walk at the grocery store, etc. My world got smaller & smaller and I got fatter & fatter, not to mention depressed.

    It finally just went away on its own and now I can walk for hours and not get much pain, although I have to be sure to stretch well and not overdo it. I'm sure losing 50 lbs helped as well.

    I guess what I'm saying is get it checked out right away, regardless of what it is. Don't let it go like I did!
  • lucythinmint
    lucythinmint Posts: 239
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    I had/have it still. It is is a pain the in arch of my foot that when bad, will run the length of the bottom of my foot. I have found that all the runners stretches (as stated above) help a lot. I can't really get up on my toes anymore and if I do not stretch before I run that can cause it to flare up.

    I found a small arch support that slides over the foot and wraps around the arch itself helps *SO MUCH*. I won't run or go for hikes or even walks without it. The doctor should be able to give you some help on stretches and other things to help relieve the pain.

    Good luck! :drinker:

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