Plantar Fasciitis

Foot care
1

I am a retired OBGYN MD and a plantar fasciitis patient.  I have had plantar fasciitis for about 2 months and have researched extensively on the subject.  I am not a podiatrist, and I am not a chiropractor.  I think most of the stuff you read on the internet is a bunch of untested crap.  I don't believe in the foot exercises, the arch supports, the calf exercises, the night boots, etc.  I have read on the internet (from so called "doctor" experts) that you should have firm arches . . .   and I have read that you should have no arches - "walk barefoot only."  I have read "apply ice," and  I have read "apply heat - ice is harmful."  Noone seems to have any idea about how to cure P.F. 

Here's what I think.  I feel plantar fasciitis is inflammation of the attachment of the plantar fascia to the heel bone, OR some minimal tearing of the plantar fascia - just a few fibers - that results, naturally, in inflammation . . .   like a "pulled muscle."  (You may know that a pulled muscle is simply the tearing of a few muscle fibers.)  Inflammation hurts until it heals and resolves.  So what's so difficult about curing P.F.?  Well we walk on it!!!  Let's say we take 5000 steps a day.  Imagine inflammation of your elbow, (i.e. tennis elbow).  Imagine taking your sore "tennis elbow" and wacked it against the wall, 5000 times a day.  Think it would heal quickly?  I don't either.

So my cure for plantar fasciitis is cushion, cushion and cushion.  That's right - cushion the heel.  Here's what I am doing.  First, I have the plantar fasciitis "relief bridge" gel-heel innersole in my shoes - that I got at Walgreen's for about $11.  Then I wear 2 pairs of nice athletic type sox.  Between the 2 sox, I have plantar fasciitis therapy wrap padded supports that I got on the internet for about $13.  But also, I sewed  onto the the padded foot wraps, the back part of some thick arch cushions for a little more cushion.  So under my heels I have 5 cushion layers and after about a month, I'm 95% cured of P.F.  That's what I think, and I hope that this helps you and the many other sufferers of plantar fasciitis.

2

Hear hear! I've just about worked this out too and would add two things. A good calf massage really helps the pain as muscles in legs tense to accommodate the foot pain. Secondly, walking on uneven terrain with the support you have suggested also helps. Our feet naturally flex in all different ways as they were meant to and the shoes we wear and pavements we pound along don't do them any favours.

One other thing is PF and flip flops is a very bad mix.

3

I agree, that is what plantar fasciitis is ; a slight tear of the fibres! You described it very clearly!  Yes, the cushioning, thank you for that! It is good you caught your PF early in the game, and found the correct solution; I will take your words to heart and add more cushioning to my life!! I think the complication comes for persons such as myself, where it has not been healed early and develops into something else! And you are so right that it is SO hard to rest the fascia and allow it the space to heal as we walk on it daily.  Thank you again for the well written piece and your cushioning solution.  Wishing you more healing!

4

Well this is probably the most interesting comment I have read on plantar fasciitis. I have had it for about three months, and it only seems to get worse day after day. I only wear my adidas training shoes with a gel heel pad, and I try to stay off my feet as much as possible. I do massages and stretching all the time. My therapist told me to soak in hot salty water, but it hurts a lot when I put my feet in. I feel like pressure from everywhere in my heel, as if I was standing on it; but then it gets better.

I am definitely considering your advice. I will see my therapist for the first time today (I had a money problem that didn't let me go earlier) and I'll see what she says.

Thank you for sharing your experience! I hope it helps me and many more people determine what is really happening there.

5

Let me know if cushioning helps big time.  Try 24 hours a day for a few weeks (except for showers.)

6

I actually find showers are kinda the most agonizing part of my day so I shower on my knees. I know I'm probably hurting my knees, but then again as I try not to stand any other time of the day, I think it evens out and my knees will not be hurt as much.

I'll get all the things you said you wear, although it's a little difficult here in Costa Rica. I think I'll have to buy through the Internet.

Thank you! I will post again in a few weeks to share the results.

7

Do say what you think, guess americans are not known for mincing their words. Many have different stages of pf and some do not have pf at all it is gout or trapped nerve but I would agree that gel heel pads work for pf in the intial stages and stretching exercises may help and I certainly tryed them and indometacin seemed to kill the pain allowing me to walk and do the exercises. I do not believe in mind over matter or herbal cures but I would not rule them out i was willing to try anything to cure the pain. I brought my heelpads on the internet for £1.90 a pair and that was the thickest I could find so I got 6 pairs so as not to have to muck about changing them around. Just Google gel heel pads and they will all come up and usauly they come from China as most things do these days,

8

@doknabox Thank you for sharing this with us... I'm a service worker at the local hospital. Dr.A told me I had some inflammation in both feet about a month ago. Immediately he did cortisone injections and recommend jogging shoes and to go about my day as normal. Five minutes into wobbling out of his office I sat and cried from the excruciating pain I was in! I was given a week off my feet, but again no relief. The pain had gotten worst. Dr.B took x-rays and actually physically examined my feet. This is where I was informed about having not only Plantar Fasciitis but I also have heel spurs. Steroids were given but at the last dose, my body reacted by locking every joint, causing my knees and legs to swell horribly! Also recommend to stretch and ice roll through out the day. I found this to be more painful than soothing. Heat also becomes uncomfortable after a while. Next, name brand running shoes and arche supports. Though it alleviated the heel spurs pain ever so slightly, the PF is more agitated! Last, physical therapy twice time a week for six weeks for the PF. The PF is still here and has caused new leg and knee pains. I'm still in search of comfort and/or relief. I enjoy working and most of all walking! I walk everywhere! And to think that this condition can cause disability is detrimental at my age (few yrs over forty)! Not only for me, but for my family as well!

9

oras  I don't know much about heel spurs.  From my personal experience with heel pain, I recommend cushioning your heel.  It can't cause any harm.  And it worked for me.  Dok

10

Just to say oras740508 that I really feel for you. Do what Dokinabox says and you'll feel better I'm sure.

 

11

Hello all,

So it turns out I do not have plantar fasciitis!

Well, I do. Here's the thing.

It started three months ago. As a heel spur in both my feet. This led to the pain I was feeling, which wasn't so bad. But I did not treat it...

So I started walking slightly different. This caused multiple sprains in my feet and up my ankles. Inflammation in my plantar fascia. Muscle spams in most of my muscles, from my toes to my lower back. My Achilles' tendons are out of order. I have pain now in my whole body. My legs and feet are swollen and in a lot of pain. I slept with my legs up last night, but no help.

What I have to do is heal my heel Spurs and let everything else come back to normal. For this I need heel spur gel pads, which have a hole in the middle. Oral anti inflammatory for a few days. Ankle supports. Massages in my feet and legs every day with Arnica cream.

My feet are taped right now, and up on a pile of cushions. My therapist said my feet are so bad it seems I've been walking wrong my whole life. (I did get my posture and walking corrected many times, every couple of years until last year)

So here's my ultimate advice: don't trust anyone who asks you what you feel. A therapist or Doctor must tell you to take off your shoes and socks, touch everywhere and ask where it hurts.

Because if you trust someone who says you have something else than you really have, you might spend three months just making the problem worse.

My grandmother broke a toe when she was like 17 years old and she was dismissed as a pull. Now, after seeking treatment all around the world for her painful leg and back and arm, this same therapist was the one who discovered that that little break was what made her walk bad for so many years and caused so many problems.

Anyway, thank you all for your support. I will do what I need to do and get out of here because this is not my forum. I need a mistreated heel spur forum. I hope you all get better

12

I posted something about a month ago. I am a retired radiologist and I have drawn some of the same conclusions. I agree with much of what you say but I do think there are a few things which may accelerate the healing. Heat to increase circulation either with a hot tub, whirlpool, heating pad or maybe even just soaking the foot in a pan of hot water seems to help me when I aggravate my inflammation. I do like the HTP heel pad / arch supports with the fascia bar. This definitely helps me. 

Since it is almost impossible to rest your foot and plantar fascia, learn to tape your foot with the Low Dye Taping which you can find on the internet on youtube. I got plantar fasciitis from playing golf ( the golf swing puts a lot of strain on the lateral side of the plantar fascia ). If I tape my foot, I play pain free and have no after effects. If I don't tape, I have pain during and after. The taping off-loads the stress onto the tape allowing the plantar fascia to rest. I was able to achieve  a 95% cure in about 4 weeks.  

I agree that the cushioning is critically important.

13

John,  I think we agree (and I don't play golf.)  I think heat makes sense and might speed up the healing . . .   and heat usually feels good.  The HTP heel pads give a similar effect to my  plantar fasciitis therapy wrap padded supports onto which I sewed extra support pads.  I knew nothing about the Low Dye Taping.  I just saw it on the internet and to me it looked just like some more cushion.  I don't get the advantage of all that taping -- (and how in the world do you take a shower or bath?)  My PF is still improving nicely.  I've reduced my cushion to just the wrap padded supports and the "relief bridge" gel-heel innersole in my shoes.  I cover the wrap padded supports with one pair of sox.  Good luck to you.  Keep in touch.

14

Hi, if I use the Leuko tape, showering is not a problem - it is water resistant and dries in little time. If I use the Zonas tape, I put my foot in a small plastic bag and tape it closed for the shower and wash my foot by hand after the shower. I basically learned this from a previous injury.

I made some similar homemade cushions using some stripping that you use to seal windows and doors and applying the sticky side to the botom of my arch supports and inner soles to create a fascia bar.

Amazing how necessity creates invention. The taping is great but I did not mention that I use a spray on the skin before taping to hold it in place for a couple of days.

I am past that now but sometimes use the compression socks for golf and long walks. I am 99% cured with all of this. Still a little tender after golf.

I hope some of this helps.

15

Wow, thank you so much for your thoughts! I am so glad to hear that you got the results that you were looking for. I will definitely try this although I hope that it is not too late for me. My feet feel much more damaged than when I first started out. It makes sense too. When I first got PF my natural instinct was to cushion the bottom of my feet. I actually took the foam matress pad that sat on top of my bed and cut out shapes that matched my feet and wore them inside of my socks when I first got this. I didn't stick with it super long though because it seemed so silly. I think that you are on to something though!

16

I am quite delighted to have found this thread.  I am going to begin the cushioning ideas from 'Doknabox' ASAP.  One other question -- I went to a podiatrist finally after suffering for years with toe bunions--no heel issues at all, until last week.  The doctor was a huge disappointment, and I will not return.  The nurse taught me the 'low dye taping' but now I am wondering if I am wearing excellent arch supports, if I have to do the taping too??  My heel issue was very odd that it happened just last week.  It felt as if a grape had popped on the outer edge of my heel, on the inside.  I mentioned this to the dr. and he said I was just walking on it incorrectly, and totally brushed me off.  It is not constantly painful but it is a bothersome feeling.  So, I am going to be cushioning, cushioning, and cushioning!!  I guess this means I will have to wear shoes around the house.  I usually go barefooted.  I am an avid motorcyclist and my boots cause me terrible pain on my 'bunions' after wearing them for a very short time.  I am going to apply these wonderful ideas and I do believe that between 'dok' and 'john30536' -- we have much better remedies than shots, prescription meds and surgery. 

17

Great info

would something like the ossur rebound air walker benefit us?

Thank you for your opinion 

18

I just googled "ossur rebound air walker" and here's my thinking: if it's full of good cushion, YES.  If it's not full of cushion, I'd chuck it.  Of course, you could add extra cushion.  But it really doesn't look that beneficial over a good roomy pair of shoes with good cushion.  I wore Keens and Crocs for the 4 months I had PF.  But if you already have one and want to use it, make sure there's lots of cushion in it and it's not too tight on your foot.

19

Hi Dok,

I have just been diagnosed so I will follow your advice and fingers crossed it can get rid of this. 

Thanks for the advice.

20

Good luck.  Cushion your heel !!!