PSA: Living With Plantar Faciitis

[Midpack]

Mine has just become obvious in the past few months - acute foot/heel pain getting out of bed in the AM or after sitting for long periods. At first I assumed it was just normal aging, thankfully not.

Now I have to be a little more careful about overdoing exercise walking and golf - but I DON’T want to quit either! There are good ways to manage, and the sooner you act the better. Good plantar faciiitis insoles (better than Dr Scholl’s) and the exercise pic below (almost instant relief) have been surprisingly helpful.

https://sportydoctor.com/plantar-fasciitis-stretches-exercises/

https://www.brownmed.com/blog/plant...ntar-fasciitis-here-is-what-you-need-to-know/

 

[braumeister]

DW has PF and she swears by the special socks from Feetures.
https://feetures.com/collections/womens-relief-recovery-socks#!/

 

[kcowan]

I got the pain to go away with accupuncture, then bought
Joya walking shoes and Teva sandals. For other occasions. I have Dr Scoles inserts.

10 years of pain-free living!

 

[omni550]

PF is very painful on arising and taking your first few steps.

I had a bout of PF in 2018. I was able to DIY a solution. Been pain-free ever since. I am able wear any and all types of shoes, as well as walk barefoot. No special socks, shoes, insoles, appliances, etc. needed.

I highly recommend William Prouse's techniques, cheap/free and effective:

http://www.early-retirement.org/for...itis-site-with-tons-of-useful-info-93985.html

omni

 

[Midpack]

Thank you all very much, I’m still learning. And while I am using insoles and cushioned shoes, I want to stretch and exercise to control PF too - as in post #1. But here are my early “device” finds.

Insoles: https://www.powersteps.com/

Recovery footwear: https://www.oofos.com/

 

[Amethyst]

Of no use if you are at desired weight, but when I lost about 7 pounds some years ago, my chronic foot pain went away. I think I had more of a perpetual muscle sprain, though, rather than fasciitis.

 

[Winemaker]

I used to get PF all the time, I wore steel toed/metatarsal rubber boots underground all the time. I got inserts, which worked until they came out with the Gore-Tex boot. It was hard to get the insert to sit well in the Gore-Tex liner. I also responded well to ultrasound treatments for immediate pain relief.

 

[pacergal]

Doing foot stretches before getting out of bed, using frozen golf ball to roll my arch over, doing the arch and hamstring stretches, plus wearing Danskin clogs and a specially made arch support for work all helped with my PF. I did have a cortisone shot once in my foot. Ouch that hurt!!
Luckily, I have not had a recurrence and I continue to do the foot stretches every morning.

 

[NoMoreJob]

I got PF about ten years ago and thought my running days were over. Went to the doc, did PT, stretching, electrical stimulation, prescription orthotics, etc. You name it, I did it. After 1-2 years of trial and error I found Aetrex Orthotics which work very well for me. I also went to Brooks running shoes (with the Aetrex orthotics), Teva Sandals and Olukai flip flops.

The Aetrex Orthotics were the most help and I now wear them in ALL my shoes - athletic, casual and dress. I am running 5k's on the treadmill for cardio regularly again and going on 10+ mile hikes a couple of times per week. The PF is 90% gone and no longer interferes with my active lifestyle.

 

[Bamaman]

First of all, you need to have a proper diagnosis about what your problem is. My wife's severe foot pain is mid foot arthritis, and the orthopedic foot specialist says a fusion with plates and screws is 90% effective. But we're afraid she'll walk like Frankenstein after the surgeries and being off her foot(s) after 8 months.

#1 protocol is getting custom orthodics made and to wear them in all shoes. #2 is to get a solid bottom rocker shoe like Alegria brand shoes. We notice nurses wearing them, and our local Belk department store has a whole Alegria department.

She's trying to struggle through the pain with using Volteran Gel and lidocaine cream on her feet numerous times per day.

Your best bet will find a really good foot doctor and see what he can do to alleviate some of your pain. We have a great orthopedic foot surgeon, but they're few and far between.

 

[RunningBum]

Look at getting a Strassburg sock to keep your toe pointing up while you sleep, which stretches the foot properly at night. If you look on Amazon they show cheaper alternatives that probably do the same thing.

 

[GalaxyBoy]

When I had my bout several years ago I found that rolling the inflamed area of the bottom of my foot over a frozen water bottle several times per day really helped to reduce inflammation. That, and the stretches illustrated in the OP above. I also got one or two cortisone injections and eventually it went away.

All this reminds me that I need to shop for new walking shoes. While wearing the old ones until they fall apart seems like LBYM, it really isn’t if I develop PF again!

Best of luck. It doesn’t go away quickly but eventually things will get better.

 

[Midpack]

Getting better every day, and these exercises have done wonders. There’s immediate a improvement with the bending toes back exercise for me. I’d say I’m 80% cured left foot, 100% cured right foot. I’m thrilled. Thanks everyone!

 

[harllee]

Midpack, so glad you are doing better. I agree with Bamaman for anyone who has not been diagnosed by a good foot doctor --go to a good podiatrist to make sure what you really have is Plantar Fasciitis. I had foot pain in the back of my heel and outside of my foot. Not so much in the morning, it was mainly after walking long distances and dancing. I thought it was PF and I did PF stretches, etc but it did not help. After a couple of months I went to the podiatrist. Turns out I did not have plantar fasciitis I had arthritis in the cuboid joint and was walking too much on the outside of my foot--some of the PF stretches, etc were making it worse rather than better. I now do stretches which are different than PF stretches, I wear HOKA shoes (they are great), orthotics that are built up on the outside to push my gait toward the inside. I have to consciously remember when walking to walk more own the inside of my foot. I also use a ball and and frozen water bottle on my foot. I had to quit dancing for a while but am slowly back at it now with new shoes and orthotics.

 

[RockyMtn]

Been through a couple of bouts with PF over the last twenty years. Here is what I have found as it relates to eliminating symptoms and keeping them at bay.

1. Orthotics are imperative. Custom made are the best. Goodfeet stores also offer an option that are slightly less $$$ than custom made. Your feet change as you age. I am on my second set of orthotics as the first set were no longer giving me relief. The new set supports my arches much more than the old set.

2. Acupuncture can provide relief but won't help eliminate PF like the orthotics do.

3. Physical therapy helps. A combination of PT exercises and electrolysis help me with eliminating pain and strengthening other parts of the body so less pressure is put on the foot.

4. As mentioned, rolling your foot on a frozen bottle of water works. Personally, I use a lacrosse ball or a device you can buy on Amazon that looks like two lacrosse balls fused together.

5. Stretching is imperative.

It's funny. You do all these things and you still have pain. Then all of the sudden you wake up one day and it's gone. Goes away as quickly as it comes.

 

[Bir48die]

Came and went twice. Used to tape my feet like an athletic trainer to alleviate the stress on that area. Probably stopping jogging was the key. Luckily I never had to wear the boot but I had it bad. Crazy affliction. Good luck

 

[Walt34]

I've had periodic bouts with PF and the last time the podiatrist recommended Copper Fit Balance insoles and taping with KT tape. I wear the insoles all the time and only periodically have to tape my foot (yes, only one). I get them both from Amazon. While they are available locally they're much cheaper from Amazon, at least for me.

Compared to the wringers y'all describe going through I got off easy.

 

[Marita40]

I had one long bout of p.f. I did about a million stretches and tried several contraptions. Finally it just went away by itself --after close to a year. I was told by others that it typically just takes time. Calf stretches and rolling my foot (and standing) on a wooden rolling pin helped. Wow, I'm just recalling now how miserable that was, and it went on forever!

 

[Midpack]

I’m just thrilled to know it’s not necessarily permanent. When it started, I assumed it was just going to be part of aging....

 

[onthe8ball]

I had this problem in my left foot a few years ago. My chiropractor recommended rocking my foot back and forth over a wooden rolling pin (while putting some weight on it). Found one for a few bucks at a thrift store, did the exercise faithfully for a few weeks (maybe a couple months, I forget now) and it went away completely. Haven't had a problem since, knock on wood (raps skull with knuckles).

 

[mystang52]

The thing that apparently has cured my PF permanently is my leg press apparatus. I have a home gym and free weights. Weights is my least favorite activity and over the years I've "fallen off the wagon" more than a couple of times. I got back to incorporating my weight resistance regimen on a regular basis about a year ago. This includes the aforesaid leg press.
The exercise Doing the exercise creates a stretch of the heel tendons with each press. It took several weeks before it dawned on me that my Pf was no more. You can be sure I will be doing these exercises from now on. I enjoy my running too much to go back to that pain.

 

[FREE866]

Very inspired by this thread and the other one.
Seems like I just have to be disciplined with daily stretching, icing, ball rolling, etc
Thats all I can do right?

 

[bloom2708]

Always wear Brooks Adrenaline GTS or Brooks Glycerin GTS. That works for me.

Adrenaline GTS is mid cushioning. Glycerin GTS is more cushioning.

I know you can't always wear them, but good running/walking shoes work.

 

[splitwdw]

I used to get PF all the time, I wore steel toed/metatarsal rubber boots underground all the time. I got inserts, which worked until they came out with the Gore-Tex boot. It was hard to get the insert to sit well in the Gore-Tex liner. I also responded well to ultrasound treatments for immediate pain relief.

Winemaker, the last time I replied to one of these PF threads I mentioned that after having PF for a year (cortisone shot from family doctor first time hurt too bad to go back) the podiatrist used ultrasound and I left his office pain free and PF hasn't returned. You seem to be the only one on this thread that's found that painless cure. My sister went the route of cortisone shot, night boot, orthotics and special exercises. She kept telling me it couldn't be that simple. She finally tried the ultrasound treatment and had the same results that I did.

Very inspired by this thread and the other one.
Seems like I just have to be disciplined with daily stretching, icing, ball rolling, etc
Thats all I can do right?

Wrong, see above.

 

[RetiredHappy]

I have custom orthotics to fix the problem. Prior to that, I bought inserts from Good Feet store, in the end custom orthotics work the best. It has cost me a fortune because each time I order more for various shoes, the doctor would insist that I go back, charging me a couple of hundred dollars to see him and another $250 for the orthotics. My insurance did not cover.