I had it, what a nightmare. My exercise was simple, standing on the edge of a step and letting my heels sink down as are as possible.
I got one cortisone shot right into the muscle, which the doctor had lidocaine in as well so it wouldn’t hurt. That and the stair exercise five or six times a day got rid of it in a month or so. This was in 2001, and I still do the stair exercise twice a day for prevention.
Well, until I dislocated my knee in November and has been NWB.
I’ve had it but not as severely as some have described.
What worked for me was wearing Birkenstocks. The footbed gave me the right support and the negative heel helped. I thought about getting the expensive orthodics, but these were enough for my case.
I wore them almost continuously until the pain went away and will still wear them if I feel even the slightest twinge.
Luckily, my most severe pain happened over the summer so I could wear the sandals (inside as well as out).
I had plantar fasciitis years ago and spent 18 months with the doctor trying to cure it. A friend sent me a pair of magnetic insoles, and it was gone in 10 days. Haven’t had a problem since then. At the time I pooh-poohed magnets as having any therapeutic value whatsover. It turned me into a believer.
What worked for me- giving myself foot massages with Sore No More, stretching before I got out of bed or when I had been sitting a long time and wearing the Sketchers butt toning shoes.
Birkenstocks help me too. Unfortunately I can’t really wear them at work, but I do have these orthotics in my work boots, barn boots and running shoes (not that I actually run, LOL) and they make a world of difference. My PF has gone from excruciating pain to more of a chronic low-level discomfort. I wore the boots for a while, but couldn’t manage to keep them on all night. I also have Back on Track socks that I think help a bit, and will ice my feet when it flares up. I never go barefoot around the house - always wear my Birkenstocks even if I’m walking 10 feet. The stretches also help me but I’m usually in a hurry in the morning and don’t always have time to do them.
ETA: I forgot about the Skechers! I wore those too (before I worked around horses ALL the time) and they also made a big difference.
Isn’t this great???
I am showing every week and am probably the oldest person in my AA hunter division…and I just could not ask anyone about this problem. I mean, I make every effort to hide the fact that I have it! Just could not stand around the ring and chat about this. But here we are on COTH…and we are standing around the virtual ring sharing this information. THANK YOU ALL!!! COTH is a Godsend!!
I had it for years in my left foot. Tired everything, medication, orthonics, injections. exercises, boots for about 2 years. Finally had the surgery about 10 years ago. Haven’t had even a twinge of pain since then! Now if I can just get through my Carpal Tunnel!
Well, my {PF is still very ainful. I am having shock wave therapy now…but still my left heel is so painful. I am using ice, keeping my foot up,stretching often, sleeping with the boot at night. After the shock wave therapy, if it doesn’t work…I am considering going to a foot surgeon. Only one of these replies have mentioned surgery and I am hoping more will chime in.
I feel your pain — literally!
The PF boot you wear at night was what finally cleared mine up, and if I get ouchy, I wear it again for a few nights. I didn’t find it uncomfortable and had no trouble sleeping with it. I also wear only New Balance shoes (which I pretty much did before anyway since I have big feet and no one makes women’s shoes that big except NB) with their PF/arthritis inserts in them. Icing also helps, but since I’m also usually icing everything on my left leg from the hip on down, I tend to run out of ice bags!
I believe someone on here said they got a cortisone injection for PF. My mother just went to a specialist who said that that actually causes inflammation and makes the problem worse. She was put in a boot (on one foot) and is supposed to wear it all day. It’s helping thus far!
The dreaded PF!!! I too, have had this for years. After seeing a podiatrist, he infected my foot, told me about stretches, orthotics, the big boot, etc.
But what worked the best was the shock wave therapy (they called it, surgery…although it wasnt a surgery in the sense of cutting your foot open. But I had general anesthesia, and the whole bit). It helped tremendously. I still have little flare-ups every now and then, but I had the surgery about 5-6 years ago. I just stretch and ride!
Good luck and I feel for you !!
800 mg of ibuprofen in the morning.
shoes with good support
no flip flops
try not to walk around barefoot
find slip ons with arch support to use as house slippers
So far I have had two shock wave treatments. I can now walk almost normally. It hurts, but it is a three as opposed to the 8-9 it was a couple of weeks ago…I am icing as I write, I wear the boot nightly and sometimes during the day…only wear new, supportive shoes with pricey inserts, pain killers, keep my foot up as much as possible and took a few days off from my riding. I see a light at the end of the tunnel!!! One more shock wave treatment on Monday. I need to remember to do the stretches more.
My husband had painful plantar fasciitis, we tried all kinds of things. What really was the problem was that his ankles pronate(roll inward), and this was causing the problem. I bought him some lightweight ankle braces which he wears pretty much all of the time, and it solved the problem. He works in a job where he is on his feet 10 hours a day, and he doesn’t have a problem now. Have someone look at your ankles from the rear, and if you pronate, you can clearly see it from the back.
I’ve had PF since last June. It came on very suddenly for me, I think because I overdid it during a Zumba lesson (!). I’m not overweight, I am fairly active and flexible…I just couldn’t believe I had this kind of problem.
It was VERY painful, like having a sharp edge pebble in my left foot, right under the arch, all the time. Walking was excruciating, but it was painful even at rest. Elevating my foot helped.
I did the icing routine, not much difference, ibuprofen did nothing for me.
What helped the most was fitting insoles with arch support in every single shoes I own. Not custom ones, just the ones found at the drugstore. What a difference! By September I was able to go hiking again, I still had some discomfort but it was very manageable.
No more flip flops (sigh), no more walking barefoot for me.
Now I can barely feel it anymore, as long as I wear supporting inserts / shoes. I got rid of a bunch of shoes, and only buy those with good arch support, OR buy a size larger so I can put an insert in.
I never wore a stretching boot at night.
Bicycling and riding my horse never bothered me, either. It was just the walking part.
This year I am really looking forward to going hiking again! Finally!
I hope it never goes back to what it was last July.
I had pain that lasted about six months. It didn’t hurt to ride and stretching my heels down actually helped. Also, I bought Asics Gel sneakers and wore them all last summer. I put the Dr. Scholl’s gel inserts in my shoes at work.
Not a doctor, don’t play one on TV. But I have a B.S. from a prestigious university and took upper level cell classes with some very talented scientists (former MIT and Princeton researchers). I have a good working knowledge of how medications work in the body.
I had miserable PF, as do my mother and brother. We are all non-overweight and participate in various running-heavy athletics such as half-marathons and tennis. I tried physical therapy and icing (what worked best for me was rolling my feet on a frozen can of juice concentrate; my brother prefers a tennis ball). The pain improved, but would still flare up if I spend a good length of time on my feet at one time.
Then I went on birth control pills for the first time. And it hasn’t come back as long as I have been on them. When I took a break from the hormones, it flared up with a vengeance.
My mother didn’t develop PF until she was menopausal. And my gelding received estrone injections for his locking stifle (a treatment that is thought to help relax a ligament, though more research is needed). Plus, female steroid hormones, particularly progesterone, relax ligaments in preparation for the birthing process. So it makes sense to me that the hormones I ingest every day help relax my plantar fascia and prevent the concussion-induced inflammation.
Again, I’m not a doctor but I want to share my experience. I doubt that any physician would prescribe that medication for this condition, but if you are looking into oral female hormones, cross your fingers that your PF will improve for you as it did for me.
As a matter of fact, I am on hormones for hot flashes. but I only take one every other day, as that solves that problem. But, inspite of the fact that you are NOT a doctor (NOTED), nor do you play one on TV…which would have weighed in heavily…I STILL want to consider your experience and I will start taking them every day! If by a reverse reaction, I become pregnant at 70, you will be hearing from me!!! (o:}
The link with hormones and menopause is very intriguing. However, I think I’d try to deal with my PF without taking hormones…I’d rather have PF than breast cancer…
I wonder if the “alternative” (non-estrogen, non-soy based) supplements one can take for hot flashes also have an impact on PF?
The “alternatives” had no impact on my hot flashes. I had my last Shock Wave treatment yesterday…it did not hurt as much as the first. I can walk without a noticable limp. I still use the boot at night and stretch and ice. It is very doable at the current level and I would recommend Shock Wave to anyone with this problem.
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