Plantars Faciitis

[poppy]

I've had this same problem for years and went thru all the same B.S. as everyone else, the shots, night braces, heel inserts, celebrex, etc. I have never spoken with anyone who has been helped by these methods, it's amazing these "solutions" are still prescribed. A few years ago I needed a pair of sandals quick so I bought a cheap pair, and I mean cheap in price and quality . The heel area quickly collapsed causing more support to the arch area, my feet never felt better. I now purchase standard inserts with arch support (something the heel inserts from the doctor didn't have) from drug stores for all my shoes and the problem has mostly disappeared. Other people with this problem have told me they had to go with custom inserts but the bottom line is inserts seem to work for most individuals. Had the doctor suggested trying these simple methods first it would have saved me some pain and the insurance company a good bit of money. Good luck to you.

 

[Bob]

inserts....20 bucks at target[walkfit brand], and towel stretch in the morning before your feet hit the floor, pain will subside in a few weeks

 

[NoHall]

I mentioned the new pain to the reflexologist, and she told me I can kick off my shoes every once in a while in the house. I'm going to play with it.

I was wearing my regular garden-clog so-ugly Crocs (not a knock-off) around the first night, and they gave me a blister on my toe. My doc says the toe bed is too big and lets my toes slide too much when the heel strap is on. (She insists on a heel in my shoes right now.)

Yesterday I was wearing a more streamlined Croc around the house. They have great support. No blisters this time, just an overall achiness from not wiggling my toes enough.

Moderation...

 

[DD]

...bummer. I did some googling and found that Birkenstocks have a line of shoes/clogs/sandals for high arches. In your search for the shoe that you can easily slide on and off (to let you maintain the barefoot feel you love), unfortunately form must always come before fashion...and, failing to find some retail product, you may have to go for custom-made shoes (again, go with a clog/sandal you can slip on and off) which can go for several hundred smackers. If you do this, make sure they have a very, very good return policy if you're not completely satisfied.

Believe me, if PF drags out over several months, it really eats away at you and can become exceptionally depressing. I even had an ER doc tell me that he never gave a cortisone shot in a person's heel before and I told him "Just do it, I'll talk you through it!!" (I talked him through the procedure my podiatrist used, which was to press very hard in different places around my heel till "we" found the most painful spot--mark that area with a dot--and put the shot right there---YOWSA!!)

Shelly--this just gave me cold chills. Needle. Heel. Needle going into heel.

I mentioned the new pain to the reflexologist, and she told me I can kick off my shoes every once in a while in the house. I'm going to play with it.

I was wearing my regular garden-clog so-ugly Crocs (not a knock-off) around the first night, and they gave me a blister on my toe. My doc says the toe bed is too big and lets my toes slide too much when the heel strap is on. (She insists on a heel in my shoes right now.)

Yesterday I was wearing a more streamlined Croc around the house. They have great support. No blisters this time, just an overall achiness from not wiggling my toes enough.

Moderation...

NH--I jsut read this thread this morning. So sorry for all your pain. I too have had a touch of this in the past. But, I had to smile at your last post.. The whole time I was reading, I was thinking......................CROCS!!!

 

[NoHall]

Shelly--this just gave me cold chills. Needle. Heel. Needle going into heel.



NH--I jsut read this thread this morning. So sorry for all your pain. I too have had a touch of this in the past. But, I had to smile at your last post.. The whole time I was reading, I was thinking......................CROCS!!!

I have to laugh at the part about the Crocs, too. I feel like I'm confessing a crime every time I mention them here!

The pain part is still not awful, and I'm even more hopeful that I can get it fixed. I spent the weekend with my cousins who both had it. One was cured through exercise and the other through laser surgery; both were wearing flip flops this weekend!

 

[Minnie]

Had it years ago, my podiatrist fixed it and it never came back. good luck.

 

[Alicia Leonard]

I feel for you NH. BR, I am plagued with the high arch. I have had PF on and off for the last ten years. Everyone here has given good advice, esp. rest, stretch and ice. If I don't stretch my left foot in the morning, I hobble around for the first ten or so steps every morning and super arch support is a must for working out and lots of walking. Hope you are pain free soon!

 

[NoHall]

Brace yourself--I'm about to start whining:

My foot had improved over time. I still had one little sore spot on the point of my heel in the back, not the bottom, that only hurts first thing in the morning. Feeling much better.

Today I went to fitness class, did 1 minute of jumping jacks and some other footwork--not terribly high impact, but some impact. Within ten minutes the PF hurt like it has never hurt before, and it usually doesn't hurt at all in athletic shoes. After 30 minutes, I couldn't use it normally without pain. By the end of the hour, I couldn't touch it to the ground without serious pain.

When I got home, I took the shoe off and it was visibly swollen between the arch and heel. Do any of you sufferers know if this is a PF symptom? It has never swollen before! (And I still can't puckin' walk. Tomorrow is going to be a picnic!)

 

[Beach Runner]

Brace yourself--I'm about to start whining:

My foot had improved over time. I still had one little sore spot on the point of my heel in the back, not the bottom, that only hurts first thing in the morning. Feeling much better.

Today I went to fitness class, did 1 minute of jumping jacks and some other footwork--not terribly high impact, but some impact. Within ten minutes the PF hurt like it has never hurt before, and it usually doesn't hurt at all in athletic shoes. After 30 minutes, I couldn't use it normally without pain. By the end of the hour, I couldn't touch it to the ground without serious pain.

When I got home, I took the shoe off and it was visibly swollen between the arch and heel. Do any of you sufferers know if this is a PF symptom? It has never swollen before! (And I still can't puckin' walk. Tomorrow is going to be a picnic!)

I have never had swelling between arch and heel with my PF.

I have my first appointment at Hughston Clinic tomorrow to see what they recommend for my PF. It'll be interesting if they suggest something different.

What's really ticking me off is that all of the fashion magazines and catalogues are showing really high-heeled shoes. I'd last, like, 30 minutes in those before I'd be crawling on the floor. Guess I'll just look like a frump. Oh, a fat frump, according to Mr. Trespasser.

 

[SneakyPete]

I have always had problems with Crocs because they are too wide in the toe box. When I need a Croc-type shoe I buy Quark instead: Quark Shoes - Free Shipping & Return Shipping - Shoebuy.com

They are not narrow, per se, but are quite a bit less "ducky" in the toe area, and seem to fit better overall -- they don't flop around.

I also like Okabashi flip flops and sandals for indoors or light activity: www.okabashi.com
They are lightweight and inexpensive.