Some people just have the touch.

My dd was told to wear a hard sole shoe...like a Birkenstock..not soft cushy tennis shoes for PF.

quickly....

I jad heel pain at the back of the heel, but it was due to cracked heels. Boy did it hurt!!

-Irene

Jeanne-

My PF presents as feeling like the bones in my heels are pushing thru the bottom of my feet and grinding on the floor. Miserable! Doing exercises where I stretch my toes out as far as I can and then pull them back towards my shin helps a lot. The shots in my heel hurt like blue blazes- necessary when the PF became unbearable. I'm much happier with the exercises then the injections. My podiatrist said to never go barefoot- and a 'clunker' shoe with major arch support and cushioning was the best thing... along with the exercises. I won't wear such awful shoes- I have big feet and I can't bear to make them more noticeable with the clunker shoes.

Hope you find some relief from your foot troubles.

I came to this discussion late, but wanted to toss in my two bits worth.

I developed plantar fascitis really bad. Got to the point that I dreaded those first few steps after standing up really bad. Over the course of a few months it got worse.

Anyhow, long story short, I got a massive shot of steroids for pneumonia. Within a few days the plantar fascitis was gone. I have no idea if this is a treatment considered for that problem or not, I only know what happened for me. And it's not come back since. Makes me happy.

Good luck, Sunny

Mine improves a lot when I wear my Birks and my Chaco sandals when I'm in the house. Rolling a tennis ball in the arch when sitting can also relieve the pain a bit. It's those first few steps after sitting or being in bed that are the killers. The arch and the ligaments aren't stretched out yet.

standing on a stair with your heels hanging off is one of the exercises I've been told to do. Let the heels drop down toward the lower stair. Again, this stretches the ligaments. The problem seems to be KEEPING them stretched!

I have had PF for years - I understand as we age & acquire PF, it never really goes away. I have very high arches & my podiatrist told me that people with very high arches tend to get it. I had to break down & buy the custom inserts, but before I bought them, I used the Birkenstock inserts - they help, but the custom inserts are better. (During the summer, I don't use the inserts, because I wear sandals most of the time, but I wear only really, really good sandals with good support.) When my PF gets bad, I get a cortisone shot - yes, Leslie - it's very painful, but so worth it when the pain goes away. You can usually tell if you have PF if the pain is more intense when you first get up in the morning or if you have been sitting for awhile & stand up.

I also would consider that you could have tendonitis Jeanne. I also have Achilles tendonitis. That can be very painful also. Just resting my heel on the mattress in bed can cause pain.

Whatever - wear good supportive shoes!

Funny, you mentioned your very high arches. I have extremely flat feet... to the point where it's causing ankle problems, too. (sigh)

Leslie

I would be having the DH take a peep at it and see if you have got something into it.

I had a much similar thing only in the ball of the foot right behind the big toe. Turned out to be a wee splinter of glass that would shift just so now and again.

NightMist

Yeesh ... same here, Leslie. My podiatrist said that I didn't just have flat feet, I have "non-existant arches." I think he was trying to be a smartie-pants.

When I was born, I had birth defects aplenty with my feet ... pigeon-toed to the point where I wore braces for a couple of years (as a baby/toddler), surgery to snip the tendons in three of my toes, therapy to learn to "walk straight" (an effort to "train" me to hide my pigeon toes and walk in a fashion that was a semblance of normalcy) and those horrible orthopedic shoes for YEARS.

That was about the first 6 years of my life. *rolls eyes* I'm still surprised to this day that I'm not a hypochondriac desperately afraid of someone looking at her feet.

Nowadays, my biggest problem is cracked heels - REALLY cracked heels. Been thinkin' about getting that PedEgg thing they've been selling on TV ...

-- Connie :)

My husband had plantar faciaitis also. He walks 5 or 6 miles a day for fun, plus he's on his feet 12 hours a day at work. Last year he ran a

5K and his foot all but killed him. He now wears an orthotic gadget in his work boot and it helps tremendously, no more pain at all. He does not have flat feet, actually a high arch. I think the gadget cost around $400, but it was worth it.

My girlfriend also has this problem but found relief with a much less expensive shoe insert from the Good Feet store.

Denise

QI

Jeanne, a spur doesn't necessarily hurt all the time. Depends on where it is and the size, and how you walk on it. I had one that ended up being very painful because it was positioned so that the Achilles tendon "caught" on it on the bottom of my heel.I developed some very strange ways of walking for a while so that it didn't affect it as much. Finally got it surgically removed, and that was a big relief.

Pati, > ah gee, thanks for starting this thread, Kate.

oh i've had that too over the years, off and on, Irene. omg, that hurts like the devil for sure. i'm convinced it is some nutritional deficency (sp?) as right now i'm ok. a month or so ago my heels were the softest they've been in years. now as it usually takes about 3 months for any menu changes to take effect enough for me to notice them i'm thinking what have i been eating/not-eating (tho more likely eating) in enough quantity to make such a dramatic different to the state of my heels. my heel pain now is not related to the softness/hardness(calluses-sp?) condition tho. anyhow, i know how that feels and it really sucks big time. when mine would get really bad i'd have to do a long long soak in the foot bath thingy, then using various implement cut all the calluses away, well as much as i could. then rubbing them down with a pumice stone, then applying lots of foot oil/lotion/sumpin to help restore some of the softness. actually all that did was a temporary fix. still trying to work out what i'm eat'n now that is making them so much better. i used to think it was related to the summer/winter wearing of socks/footwear or not but nope, i really dont think that has one iota of difference...i'm sure its the food intake. i do hope yours improve alot. hugz, j.

I have foot problems too ... get a pair of Crocs for around the house, they slip on easily and are wonderfully cushioned and comfy. Best $30 I ever spent.

For serious walking, I wear Fat Babies by Ariat with orthotics. Lobo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Delete the obvious to reply to me personally. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Are these clogs? I used to wear Danskos all the time, but in the past couple of years it seems that my ankles 'give out' with them and I have to catch myself from falling. So I've had to stop wearing them :(

-Irene

Dansko's are too stiff for me. It took me buying 3 pairs to realize they were just sitting on the shelf, because they are so uncomfortable on my feet.

Pauline Northern California