<p>Funky quick fix (couple of weeks): do the OPPOSITE of stretching the sole of the foot. Bend it. </p>
<p>Do this sitting with the foot held across your other knee using your hands to bend the foot so that the top of the foot gets the stretch and the sole of the foot gets unstretched and softens. Or do this by kneeling with your butt on your feet if that doesn’t hurt your knees, quads or ankles. Stay like this two minutes at a time for each foot (or more) (don’t skimp on the time)! Do this a few times a day. This allows the micro tears to heal. You have probably overstretched the sole of the foot somehow.</p>
<p>Of course, see all the doc’s and physical therapists and so forth. The stuff like tennis balls and ice bottles help with the unbending process. I haven’t had problems since I started kneeling a few times a day. Can even walk barefoot - never could before.</p>
<p>I had a case of plantar fasciitis for about a year and tried a bunch of things … rest, ice/heat, physical therapy … and nothing helped … if I was real good I was OK just walking around but if I so much as jogged 1/4 mile I was back to worse condition during the time span. Finally I went for the shot of steriods (I am not sure if it was cortisone or not) … and in less than a week the pain was TOTALLY gone … it was unbelievable the difference it made. So, I understand your reluctance but if you’ve tried everything else it may be time to go the steroid route.</p>
<p>I vote with the camp of custom orthotics…expensive, yes (but, maybe your ins will help).</p>
<p>I finally went that route and after some time (maybe a year?), it has all but disappeared. I manage it with maintenance by wearing the orthotics 1 or 2 days a week depending on how my feet feel.</p>
<p>I, too, had tried just about everything-shots in the heel (OUCH!!), stretching, the “boot”, etc. Orthotics finally did the trick!</p>
<p>dietz199, oh, I feel your pain. I suffered from PF for a few years. At first, I really had no idea what it was as it was quite stiff and painful when first getting out of bed. This lasted for awhile and to be honest, I have no idea why a light bulb didn’t go off telling me that this wasn’t normal. Then one day I was vacuuming in bare feet and I stepped on the cord and I just about passed out from the pain. I then went to the foot doctor to see what was going on and got a diagnosis of PF. I was given the night splint (hate it) some orthodics for my shoes and a series of exercises to do (stand on step and lower heel gently up and down ten times, put my palms on a wall fingers straignt up and one foot in front of another feet flush to the floor, knees slightly bent and hold 15 seconds and alternate). I was told to freeze a bottle of water and roll it back and forth along the bottom of my foot also. This all provided some relief but still had alot of pain. Finally the doctor suggested cortisone but said it will not solve the problem only numb the pain for some but the anatomical issue will still exist and sometimes worsen because now that the patient is free of pain, they will abandon all methods used previously. I promised to continue with the splint (ok that was kind of a lie) and the exercises, icing, orthodics. Got the shot and it was amazing how the pain was gone almost immediately. I felt like a new person (I had also developed some hip pain from my gait being off and that too was gone in about a week). I highly recommend the shot. Why suffer through the horrible pain of PF when you can be pain free? I will tell you that the relief only lasted about 18 months and it all started again. I continued the exercises faithfully but had to find those orthodics in the back of my closet. He gave me one more (and final, according to him) shot and I have not had a problem since and it has been about 4+ years. My recommendation: do the splint (I would wear it during the day if I was going to be sitting for long periods if you just can’t deal with it at night in bed), orthodics and exercises and get the cortisone. The shot is painful but only for a nano second and there is a little burn after but it is well worth it. I would just recommend that if you do get the shot, to make the stretching exercises part of your morning routine. Wear the orthodics and buy a really good pair of sneakers (tennis shoes to those of you out west!). Good Luck.</p>
<p>UGH…hate PF. SuperFeet really really helped me. You do need to wear them a lot, not just now and then.
Make sure the tennis shoes you put them in are good, well-fitting shoes to start with. Have someone who knows what they’re doing evaluate your stride when walking and help you chose the right shoes. Saucony Pro Grid Ride are my favorites</p>
<p>Also Danksos have been wonderful and a great relief. I like Birkenstocks (mine are the hard kind) and Mephistos for good arch support too.<br>
Stretch a lot and roll and small ball under your feet while sitting.
Do not wear flip flops.</p>
<p>I had PF and tried the rolling frozen water bottle. Short term relief at best. Got rid of one pair of tennis shoes and started doing walking in light hiking boots. But what CURED it was yoga… lots and lots of downward dog. So I think the people saying to stretch are on the right track. </p>
<p>For the record, I never wear shoes in the house, walk is 2.5 miles in hills 4x a week and a 7 mile hike once a week on very steep hills. (Training with girl scouts for a week backpack in the Sierra’s… I am not doing the back pack, just the training!) My foot has some residual not-pain-but-I know-there-was-an injury feeling, but that stabbing PF pain is gone.</p>
<p>About the shoes: I spent some time at a high end running store (Fleet Feet) to find the right type of sneaker; they watched me walk and run and asked about my gait. I told them about the PF. They recommended a brand and model for me and they worked well (I also have the Superfeet inserts for them.)</p>
<p>I did the same for shoes; I went to the Walking Company and did the same type of thing which is how I ended up with Merrell’s and Danskos. </p>
<p>I just can’t wear cheap shoes anymore. But now that I know what works for me, I can watch for sales.</p>
<p>I second not wearing cheap shoes. I now spend money on shoes that are well-made and give good support and it has made a difference. My PF was triggered by walking all over Paris in sandals. I probably would have been okay if I’d worn good athletic shoes instead.</p>
<p>esobay…funny you should mention yoga. I was a regular practitioner for many years and stopped when I broke my toe last October. The few times I went back afterwards increased the PF pain. I think I’ll get a thicker mat (to buffer the bare feet on the hardwood floor) and restart that habit. </p>
<p>There are definitely knots and very tight spots in the calve muscle which I’m working on with a tennis ball. I used it before getting up this morning and noticed an improvement.</p>
<p>Okay, four things no one has mentioned, all of which, together, healed me.</p>
<ol>
<li>Silly though it sounds: Yoga Toes. These really do help to stretch out and re-align your toes. (Google them.)</li>
<li>Ice/heat three times a day as follows: ice water bath (deep enough to cover the entire foot) for three minutes, followed by one minute of warm water, repeated two times more. 3 minutes of ice water is incredibly painful, but set a timer and find something distracting to do while you’re icing. I played Tetris; I’m sure Angry Birds would work too. This is the single thing that I did/do that heals my PF the fastest.</li>
<li>Kinesio tape the arch in a position that makes it not hurt. It will take some experimentation to work out the exact position. Kinesio tape is much more comfortable than “regular” athletic tape, which also works but is annoying beyond belief.</li>
<li>Wear high heels when you get up to pee during the night. This keeps your plantar fascia from being stretched without being warmed up; the corollary to this is that you should stretch before you get out of bed, gently.</li>
</ol>
<p>I’ve had custom orthotics for more than 25 years, and still developed plantar fasciitis from walking too much. Five things:
As my podiatrist explained it, everything is connected – your plantar fascia (?) is connected in with your achilles tendon which is linked in with your two calf muscles which is tied to your hamstring muscles which are connected into your glutes. My calf muscles, hamstrings, and glutes were all really, really tight, which was putting stress on my A.T. and P.F. Ended up with Achilles tendinitis on one foot, and PF on the other. Lots and lots of calf stretches (against a wall, never on a stair) both with the knee straight and with the knee bent, and with the foot angled sometimes at noon (straight towards the wall) and sometimes at 11 or 1. 10 sets of stretches a day would not be out of line – and then you need to also get your hamstrings and glutes stretched out.<br>
MBT (and now the other, less expensive rocker sole athletic shoes) made a significant difference for me, though they’re heavier than regular athletic shoes. I don’t wear them regularly any more, but for about a year they were my go-to shoes.
Strassburg sock is a type of night splint that I found less awkward than others – it is a sock with some velcro that you can use to gently position your foot. I wore it when sitting in a recliner reading or using a laptop, and only when the PF was acute at night.
Calf Massage – this hurt like the dickens, but my calf muscles had knots on knots. The PT who did the massage really went after those guys, to the point where I sometimes ended up with bruises where she worked them, but I do think it made a difference. I seem to run to tight calf muscles, so I have to stretch them every day, multiple times.
large flexible icepack with velcro. Really helped me get the cool where it was needed.</p>
<p>I keep a golf ball in my purse. The minute that I feel that twinge of pain, I stop what I’m doing and roll the ball under my foot. Looking under my desk…Just now, under my desk, have a half dozen golf balls ready to go.</p>
<p>Someone mentioned no flip flops. Living in FL most of the year it’s all I ever wore, until I got PF. For about 2 years I wore Croc flip flops which were better, but now I wear Fit Flops. Not only am I not bothered by PF, but my legs are much more toned and shapely. I wear them everywhere… even to church and middle of the night bathroom breaks.</p>
<p>Very inexpensive, low tech - can be found at most drugstores. I wore it day and night for a few weeks and never had a problem with PF again. Good Luck.</p>
<p>I still wear SuperFeet in my tennis shoes even though the PF has gone away. They just feel better and more supportive.</p>
<p>I bought the footrubz ball from REI that EK posted. I think all the little nubby things had some sort of effect.</p>
<p>I was the one who said no flipflops. Wearing Rainbow flipflops a lot for a week at the beach was what seemed to bring my PF on. I had no symptoms whatsoever up until then. For a casual rubbery summer sandal that is not a flipflop, I bought Chacos. They have good arch support for a sandal and the straps are so adjustable that they will fit anyone. very comfy…sort of like Tevas but way better.</p>