# Tell me your experiences with Plantar Fasciitis **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 29, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214 "2010-03-29T14:32:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/1 "2010-03-29T14:32:06Z")
So both my heels started hurting like heck last week. **So I took proper medical advice** and was advised that it was likely (but not definitely) [Plantar Fasciitis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantar_fasciitis). I was prescribed rest, elevation (keeping my legs up), some exercises, and anti-inflammatories. The pain, which was initially severe, has diminished significantly but nowhere near totally. So, for those who’ve had it, how was it for you? How long did it last? Again, I’ve already taken medical advice. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/2 "2010-03-29T14:38:29Z")
Roll a golf ball(baby food jar, tennis ball) under your arch. Ice. Stretch your calves. It’s unusual to get it in both feet. What activities were you doing? Was this a gradual onset or sudden? ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/3 "2010-03-29T14:40:20Z")
I ended up wearing a brace/boot on my foot at night to keep the tendon streatched. I did this for a few months and it cleared right up. That was years ago, and it has not come back. Thank God. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/4 "2010-03-29T14:53:36Z")
I did the calf stretches and the main part of the pain cleared in a couple days; it would usually come back every 2-6 months. Since I started sticking gel inserts (heel cup style) in my shoes I haven’t had a return of the problem in several years. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/5 "2010-03-29T15:22:06Z")
Orthdopedic inserts helped me quite a bit. Buying Dansko clogs is much much better. Wearing really good shoes with proper arch support, not cheap junk, turns out to be important, who knew? Constant moderate exercise that stretches the foot, but no pounding. Also I flex my feet for several minutes before getting up in the morning. I had it in both feet, and with the inserts it cleared up pretty quickly in the right foot. The left foot is now getting better with the clogs (which I got about two weeks ago), but it’s been months. Mainly because we were broke when I got it, and the best I could do was to buy new sneakers and inserts for a grand total of $50. I’m now saving up for good hiking shoes; now that I have the clogs, the sneakers feel totally inadequate. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/6 "2010-03-29T15:22:10Z")
Had it for years. Nothing would get rid of it: orthotics, cortisone injections (which hurt like a bitch), different shoes. It was so bad I couldn’t walk more than a block without severe pain. Then I found Keen shoes. Between those and the calf stretches, things got better quickly. I can now walk for an hour without major problems. ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/7 "2010-03-29T15:27:34Z")
I have it, as do many of my coworkers. It’s an occupational hazard when you’re on your feet 8+ hours a day on hard floors, even if you do wear support shoes with inserts. The pain is worse if I’ve been sitting/lying down for awhile. I’m always stretching my calves and rotating my feet. At home I’ll roll an empty jar under my arches. It helps a bit, but when I get up and start moving around, I’ll still get a dull ache. My leg muscles are so tight that you could mistake them for very thick guitar strings :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/8 "2010-03-29T16:01:41Z")
Mine pretty much disappeared when I started wearing shoes with good arch support. Didn’t take hardly any time, a week maybe? I also stretched whenever I could. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/9 "2010-03-29T16:11:35Z")
I was it getting repeatedly in both feet. It seemed like one would heal and then the other would flare up. Eventually, I realized that the way I was holding my uninjured foot while sitting at the computer was stressing the muscles in my foot. I’m short, so my feet don’t always touch the floor in computer chairs and I wrap my feet around the wheel base. When I hurt a foot, I stopped overstretching, allowing it to heal - but would unconsciously hold my uninjured foot in an awkward stretch eventually causing it to become inflamed. So my advice would be to pay attention to your foot positions for a few days and see if there isn’t something positional causing it to flare up. ---
**Author:** ![Nefarious\_Chipmunk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nefarious_chipmunk/32/1045_2.png) [@Nefarious\_Chipmunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nefarious_Chipmunk)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/10 "2010-03-29T16:13:37Z")
Stretches and good shoes helped me quite a bit. I also realized that I was pointing my toes when I sleep (due to the blankets), which was a major causal factor for me. Stretching when I get in the morning really made a difference. I notice a huge difference within a week or so and it is usually gone in about a month. It comes back when I slack on my stretches because I haven’t felt it in a while. Try not to fall into that trap. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/11 "2010-03-29T16:36:19Z")
My wife had it. She wore a boot at night to keep her foot in the proper position. Her doctor gave me the plans for a small wooden ramp that created a 40 degree angle for her to stretch the tendon on several times a day. I built it out of scrap wood I had in the garage. Her problems cleared up after a few months of consistent stretching and wearing the boot at night. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/12 "2010-03-29T16:56:33Z")
I switched to ortho shoes after getting some cortisone shots, it hasn’t come back. (3 years) ---
**Author:** ![phreesh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@phreesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phreesh)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/13 "2010-03-29T17:26:43Z")
I had a very minor case that cleared up in about a week (or less). I am a jogger, so stopping that for a few days and staying relatively sedentary helped. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/14 "2010-03-29T17:33:32Z")
When I first started running (last summer) I had it bad, in both feet. I treated it mostly by soaking in ice water and resting. I prevented recurrence by stretching and proper shoe wear for running. ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/15 "2010-03-29T18:44:22Z")
My SO keeps his at bay with custom orthopedic inserts for his shoes. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/16 "2010-03-29T18:53:33Z")
I had it. I did a community walk in the wrong shoes. I managed to deal with it myself. I started using the gel heel pads and was careful about walking. I also used an ace bandage on my ankle at night. It eventually went away. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/17 "2010-03-29T19:10:07Z")
Mine eventually went away, but not without a few rounds of cortisone shots. I also had some ultrasound therapy on the bottoms of my feet, but I couldn’t tell that it did a whole lot. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/18 "2010-03-29T20:11:29Z")
One thing the podiatrist told me that was valuable was not to go barefoot. As in never: not in the house, not outside, never. I wear Topsider slip-ons with thick foam inserts in the house now, and it helps a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Palo\_Verde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/65b543/32.png) [@Palo\_Verde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palo_Verde)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/19 "2010-03-29T20:28:31Z")
I had cortisone shots twice and those hurt like crazy. But the thing that really helped the most was those ugly orthotic shoes with lots of arch supports. It got better after about 18 months. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2010, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214/20 "2010-03-29T22:04:45Z")
Hmm… I already have ortho inserts for my shoes, but I do spend a lot of time at the computer, and I often go unshod in the house, so I’ll have to pay attention to my foot position. I’m very glad to read the positive stories, and I’m being most diligent with the exercises. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-your-experiences-with-plantar-fasciitis/534214.md?page=2)