Heel Pain

sunyatta · Jul 24, 2001

I have plantar fascitis and hallux valgus...I get heel pain...and it's very painful to walk sometimes. Anyway, orthotics help...I got mine from my podiatrist...and it has made a world of difference...have had them since '98. I still get pain but there are ways to lessen the pain....fill a sports bottle with water and freeze it... Roll your feet back and forth over the bottle... takes away the inflammation that is causing pain...if you are on your feet alot, ofcourse, that doesn't help. Do stretching exercises...maybe yoga--for your hamstrings...there is one called the "bridge" this helps....do it everyday. don't go barefoot. wear something even at home...fuzzy slippers are ok. I wouldn't live without my orthotics!

Sharon:cool:

LoisJean · Jul 24, 2001

Lisa- I am a nurse who provides foot care as a community nursing service on a full time basis and I can tell you that Sharon is exactly right...and her description of the exercises are correct for the condition. Please see a Podiatrist ASAP because the condition you are describing will not only affect the structure of your feet in time, but will create misalignment of your spine and hips if it hasn't already. Good Luck.

Lois Jean

michellelpn · Jul 24, 2001

I have found that the best shoes for this problem are the New Balance tennis shoes. Many of the ladies that I work with swear by them and I sure do. I have heel pain first thing in the morning when my feet hit the floor and I have found that the sooner I put them on the better my feet do. I can sure tell when I have been wearing other shoes. Try them you will see a difference.

fiestynurse · Jul 25, 2001

If there are a number of nurses in your dept complaining of heel pain, I would contact the occupational health dept or your risk manager. They have found that certain floor surfaces can cause more wear and tear on nurse's feet. Worth checking out!

allevi · Jul 25, 2001

:eek: I don't have heel pain, but the pain is more in the arch of my foot, is that plantar fascitis??

I do wear inserts in shoes that help with my arch and it does help. But i constantly go bare foot at home, guess I shouldn't probably do that!

BrandyBSN · Jul 25, 2001

I have several pairs of New Balance tennis shoes that work really well if I am not on my feet for more than 6 hours. I started working 8s and 12s, and my feet started throbbing so bad that I limped and nearly cried if i had to stand still. I bought a pair of SAS shoes (they look like something my greatgrandma would wear), but they make my feet feel SOO much better. I will take the ribbing a get from the other students that think my shoes are "uncool". The difference it makes in my feet and legs are worth it!

Brandy

Enright · Jul 25, 2001

Last year in an effort to lose weight I started walking more aggressively, about 4-5 miles a day (I had been doing 1-2). Within a month I was almost crippled with heel pain. I am not a fan of the injections, etc, so I read up on this and decided to start out conservative, with heel cups. My pain decreased by about 90% in 2 weeks. I do have a lot of arthritis but that shooting heel pain did not come back after wearing heel cups in my athletic shoes. Just my experience.

BlueBear · Jul 25, 2001

I suffer from heel pain after working 2 or 3 shifts in a row. I did some research on it, but with heel spurs etc it is said that your pain is at its worst in the morning, when you get out of bed. My pain starts gradually at work and escalates from there. When i get home I lay down and elevate my feet, but it doesn't help much. Any other suggestions??

LoisJean · Jul 26, 2001

Inflammation is the number one cause of the pain described in the above posts. The anatomy of the foot is complex and multiple tendons surround the posterior and lateral aspects of the foot. When one tendon inflames it tends to affect the rest. For instance, an inflamed achilles tendon can affect the abductor hallucis at the bottom of the foot--this is where plantar faciitis occurs.

One thing we teach to our patients who suffer from tendon pain in their feet is proper posture. For those who are able we teach them to stand as if they were trying to touch their heads to the heavens...literally. Imagine that you're neck is stretching upward. This puts the spine in a more natural position, causes the shoulders to align properly, takes stress off of the hips and knees and as a natural result helps relieve strain on the tendons of the feet. This works for anyone of any type of build--male or female. (You will also notice that people pay more respectful attention to you because you really look like someone who knows where they're going!)

Shoes are very important for nurses. The soles should be more of a rocker type; they should be a soft breathable leather; a good arch support, yes, but not if you are flat footed. For flat feet we recommend a European style shoe--can I say Birkies or Born's? But shoes don't need to cost the farm either. Some of us have gone to a place like Wal-Mart, bought a pair of their cool looking Earth Shoes and dyed them white. Important, too is to wear the shoe at the store....you put your old shoes in the shopping cart and go around the store a few times wearing the shoes. See how they feel. If they don't feel right, put them back.

Try not to buy by mail. It's important to put new shoes on and walk in them for a while before buying. As adult people who are on our feet alot, our feet change in structure on the average of every six to twelve months--the foot wear you are wearing today may not fit at all a year from now.

Foot exercises? Use a rolling pin on the floor to roll your feet over. Do this while watching tv or reading or whatever. We recommend about 15 minutes each foot. Use your toes to manipulate the handles of the pin--turn it, spin it--stretching of the toes naturally relaxes the abductor brevis and hallucis muscles on the bottom of the foot. Try it.

Massage is terrific. If you have a significant other, enlist that person to massage your feet--you can massage their feet too at the same time! Or treat yourself to massage therapy by a professional. This will greatly reduce tension and pain in the feet.

Assess the condition of your feet by checking for circulatory problems which can cause pain. Check the bottoms of your feet for color...if the soles are dusky you may be suffering more from a peripheral vascular problem; use your finger to palpate the soles of your feet--if you feel lumps get to your physician--we recently had a patient who complained of "arch pain" and was being treated by a podiatrist with an arch support orthotic. A lump was palpated by one of our nurses and she referred him to his MD. As it turns out the lump was malignant!

As I am certain you all know, the feet are the repositories of many, if not all, human ills. The foot can tell us a great deal about our physical and emotional health. May I say, that if you are suffering from foot pain, and while you are treating that pain, you check out the rest of yourself, too....for instance, if you think the rest of your body is in pretty good shape, how about your emotional health? The more we put onto our shoulders the greater will be the discomfort in our feet.

Just some ideas. Lois Jean

nurs4kids · Jul 27, 2001

Had the same problem a few years ago. New Balance cured me. I have even been able to wear something other than NB's lately without any pain, but wouldn't hesitate to go back to wearing them at the first sign.

Nursz-R-Awsm · Jul 27, 2001

LoisJean,

I was very intrigued by your post.

"As I am certain you all know, the feet are the repositories of many, if not all, human ills. The foot can tell us a great deal about our physical and emotional health."

Can you tell me where I can find more info on a connection b/t our health and foot problems? I was curious as this would be helpful to myself and my hubby.

Thanks!