Today, my doctor told me I have Plantar Fasciitis (heel-spur syndrome). What a bummer!
I've been experiencing a lot of pain in the bottoms of my feet for about a month now, but it's getting worse as time goes by. Thought I'd better have it checked out, and low and behold....I have "sick feet".
My switching to part time status...8 hour shifts on nights...couldn't be more timely as the doctor thinks 12's is way too much for me to continue working.
Had to go to the Orthotic Lab within the hospital today for fitting of some special cushions for my shoes in hopes it will relieve the pressure and the pain on the bottom of my feet, especially my heels. If not, surgery may have to be done. I hope not.
We need our feet to be healthy, so I am going to do whatever my doc tells me to do to keep them healthy. Please send up prayers...positive energy...healthy thoughts...whatever your belief happens to be...for me. Much thanks!
I developed this condition suddenly about 8 months ago and I am not a nurse yet. But I have what is called a flexible arch which means I have an arch when sitting but goes away when standing. I have done all you guys have done. The left foot is gotten much better. But the right foot is still bad. But not as bad as it was. This is what I found out. People tend to put more weight on the right side of their bodies at all times. People tend to be bigger on the right side of their bodies. When people drive they use their right foot more which aggravates the condition. Think about how you have to put your right foot up on the accelerator and then move it to the brake. Keep up the exercise and baby those feet. It will gradually get better but you will have to continue to baby those feet so it won't come back. By the way Rene Zelwiger was on the David Letterman show and she has it too. She got it from running and doing those dance moves in Chicago. She continues to wear those extreme high heels and was planning on surgery. Dave told her that she shouldn't do it because the condition would gradually get better on its own. I think for people who catch it early that is mostly true. So do what the doctor says and it will slowly get better.
Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.
OssaTron therapy
What Is The OssaTron®?
The OssaTron is a high energy shockwave system that provides a non-surgical alternative for patients diagnosed with chronic proximal plantar fasciopathy (severe heel pain), usually referred to a s fasciitis. This non-invasive out-patient treatment represents a breakthrough for this condition.
Heard about this treatment on the news. Husband has had about 10 shock wave lithotripsies due to kidney stones since 1984. Hope this treatment which uses similar type shock waves is successful but have concerns re Broken up particles being absorbed elsewear in the body and causing problems. Karen
I have them in both feet! I do daily stretches to help with the pain, along with heat & ice. I have had multiple injections in the heels (ouch!!!!) for severe pain. Much improvement after one day. Good shoes, & magnets help me too. Put those dogs up on a chair when able!
I had p.f. about 5 trs ago and i had the orthotics and injections for 4 months and they didnt work. then i had the brace for the foot that i slept in for 4 months and that to was a bust . THEN i had a cast put on my foot similar to the night brace that i wore 24/7 for 6 weeks that also went bust finally after a year i had a fascia release and after 6 weeks of pain i have relief!!! i cannot wear really hard shoes anymore but a pair of cobbie cuddlers do just fine and i can stay on my feet at least 12 if i have to with very minimal discomfort. i am not a big surgery person but dont count the surgery out it worked wonders for me.LOL
I too have plantars fasciitis. It is very painful. I had a flair up and had cortizone shots and orthotics and it went away for a few years then it came back worse than before. I had orthotripsy surgery last year (no incision and you can go back to work in a few days) and it helped some but I still suffer with the pain. I took a medrol dose pack and it helped some but almost daily I have pain. I work in an office so don't have to walk as much as on the floor. I can feel your pain.
The information on this thread has been absolutely a blessing to me, and I thank you over and over for taking time to share of your own experiences with "P.F."
I have an orange in the freezer now, and will try it out first thing in the morning. For now, I just finished using my frozen pea bag under foot to help relieve the pain. My RIGHT FOOT is worse than the left, and perhaps it is the shifting of weight, too much weight on that side of the body, or too much weight period.
I've been on Atkins Diet for several days now, and look forward to seeing my excess weight disappear.........sooner than later. Ohhhhhh the web we weave for ourselves.
My Fi had an awful problem with it a couple of years back. He hobbled around in the mornings too, took a good while to get stable on his feet, by the night he was done for, poor guy, it was a terrible time for him. I took him to a Nurse practicioner who said it was PF...but with the severity of what he was going through i couldn't believe a simple explanation as such. We went to a doctor for a second opinion, and without so much as taking his shoes off, this doctor said it was PF, told him to go and get a good pair of running shoes and take some advil in the meantime. I was not impressed, but seeing as this was the second opinion, we decided that a good pair of shoes could not make things any worse. Would you believe that his 2 months of suffering day and night was allieved in a few days????? He has never had a problem since. The problem for him was being on his feet all day doing hard work, lifting, bending etc. with no real support in his footwear. A lot of times he had to wear those rubber boots in the mud, forget about support there. But the days that he did wear his good shoes, he never really had problems with the days he needed to wear less supportive foot wear.
Just curious if anyone else has ever heard of this. I frequent a lowcarb bb and someone on there who has hypothyroidism said that PF can be one of the symptoms of hypothyroidism. Anyone else ever hear of this?
About a year ago I had such painful plantar fasciitis that I would be limping after a brief trip through a grocery store, and after a 12 hour shift I could barely walk!! I'd drive home with the car set on cruise control because my feet hurt so badly it was painful to push on the gas pedal. Then a nurse friend recommended that I try Birkenstocks. She knew someone who tried wearing them and got a lot of relief. I'd already tried all the usual..braces, heel cushions, exercises...and no improvement, so I was ready to try anything. I bought some Birkenstocks, started wearing them and the change was almost instant! It made the pain go away! I can walk now without limping and stay on my feet for long periods of time without being in pain. Whenever I wear regular shoes the pain comes back, so I go back to my Birkenstocks. I know I sound like a commercial for ugly German shoes, but I'm a believer! Before you consider surgery, give Birks a try. I've got about 6 pairs now and don't wear anything else.:)
What a bummer! 
tonicareer
374 Posts
I developed this condition suddenly about 8 months ago and I am not a nurse yet. But I have what is called a flexible arch which means I have an arch when sitting but goes away when standing. I have done all you guys have done. The left foot is gotten much better. But the right foot is still bad. But not as bad as it was. This is what I found out. People tend to put more weight on the right side of their bodies at all times. People tend to be bigger on the right side of their bodies. When people drive they use their right foot more which aggravates the condition. Think about how you have to put your right foot up on the accelerator and then move it to the brake. Keep up the exercise and baby those feet. It will gradually get better but you will have to continue to baby those feet so it won't come back. By the way Rene Zelwiger was on the David Letterman show and she has it too. She got it from running and doing those dance moves in Chicago. She continues to wear those extreme high heels and was planning on surgery. Dave told her that she shouldn't do it because the condition would gradually get better on its own. I think for people who catch it early that is mostly true. So do what the doctor says and it will slowly get better.