I had never heard such a fancy word like Plantar Fasciitis. In Fact I even had troubled pronouncing it when I was suddenly struck by Plantar Fasciitis!
I love walking and had stayed away from running as I often had trouble with my knees. One fine day after getting motivated to lose some weight I decided to go jogging. I bought an expensive pair of the best running shoes and took them for a test drive. I must have run for not more than ten minutes when I felt a dull pain at the front, inner part of the heel and under the arch of my right foot.
I thought to myself that it will go away in a couple of weeks by itself. But the pain was persistent. I had pain when I walked or any activity involving being on the feet. I used to get a sharp pain especially when I woke up and got out of the bed in the morning. I did some reading on the symptoms and here is what I found out.
What is Plantar Fasciitis?
Plantar fascia is a strong piece of tissue at the bottom of the foot. It’s job is to keep the bones of the feet in position. It runs from the heel under the feet and spreads across the ball of the feet. When a portion of this tissue is strained, there is pain around the front, inner part of the heel. This pain may also be felt under the arch.
Different symptoms of Plantar Fasciitis
Plantar Fasciitis injury starts gradually. I used to feel the pain when I first got out of bed. The pain would then go away for a while. After I sat down at my desk for a while and got up, the pain would return. According to my research I found out that when you sit or sleep the tissues are healing and as soon as you step on them they tear again. That’s why this can take a long time to heal. In my case it took eight months . This is a common malady with the runners. The muscles of the feet get tired and cannot function properly in supporting the arch, the weight then falls on the fascia, which is not meant to handle this pressure. This causes strain and tearing. If you grab your foot that is in question by your hand and put your thumb on the front, inner portion of the heel, you will feel the pain.
Treatment of Plantar Fasciitis-What you can do to get relief
Ben E. Benjamin in his book with Dr. Gale Borden recommends wearing a heel lift in all your shoes. It must be thick enough to take the weight off the injured foot. Wear this all the time when you are on your feet even when you get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. You don’t want to put pressure and tear the tissues. You may have to do this for a few months as the tissues heal. Avoid athletic activities for a couple of weeks and continue wearing the lift. There are various lifts and devices you can find at a drugstore. You may also want to seek out a podiatrist to make a custom made arch support. Avoid jumping ropes, trampoline jumping or running until your symptoms are gone.
I had to get a Corticosteroid shot a couple of times from my podiatrist. He also asked me to stand on my toes on the steps of a staircase with my heel hanging in air for 5 to 10 minutes a day. Please consult with your Podiatrist when you can start to do this. It took me eight months to get rid of the pain totally.
Good bye for now! Here’s to a pain free life. Cheers!
