is my Plantar Fasciitis ever going to heal?

bayberry wrote:

I have took off 3 months and this heal pain won't go away. I have read over some older threads that have been helpful. How do I know if it's torn? Has anyone ran through PF? I am so confused by this injury.

I've run through it but I didn't have it in my heal, I had it in my heel. When you learn how to spell, and learn English grammar I'll tell you how to make it go away.

I haite peeple lyke yu. Al hee didd waz ax fore helep n teh frst ting u dho is tere dwn teh wayy he spels.

fyi he was referring to "heal" as in get better, not heel. Duche bag

Go and see a Sports podiatrist. Start with a cortisone shot. Might also consider shock wave therapy.

Check out this link to make sure you are doing everything conservative you can do:

http://www.docfullem.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=9&Itemid=1

Go to AAPSM.org to find a sports podiatrist in your area or ask around the local running club or specialty running shoe store

bayberry wrote:

I have took off 3 months and this heal pain won't go away.

Ok...

i am dumb

- use it every night

Take 3 Advil 4 times a day

Ice after every run and every three hours - freeze an empty 20 ounce coke bottle filled with water - roll your foot on it

Get orthotics from a foot doctor

Get a really cushioned running shoes like the Nimbus

Never do anything barefoot - use Crocs or supported shoes the moment you get out of bed

Don't run on grass or uneven surfaces

If it doesn't go away in 3 months - take up biking, swimming, or rowing and give all your running gear to somebody who will get some use from it

If the pain becomes unbearable, ask your doctor about Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy.

Lydiard referred to PF as the "North American Shoe Disease" because of the big cushy shoes we all wear. Get into the lightest shoes you can find; my choice is the Asics Pirannah SP which have very little or no heel and weight 4.8 ounces. They cured my PF almost immediately after I spent months trying everything else. Also, try pool running and whirlpool.

http://www.flotrack.org/articles/view/280-minimalism

I had PF for about 4 months. During that time I did not run at all because running made it much worse. It went away and I now have no plantar pain.

Here's the treatment I recommend:

1) Strassburg sock. It costs $40 and is something that will slightly help your condition every day. That's pretty cheap.

2) ART (active release technique). MUCH cheaper than shock-wave therapy and more effective. ART has over a 90% success rate at treating PF. Almost all cases take less than 6 treatments, which comes to ``$300 for the guy I go to.

3) Podiatrist -%% orthotics. Some people just have feet with special needs. If you're one of those people, orthotics are important.

4) Shock-wave therapy. Very pricey, but has been shown to work for something like 60% of people.

You should be taking some ibuprofen, icing, and soaking your foot in epsom salt water too.

Cortisone shots have worked for some people, but it seems like it's almost always ineffective in the long run

These things helped me more than $200 orthotics. They are also so light that you don't notice they are in the shoes.

http://www.promeddirect.com/Powerstep-Slim-Tech-34-Length-Orthotic-Support-P386C201.aspx

what is the root of the PF? Have you looked at things like the TriggerPoint Therapy series?

ART/Deep Tissue did quite a bit for leg issues I had earlier in the year and certain stretches for the soleus/gastroc, for me at least, go a long way into keeping the achilles/pf/ from tightening up...

I think the biggest mistake people make is just taking time off and thinking it will heal itself.

Buy the Nike Free and run on a treadmill for a while. I used the treadmill from november to february during that time. That is what cured my 1.5 year case of PF.

Thanks for all help!

I have noticed the pain is less on the treadmill. what did you set the grade at?

Buy the Nike Free and run on a treadmill for a while. I used the treadmill from november to february during that time. That is what cured my 1.5 year case of PF.[/quote]

I never heard or read of Lydiard saying that.

Running in racing flats GAVE me PF, too.

I've had PF since the summer in the backs of my arches... Still not cured but greatly reduced in swelling and pain by massaging the tissue with ice (an Ice Cup at the trainers but a solid, plastic ice pack should also work) and by rolling the area out on either a soup can or a baseball.

I usually keep the grade on 0 or 1. Grade isnt important for you at this point. The Nike Free will help strengthen your foot. I couldnt believe how much better my PF got after using that shoe for a few months. I highly recommend that shoe or the Zoom 3. I always use a treadmill when I am injured for an extended period of time. Right now I am using it to get workouts in while I battle Piriform syndrome. Treadmills are great cause the surface is consistent. I get injured running on uneven grass surfaces every now and then and the treadmill helps me heal.

As others have observed here before, PF responds to aggressive treatment, and not so much to rest. Unlike some things which heal with time off, you may as well run through PF if possible, just really keep after it and experiment with things to find what works. The following were good for me (mostly gathered from ideas on this board), and running in shoes that worked for me didn't seem to make it any worse:

Ice.

Massage - with the ice (e.g. roll it on frozen Gatorade bottle) or separate from ice (e.g. golf ball).

Strassburg sock.

Stretch calves - get the soleus too (bent knee calf stretch) not just the gastroc. Tight/strained soleus seemed to be a big factor in my PF. Also stretch the PF - I think LA Times had a good article with photos, you grab your toes and stretch the foot, as I remember it.

Trace letters of alphabet in the air with toes before getting out of bed, to loosen up ankle/calf before putting weight on it.

Less shoe (minimal flats). Some do better in more shoe (cushier, orthodics or arch supports), some in less.

So another heel wants to heal the heel. PF can be a real pain in the arch.

Here's my wisdom. To heal PF, you need to:

1) Stop re-injuring it

2) Reduce the inflammation, and maybe break up scar tissue

3) Stretch the foot, as well as calves, achilles, and other linked muscles/tendons.

4) Strengthen the foot

The tricky part is finding the right balance to stretch and strengthen, without re-injuring it, or you start all over again.

I would not take 3 Advil 4 times a day to reduce inflammation. Actually out of personal principle, I wouldn't take that much of anything that many times a day for any reason short of life threatening illness.

But in any case, not that many a day, and certainly not for more than 2 weeks. Taking NSAIDs for too long can be bad for your stomach, and destroy your kidneys.

Bulky shoes with support are great for not re-injuring your foot but bad for strengthening it. (A strong shoe makes a weak foot, which increases chance of injury.)

Minimal shoes are great for strengthening to the foot, but doing too much to soon will injure it.

Good luck,

NSAIDS in that small of a quantity does nothing to your kidneys. Taking ibuprofen in small doses each day is good for you.