Shall a just be done with it and cut off my foot?

[TokyoSushi]

I have severe plantar fasciitis in one foot. I've had it for about 10 weeks. It is beyond painful and quite frankly every step makes me feel sick.

I have:

• been to the GP, 'it's plantar fasciitis, nothing you can do, hang your heels off a step a couple of times a day and eventually it'll go, could take up to 6 months though. Ooh it is painful isn't it, look you can hardly walk on that foot, hey ho, crack on with it... 🙄'
• taken ibuprofen, didn't do much, stopped
• done the exercise where you hang your heels off the back of a step
• done calf stretches, heel stretches, foot stretches, all the stretches
• rolled my foot on a frozen water bottle
• rolled my foot on a golf ball
• rolled my foot on a special spiky massage ball
• bought expensive recovery sliders and worn those without fail around the house
• worn Birkenstocks around the house
• worn trainers around the house
• gone to yoga
• completely rested, elevated and iced it for days
• carried on as normal
• done stretches before getting out of bed in the morning
• placed my foot very carefully on the floor when getting out of bed

NOTHING WORKS, it is hurting all the time and I can't bear it anymore. DS(13) says the way I walk looks like I have my foot in a bear trap!

Please help me!!!

The only thing that worked for mine was the brutal looking insoles that are metal and leather. The only reason I found them was because my GP was a fellow sufferer. I also had physio regularly which released my tight calf muscle and helped. I honestly think that rolling it on things just aggravated it.

A night splint helps (though it hurts at first) as it keeps it stretched when you sleep.

Oh my, metal & leather?! 😳

I haven't gone down the inner sole route, I work entirely from home so am indoors the vast, vast majority of the time, but I'm willing to consider it!

The GP absolutely passed it off as one of those things, we do have medical insurance through DH work so I wondered if there's anyone else I could/should see? A physio? A podiatrist? Something else?

Please don’t take this badly but - Mine stopped after i lost weight 😐 it was horrific. Like stepping on hot knives. I don’t know if that’s a thing or if it can just go away naturally anyway.

But don’t cut your foot off, because seriously mine was horrendous and then it just suddenly wasn’t there anymore. There’s hope!

The most infuriating thing @SisterAgatha is that I've recently lost 2.5st, I'm the lightest I've ever been since I had said 13 yr old DS, and then this starts! Should have stayed fat!

I'm your twin OP! I saw a podiatrist, osteopath, physio, bought specialist trainers, sleeping sock thing to lift the toes at night, rolled on a spiky ball, exercises on stairs and everything recommended. It was awful! I was waiting for shock therapy which others have said works well.

I stopped the daily exercises because I had a bad cold. 2 weeks later- I awoke with no pain! I cannot say whether all the devices and therapies I tried helped, or if stopping them actually helped? I'll never know- but 3yrs on, it hasn't returned.
There is a light at the end of tunnel OP x

A good physio. I've just had a look online and can't find the insoles I got but will have a look at them in the morning

Sorry I have no magical cure for your current predicament but a doctor told me to alternate heel heights throughout the week when I recovered from a bout 20+ years ago. I followed his advice and I’ve never had a recurrence,
Good luck!

My mum got a steroid injection and it cured her plantar fasciitis overnight.

Give it time, it will go.

Do you wear converse? I was always in converse too and they aren’t great trainers for healthy feet!

I have had PF twice, I tried everything you mentioned plus cortisone injection and nothing worked. I worked in NHS admin which involved a lot of walking and remember limping down the corridors thinking will this pain ever stop?
All I can say is that you will wake up one morning, and realise that it's gone, it just a matter of time. Not much comfort I know but it will go eventually.

Massage CASTOR OIL into the foot every night before bed. I don't know how, but it works.

I can sympathise! I remember how painful it was. I tried all sorts too and never found much worked. I think the only reason mine got better was because we went into lockdown and I was no longer needing to do school runs etc...
Being able to rest it more finally seemed to help but I realise this isn't an option for most people.

I hope you find some relief soon.
I found wearing 'fitflop' sandals around the house the best.

It goes if you do the stretching exercises and get insoles with arch support. I had it for a year and suddenly it was gone. Get the odd flare up if I wear the wrong shoes but it only lasts a day or so

And well done on your weight loss too x

I had electro shock treatment privately with a physiotherapist, it was expensive and painful but it worked eventually. The theory is that it gets the body to recognise that there is an injury and heal it, if it has gone on a long time it becomes a chronic inflammation and doesn’t heal.

Thanks so much all for your sympathy and suggestions everybody, I'm glad that somebody else understands the awfulness of it!

It's like a constant dull pain, when you're sitting, then an excruciating pain like you're walking on knives when you get up. I also have the added bonus where about every 20 minutes or so, I get what can only be described as a 'surge' which really feels like my heel is filling up with scalding water, what a bloody ridiculous thing!!

A YEAR @ramron?!?! 😳😳😳😳😳

I'm wondering if 10 nights by the pool in the blazing sun next week will help?

Seriously, get the steroid injection.

If you can go private and get it asap you might even enjoy the pool holiday.

Is the injection in your actual heel @MissScarletInTheBallroom? 🫣

Feel you @TokyoSushi I have plantar fasciitis. Also 11 years ago broke a bone in that area of my foot. Bern in agony ever since. GP just shrugged.

I saw a podiatrist. Soent £60 on custom insoles which where no different to scholl ones.

No answers, just sympathy

Oh you have my full sympathy. It's awful!
The only thing that worked for me was a steroid injection. Painful but so worth it. I've never looked back
Hope you get sorted.

The steroid injection doesn't work for everyone (she says from bitter experience). PF can last from 6 months to a year. You need to wear properly supportive shoes or trainers at all times. I have really good insoles which I wear all the time and so far they've kept it away. I also have an ankle height support/ compression sock (open toes) which helped during the worst months.

Keep up the exercises as they will help over time. Enjoy your holiday!

Thanks all, argh, it really is mostly a plough on and it will go isn't it?! Awful!!

In your foot, yes, not sure where. My mum said the injection itself was very painful for about 30 seconds and there was a lot of swearing but she woke up the next morning and the pain was completely gone.