Plantar fasciitis - any ideas, and has anyone used a splint?

[Olivo]

I am being driven potty by what I have self diagnosed as plantar fasciitis. Over the six months since it started, after walking home with a broken shoe, it has steadily got worse. I try to do exercises, use gel heels inside my shoes and step into fit flops as I get out of bed, but no improvement. I have just purchased a splint to be worn at night, but trying on, it is already making my whole leg ache after 5 mins.

Just wondering if anyone else has any tips, or if anyone has had success with a splint?

I used and still use (occasionally, if I've done a lot of walking), something called a Strassburg Sock......google it. Nothing else worked for me, but this cleared it in a couple of weeks..

I did all the usual things - rolling a golf ball under my foot, spraying foot with shower head alternating between hot and cold. Along with this, I stopped wearing flat shoes with no protection.

I constantly agitated it. A physiotherapist told me that your body can get used to that level of damage and it becomes the norm, so constantly agitating it reminds your body it's not quite right.

I had it for years and walking 4 miles a day in flat unsupported shoes was the main problem.

Thank you. I've not tried the shower thing, I'll give that a go, and am Off to google the sock! I've done the balls and the icing.

Cold (I use coke!) can or bottle of water frozen and rolled under foot helped me.
Decent shoes and calf stretches. (Hang heels over back of stair and let heels drop down.)

I'd recommend seeing a physio or podiatrist. I had murderous plantar fasciitis and it just wouldn't clear up until I got custom made insoles for my shoes.

No flat shoes.

No gel heels. There are (quite expensive) orthotics for sale which support the arch - you need those now. Remember to look for the ones which say they're for plantar fasciitis.

There are exercises for PF here.

If the worst comes to the worst, then a steroid injection might be needed. Good luck with that one.

Oh Gingernaut's reminded me, I had the steroid injection into my heel. It was quite possibly the most painful thing I've ever experienced. And it didn't work.

Really no gel heels? They are the only things making it bearable, those and fit flops but I am not allowed to wear those to work. . They seem to market the gels for PF.

Will try the Coke thing after work tomorrow.

Stretch foot before getting out of bed, and roll a tennis ball under the foot before getting up (I do this for a couple of minutes when sitting in bed). Roll the foot on a Cold can. Good arch support (insoles or really good trainers with arch support). Wear Fitflops with a back strap or for flop shoes/boots. No flop flops, sandals without a back. Never walk barefoot. Rest. I do have a splint for when it has been really bad in the past but exercise and massage works better, I did go for the injection it's bloody painful but it did help me heal faster the pain stopped almost immediately, and with exercises and massage it never came back as bad as it was before.

You can get Fitflops shoes. Please tell me you don't wear high heels at work.

I bought these off Amazon and they worked wonders. Wore them in both shoes even though one foot only was affected, and wore them for a month after all pain had gone, and I've not had it since last year

I used to be a footcare advisor for Scholl. You need to treat the cause not the symptom. Plantar fasciitis is a symptom of a dropped inner longitudinal arch (the big one that runs down the inside of the foot). Because the arch has dropped, the muscle that runs along it, the plantar fascia, is being over stretched. Pain in the heel is because that's where the muscle connects.

Best way to deal with it is to invest in some really good arch supports. It can be quite hard to find suitable ones these days as over the counter ones are mostly too low. To get the best fit, cross your legs so the foot hangs loosely and relaxed. Hold the support to your foot in this position. It should follow the natural line of the relaxed arch. With a proper fitting arch support the pain will disappear very quickly.

The most helpful thing I found was wearing Sketchers Go Walk shoes.

My Dsis is a podiatrist and adv small heal and cave me some inserts. It took a while ( a few winter months wearing 1inch heal boots through the winter) but did the trick. Flat shoes are a real no no. I wear fit flops through the summer to restretch my Achilles after shortening then with heal but I can now wear proper heals again for the odd special occasion without crippling myself.

No, I rarely wear heels for. Work, certainly not all day. I like the look of those inserts from Amazon. Am doing the stretches each morning, but I find even standing in the shower hurts, so wear my fit flops. I will check out the sketchers online.
Thanks for all your advice.