Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Chapter 2 page 421 - heel update . . . victory

I have hesitated to write this post as I was afraid to jinx the progress I've achieved.  In case you don't remember, I have had Plantar Fasciitis for 11 years.  It was debilitating and made my life really challenging.  Back in February I finally decided that I couldn't take the pain any more and was desperate to try anything.  I saw a physical therapist and underwent 8 weeks of heel and calf scraping.  The pain was indescribable - so here area  few photos that tell the story better than I can  . . .




After 8 weeks of treatment, I became pain free . . . temporarily (sigh!).  I was able to run my May half without pain and that was fantastic, but within 2 weeks, the pain returned.  Back to physical therapy I went for more scraping.  My second session of PT was for 4 weeks and involved only  . . . scraping (starting to think PT's are masochists).  Here is a photo from my 2nd go go-around . . .
Were you expecting a photo of scraping?  This was the stress ball (actually it was a star) that I was squeezing during the scraping and it hurt so unbelievably much that I accidentally ripped it in half - didn't know my own strength I guess!
So after 12 weeks of physical therapy, I was significantly better, but not 100% pain free.  I discussed with the therapist some options to simulate scraping at home (I couldn't really scrape it by myself because it's my right foot meaning I would have to use my left hand and it was just an awkward angle to apply enough pressure) - I discussed using a golf ball (WOW - that HURTS!), but finally decided to try using The Stick to see if that would work.
source
To my surprise, it worked.  I rolled my foot at the precise place it hurt as aggressively as I could and the PF pain continued to improve over time.  I initially started out rolling it daily and will never forget the day I rolled it and it didn't hurt - what?!?!?  Yay!  When my foot would begin hurting I would roll it - it was every day at first, then every other day, and is now only about 2 days a week. 

So where am I today?  My PF still hurts especially if I stand for a long time or after I run, but the pain doesn't last very long and can definitely be knocked down by giving it a few rolls with The Stick.  I say that my PF is under control and is being managed.  It's awesome to be at this stage.  I seriously hope it goes away for good at some point, but if this all the better I get - I can live with this!!!

Ever had PF?
 yep
What was the one thing that made it better?
(my first round of treatment 10 years ago - wearing a night splint definitely made it improve; my second round of treatment 6 years ago - orthotics definitely made it better; and this time - scraping (sigh) made it better)

7 comments:

  1. I have had PF. I put some inserts in my shoes and that helps a lot. It typically flares up the worst when I do a lot of speed work. But I also say that changing out your shoes often and using the foam roller and stick all help me.

    I am glad you are making progress. That scraping looks MISERABLE.

    -Jen

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  2. Goodness that sounds terribly painful. I am so glad you have gotten it to a manageable point. I luckily *knock on wood* have not had PF - after seeing this post, I pray I never get it!

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  3. That looks unbelievably painful. I don't know if I could handle it, honestly. I have PF flare ups when I increase my mileage too much, but I massage my first first thing in the morning before I even get out of bed, and roll it on a frozen water bottle a few times every day to get it under control.

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  4. That scraping looks horrible!!! OUCH!! But I'm so glad to hear your PF is getting better! And power to you for pushing through it all these years, I know that couldn't have been easy.

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  5. OMG when i saw the photos of the pain in your face my whole body just clenched up - that just looks terrible!! So glad the stick seems to have done the trick that has got to be better than ripping up stress balls!

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  6. Today's run was my first experience with PF. I remembered reading your post so I thought I would revisit it. I could not believe the pain in my right foot. I have been rolling it was a golf ball and have a water bottle in the freezer. I am so worried as my 1/2 marathon is one week away. I hope it will clear up in time. I can hardly walk around the house right now!

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  7. So glad to hear you're doing better, that sounds awful but sometimes it has to get worse to get better. I've been blessed in that I haven't had but one injury since I started running and that was from wearing the wrong shoes, an easy fix. Keep up the amazing work and I wish you many pain free runs!

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