Plantar Fasciitis

Julia from Davenport, FL asked:

Hi Julie,

Thank you for the opportunity to ask a question.

What’s causing the pain in my left foot when I walk?  It’s on the bottom of my foot on the flat area across from the arch.

What can I do to heal it so it so it no longer hurts?  Thank you.

Hi Julia,

Sorry to hear about your foot pain.

When scanning you, I could see the inflammation on the bottom of your left foot. Looks like plantar fasciitis to me. The plantar fascia is a long, thin ligament that lies directly beneath the skin on the bottom of your foot. It connects the heel to the front of your foot, and supports the arch of your foot.

Your pain is most likely caused by wearing some cute shoes that didn’t have any arch support in them.

The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons says, “The plantar fascia is designed to absorb the high stresses and strains we place on our feet. But, sometimes, too much pressure damages or tears the tissues. The body’s natural response to injury is inflammation, which results in the heel pain and stiffness of plantar fasciitis.”

So, in order to help you heal, I applied anti-inflammatory energy to get the inflammation calmed down and then repaired the tiny tears in the ligament. In the short run this should help relieve some of your pain.

In addition, here are a few suggestions that will help …

1) Freeze an unopened plastic water bottle and roll the arch of your foot over it. You’ll probably want to wear a sock in order to tolerate the cold. That will help with inflammation.

2) Wear tennis shoes with good arch supports as much as you can. This will provide padding to your sore foot.

3) Do the downward dog yoga stretch a couple of times a day. Place your hands on the floor and stick your bottom in the air to make an inverted v-shape. This will stretch the ligament, help it heal, and most importantly, prevent a re-occurrence of the pain. For more information, check out the downward dog yoga stretch online and on YouTube.

Hope you feel better!