The Good Feet orthotics are ridiculously expensive, I agree. I've never had a doctor prescribe orthotics so I don't know if there is a way to get custom ones covered by insurance.

It took a year for my pain to clear up. I never, ever go barefoot now and wear an ugly but sturdy shoe enhanced with an off-the-shelf arch support. I'll do most anything to avoid a recurrence.

Do you have insurance? My BIL is dealing with his through PT, it's improving but can sometimes take many weeks.

His first PT appointment the therapist asked, flip flops or Teva. He answered Teva. He had just come back from 5 weeks in Europe where he'd done lots of walking and had packed very light, something I'd think you would tend to do when you wear size 15 1/2 shoes that can easily fill a suitcase.

Ugh! The dreaded PF! I've got a heel spur and the doctor insists the pain is not caused by the spur but by PF. Funny how the pain got worse if I roll the wrong way on the heel but I'm not a doctor. I was told stretching and all that as well. I haven't gone barefoot in years and always wear shoes with both good support and cushioning. I'm still working on clearing it up on my own (1.5 years now) and am having very little trouble with my foot. But that's another show.

My husband has PF and swears by the WalkFit brand of inserts. The cheapest place we've found them is Target for $19.99. He tried every brand before that and nothing worked. They are a hard insert with varying levels of tension that provide high to low support. He recommended them to many people with PF and only one person did not have success with WalkFit.

Some folks have reported good results with foam rolling or using a frozen water bottle to roll their foot on.

I, too, have struggled with it since February. Did all the recommended things, exercise, new shoes, orthotics (20 year old ones from a different problem, but they helped somewhat), used a compression-like sock ($20)....just ANYTHING to have that pain go away. So, I saw yet another OTC "aide", a heel lift thing.... sat down here and ordered it ($$$$) and two days later, my pain just went away. From keeping me up even at night.... gone. As I sit here in my bare feet, drinking my first cuppa.... no pain. Can you say "very weird".

The 'heel lift thing' (which I should return) still sits in the Motor Home from when we picked up our mail when leaving town. Unopened. I fear the pain returning more than the $$$ spent, and I DO mostly wear my favorite old clogs that I wore before this episode, and I do wear the new "ortho-something shoe" for my exercise session.

I wish you luck, and have to say.... that pain is the very worst, as it just is with no matter what you do, until one is exhausted from it. Gosh, I feel for you! (((((HUGS)))))

I've had it twice. Do not bother with heel cushions..I think.the problem is actually your arch so get a good arch support. That should help relieve it somewhat, but the only thing that got rid of them permanently were cortisone shots.

1. get some superfeet inserts, the green ones.
2. Always stretch your feet back & forth before getting out of bed
3. Wear good supportive shoes
4. NEVER go barefoot
5. Ice when in pain
6. See your Doctor if you don't get any relief.

Mine lasted almost 3 yrs, it was only bad the first if I can remember that far back.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lots of information

How about I tell you my personal self diagnosing experience? I was wrong! It was tendonitis. There are stretching exercises for tendonitis (that are the same for plantar fasciitis).

And, I don't wear any supports in my shoes any more. Once I was correctly diagnosed, and do the exercises, nothing else extraordinary needed. No more pain upon waking and stepping onto the floor.

So the moral is, get seen!

I too used to suffer from PF. My insurance would not cover orthotics so I tried a pair from my dr. for $450 and they didn't help - a friend suggested I use a can of vegies (?) or I've been told to use a tennis ball and roll it with my bare foot in the arch area whenever I sat down... I did it for over a year and use shoes with an arch support (I wear sandals year round and Famous shoes has lots of them, but Crocs are wonderful! and I have really cute ones) I have not gone barefoot in over 5 years but am sure I could I need be - I've been pain free all this time after the first month.

I had a broken leg, walking on crutches with PF in the good foot which was taking a beating doing all the work. It wasn't a happy time, believe me!

You just have to do everything you can which seems to ease the pain: soft but supportive shoes, never go barefoot, don't even stand barefoot in the shower (put a hand towel down for the tender foot and don't trip on it), roll foot gently on a tennis ball, massage whole foot and ankle. What really helped greatly was two trips to a therapeutic masseuse. Good luck, it can take months. Such a nuisance!

PS the doctor gave me some gel heel cups which made it worse.

I've had it several times. Once for en entire year in both feet! The thing that helped me the mostâ¦.and I did all the exercises, I rolled my foot over a frozen water bottle (that helps to soothe the pain) I rolled my foot of tennis balls, etc. but what really helped was wearing about a 2" heel. It stretches the facia tendon and puts the weight on the ball of the foot. After several weeks, the pain was gone. I wore these shoes from the time I got up in the morning until I went to bed at night. Dr. Scholls has some gels to insert in your shoes and I found them comfortable, too. Now, whenever I feel the fascia tendon tightening up, I put those heels on for a couple of days and it's gone. I never let it get into full-blown plantar fasciitis. I admit to being a bare-foot kind of person even though I know that's a bad thing to do.

I second G'smom in wearing shoes with a bit of a heel--it helps a lot. Mine got so bad I only felt relief after buying the shoes with springs in the heels and I wore them constantly.

Yep, you'll have to be patient as it generally does take @ a year to heal from this. Stretch that hamstring really well before getting out of bed and keep that arch supported!

I've had PF. The doctor told me to wear sneakers or shoes with medium/low heels. No stilettos (which I don't wear anyway) and none of my beloved flip flops or flats. I dealt with mine by doing the stretches several times a day, but always before I got out of bed. I still wear my flats and flip flops, but only if I won't be doing a lot of walking. Walking a lot in shoes without support seems to trigger it in me. If I know I'll be walking quite a bit, I wear something with more support. Like georgysmom, I've learned to detect when I feel it coming on and take action before it gets full-blown. Best wishes. It's painful but it can be managed.

At the suggestion of the woman that delivers my mail, I went to FootSmart online and got two pairs of shoes. One is for everyday walking - an athletic looking shoe. The brand is Orthoheel. The other pair I got was flip flops made by the same company.

I was able to find relief pretty quickly by wearing these shoes.

PS I had gone to GoodFeet and spent a fortune and never really got any relief from them.

I feel your pain. I hope you find relief.

Momrox, am I the only one who thinks that you should see an orthopedic podiatrist? Choosing the wrong orthotic could cause some severe problems.

You do not have to spend $$$$ for good orthotics; mine cost less than $30.00. My OP recommended them but only after Xrays and a careful exam.

Momrox, how's it going with the foot?

Were you here when a number of us ordered the "free" Thorlo socks for $4.99 (usually $15 socks, approx.). I was just looking at their website, and they offer socks which can help with PF, so they say. Might be worth a try to get one of those "free" pairs if you didn't do it before.

You can also stand on the bottom step of a flight of stairs, hang on to the banister on both sides of the stairs, and be sure that only the front half of your feet are on the step. Then drop your heels down as far as you can while you hang onto the banister railing, and hold it there for 10 to 15 seconds. Repeat a few times. Do this a few times a day.

I found that genuine Crocs were great for me since my heels seemed to swell too and were uncomfortable in regular shoes which were too tight on my heels. Also, genuine Crocs have a good arch support. I liked the kind with a heel strap, but I flipped the heel strap over the front of the shoe. I even wore these instead of bedroom slippers or instead of being barefoot at all.

Thanks for asking, Socks. I have been following all of the above suggestions except for going to the dr. Still hurts like a bugger first thing in the morning but once I stretch out and get my sneakers on, it is completely tolerable. Have learned a lot about what shoes to wear and how to stretch during the day and it's made a huge difference. Ordered an arch support from Hammacher-something this a.m. and hoping it also helps. No fun....I want to wear sandals and flip flops!