plantar fasciitis

quick lesson of the day: what is plantar fasciitis?

that is what i have!

according to what i've read online, *plantar fasciitis is a painful condition caused by overuse of the plantar fascia or arch tendon of the foot. it affects the plantar fascia, which is a broad, thick band of tissue that runs from under the heel to the front of the foot.

*the affected portion in red

but how did i know that this is it? a sports science specialist friend of mine suggested i see a sports doctor for my heel problem. i have been complaining about this for the last three weeks although the pain was more pronounced this week. i thought a foot spa would help but when i asked my friend about the one he usually frequents, he suggested i go to see this doctor he knows.

today, i went to the clinic, thinking that this will be a very quick check-up because it was only the heel (a very small portion of the human body, i'm thinking). when i got there, the doctor asked me a couple of questions:  when did you first experience it, what were you doing when you felt it, and where particularly? then i felt the same pain when he pressed a certain part of the heel - i said, 'that's it!' and he murmured to his physical therapist "spur." what the heck was spur? then i just found myself down on my stomach on the bed.

a second after that, i felt a cool gel thing being spread on my heel and a certain device being moved around it. when i asked, the doctor said that it was an ultrasound to see which muscles are affected. when they finished with it, the therapist thoroughly massaged my heel musles and then when it was done, he asked me, if the pain manifests itself when i wake up. when i said yes, they were both sure that it was plantar fasciitis because they said it was one of the very common symptoms of this injury. then the therapist had me doing strengthening exercises which, i must really tell you, really hurts!!!!

================================================

*--- the symptoms---

• Heel pain, under the heel and usually on the inside, at the origin of the attachment of the fascia. ✔
• Pain when pressing on the inside of the heel and sometimes along the arch. ✔
• Pain is usually worse first thing in the morning as the fascia tightens up overnight. After a few minutes it eases as the foot gets warmed up ✔
• As the condition becomes more severe the pain can get worse throughout the day if activity continues.✔
• Stretching the plantar fascia may be painful. ✔
• Sometimes there may also be pain along the outside border of the heel. ✔ This may occur due to the offloading the painful side of the heel by walking on the outside border of the foot. It may also be associated with the high impact of landing on the outside of the heel if you have high arched feet 

 ===============================================

--- the exercises ---

first, i had to stand with my feet on a 45deg platform while standing up properly. try it, that really hurts. when i told the doctor this, he said (just like any other sports doctor would say, i think) "if there's no pain, there's no gain." he also said, "you can only know that it works when it hurts!" hmmm... does it also apply to any aspect of life? LOL.

the next exercise was to have me stand on edge of a platform and have me lift my body fast and then go down slowly, to stretch my calf muscles. the therapist said, strengthening my calf will help relieve the pain in my heel. i guess the muscles there are really connected. anyways, i had to do three sets of 20 ups/downs before the doctor and therapist were satisfied.

they let me rest after that while lying in the bed again but the therapist then placed a tool in my heel again, this time a thing which looks like an ecg attachment. when he turned it on, i felt a certain "sting" and vibration. later, i just felt my feet move in reflex. it was kinda cool but weird. when all these were done, they placed a plaster to my sole to support my tendon and foot arch.

tonight, i am still wearing that plaster until two days from now. today was quite an experience and although i'm sad i have an injury, i'm glad it was seen to as early as now. :)

my right heel after seeing the doctor today

* article and photo credit: http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/cybertherapist/front/foot/plantarfaciitis.htm