Walking On Broken Glass. It’s a great song, but a horrible feeling, especially when getting out of bed in the morning. Yet this is how some people describe the pain of plantar fasciitis (pronounced PLAN-ter fash-ee-EYE-tus).
Do I have Plantar Fasciitis?
It starts with a sharp pain on the bottom of your foot, traveling to the front of the heel. It becomes painful to put your weight on it. Those first few steps upon arising in the morning can be agonizing. The pain originates in the flat band of tissue called the plantar fascia, which joins your heel bone to your toes and supports the arch of your foot.
What Causes Plantar Fasciitis?
There are multiple factors that might cause inflammation of the plantar fascia such as flat feet or overly high arches, poorly fitting shoes, and tight Achilles tendons, just to name a few. The pain is caused when misalignment of the bones in the heel and foot put stress on the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the foot. This makes the foot more susceptible to damage and inflammation. If these misalignments are not corrected, the body responds by depositing calcium at the bottoms of your feet, resulting in heel spurs. When the ligaments become inflammed pain is the result.
Plantar fasciitis is the most common cause of heel pain. Two million Americans a year are given this diagnosis. It is often seen in runners, pregnant women, overweight people, and wearers of shoes with inadequate arch support. It typically affects people between the ages of 40 and 70, but often affects younger people, too.
Conventional treatments include NSAIDs, icing, stretching, strapping and taping, and in some cases patients are given steroidal injections. But steroids carry risks, including an initial flare-up in which the pain may actually worsen for several days before relief, if any becomes evident.
For many of our patients, drugs are just not an option. That’s why they seek chiropractic help for their foot pain. Let’s just say they’ve come to the right place.
How Chiropractic Treatment Helps Plantar Fasciitis
Some conditions clear up by themselves. Plantar fasciitis is not one of them. Don’t waste time! Delay in treatment usually results in prolonging your misery.
Chiropractic approaches to plantar fasciitis employ gentle, low-force adjustments to correct misalignment in the affected foot. Although many patients start feeling some relief at their first visit, it’s important to know that recovery from plantar fasciitis takes time. After all, you use your feet all the time!
Chiropractic care can help you deal with a very significant contributing factor to plantar fasciitis: bad posture. Your gait and the amount of impact inflicted upon your feet are both impacted by your posture. Seeking chiropractic treatment to improve your posture can improve the way your feet function as you walk or run. This is why eliminating bodily misalignments can make treatment of plantar fasciitis far more effective.
Chiropractic on its own can be an effective treatment for plantar fasciitis. It’s also a great compliment to other therapies, such as physical therapy and myofascial release to speed healing and provide improved mobility.
It Takes Time
It’s important to be patient. Plantar fasciitis may take several months to heal. After all, you didn’t acquire the condition overnight. It took years to develop. Adding chiropractic to your recovery plan helps you to feel better faster, reducing your pain and shortening your recovery time.
My therapies include myofascial release (Graston technique), ultrasound, targeted stretches of the foot and calf, as well as adjustment of the lower extremities and pelvis. Chiropractic is a whole body approach to wellness, Even though the pain is in the foot, as previously mentioned, the foot is not isolated from the rest of your body.
My approach to plantar fasciitis (as well as other conditions) is the result of decades of practice. I have helped countless patients with sports injuries, sciatica, shoulder pain, wrist pain, and foot pain (with plantar fasciitis being a favorite of mine).
Make an appointment today and start feeling better. Call or send a text at 828-777-6115. Nothing makes me feel better than making you feel better.