Heel Spur
 

Any one here ever have a heel spur. This is only the 2nd time I've ever had one and it is killing me. The heel of my foot is so sore. I have been "working" through it, walking anyway and stuff because I don't know what's good for it. I know it will go away in time (don't remember how long the other one lasted), but in the mean time, Ouch!!!

I have been plagued with heel spurs for 30 or so years (in both feet). Usually when they get bad, my doc used to give me cortisone injections which cleared it right up. The pain is actually tendonitis (per physical therapist). I can't take the cortisone any more because it drives my blood sugar up off the charts, so the last really bad bout I had he sent me to physical therapy. Some of the things that made a huge difference were: put water in a plasitc water or soda bottle and freeze it. Then put it on the floor and roll it back and forth with the sore foot, with the arch of your foot curved over the bottle. This streches and also the cold helps ease the inflammation. Stretch by putting a towel, belt etc. (i use a yoga strap) around the ball of your foot (with leg out straight) and pull your toes toward your body. Stand on a block and let your heel drop down below your toes (to strech - don't bounce up and down). They also had me picking up clothespins and little toy soldiers with my toes and putting them in a pail. The other one was to put a hand towel on the floor, put your heel on the end closest to you, and bring the towel to your heel by scrunching it with your feet. Also, those gel heel pads are great, and some kind of NSAID (Aleve, aspirin, etc) for the inflammation and pain. Is this more than you ever wanted to know??? :)

Sandi, heel spurs were what prompted me to lose weight four years ago! My top weight just before I delivered my first daughter was 298 (no doubt I went over 300 by the big day!). I hung around 275 probably for the next 2 1/2 years (probably, because I had thrown away my scale!). I was half-heartedly trying to lose weight, walking a lot, many times with the baby in a backpack (more weight on my poor feet). Finally they couldn't take it anymore and the pain came on. That's when I started getting worried that I would get worse and not be able to walk and just get fatter and fatter, so I finally faced the fact that I would have to change my eating habits. By the time I was down around, I don't know, 230 or so, the pain stopped.

After my second daughter, my weight went up again, settling in at about 265 this time. Eventually, I started feeling the pain in my heels again. Fortunately, I'm back down around 220 now and there's no more pain.

SO -- at least for me it seems the heel spurs are directly related to the weight. In the meantime, I guess you'll do whatever you can to relieve it, and hopefully once the weight comes off you won't have to worry about it! Personally, I hate the whole idea of those cortisone shots -- to each her own!

Good luck!
Pen
265/218.5/150ish

My advice:
Don't go to a podiatrist. Ask your doctor for a good recommendation for an orthopedic surgeon. (No, I'm not even suggesting surgery). I had a bone spur on my foot that plagued me for about two years. Luckily, after way too many cortizone shots, I went to a orthopedic surgeon who recommended physical therapy. It has completely gone away never to return again.

There are some nasty side effects to cortizone shots, be sure to research them before letting your doctor talk you into them. They are shown to cause muscle deterioration. Consider physical therapy instead (and a good anti-inflammitory like Arithromax - I think).

Funny you say that, Jessica -- I once had a different foot problem and went to a podiatrist who tried to talk me into cortisone shots ... I didn't like that idea at all, so I went to a different one who helped me tremendously. I wouldn't have thought to go to an orthopedist. At the time I had my heel spurs I had no insurance, so I didn't want to pay to go to a doctor at all unless absolutely necessary, and losing weight did the trick.