Self Help For Heel Pain

Heel pain driving you crazy?

Heel pain  is a very common foot complaint which may involve injury to the bone, fascia, muscles, tendons or the fat pad. Often the pain derives from the inflammation of a thick band of tissue called the plantar fascia, which runs across the bottom of your foot.  This is called plantar fasciitis or plantar fasciosis.

Symptoms of Plantar Fasciitis:

• Throbbing or stabbing pain, often worse after a period of rest.

• Burning pain on the outside edge of the heel.

• Generalised heel ache, especially if you are on your feet for long periods of time.

If you’re seeking to self-treat your heel pain, we advise patients to perform stretching exercises as it relieves the tightness of the plantar fascia tissue, calf muscle and achilles tendon. For plantar fascia and general heel pain, our most recommended stretch is the tennis ball stretch.

Self Help Heel Pain Exercise No 1: Tennis Ball Stretch

The tennis ball stretch should create a pulling feeling in your muscles without causing pain. When performing this exercise you should stay seated, perhaps on the edge of the bed first thing in the morning. Using a firm tennis ball, place the arch of your foot on the ball and roll the ball back and forth with the arch of your foot. Simply push your foot onto the ball using your own body weight. As your condition improves you can perform the tennis ball stretch while standing as well.

If you don’t get any improvement using this technique please get the pain assessed. Our Podiatrists are very experienced in treating plantar fascia and heel pain and we have numerous treatment options to offer you. You can make an appointment by either calling our friendly reception staff or booking online.