Plantar fasciitis is a frustrating condition which causes sharp pain along the bottom of the foot. It’s typically at its worst when you first wake up in the morning or after you sit too long. It is caused by inflammation and irritation of the plantar fascia, a thick piece of connective tissue along the bottom arch of the foot.
The plantar fascia actually helps support the arch of the foot. If you lack a good arch and compound that problem by not sufficiently supporting the arch with good footwear, the fascia actually lengthens like an stretched elastic band. Over time, all that tension through the bottom of the foot causes inflammation. Inflammation causes pain.
The most successful way to deal with plantar fasciitis is to prevent it from happening in the first place. Good footwear with ample arch support is the way to go.
The good news: there are plenty of at home treatments for plantar fasciitis. Chief among them is a good calf stretch. Tight calf muscles create tension through the Achilles heal and directly into the connective tissue on the bottom of the foot. You can also roll the bottom of your foot with a frozen water bottle or a lacrosse ball. I’m a big fan of lacrosse balls and foam rollers for at home management of muscle pains.
Unfortunately for some, all of these at home treatment techniques aren’t enough. At this point, your best course of action is to seek some care from a licensed health professional. Before you spend $400 or more on a pair of custom orthotics, I highly recommend manual and/or exercise therapy from a licensed chiropractor.
Manual therapy takes many forms, but in our office we favor Graston Technique. Graston is a form of instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM). We use a tool made of surgical steel to break apart the adhesions, inflammation, and tightness along the bottom of the foot. This is a fantastic treatment technique for muscle, ligament, and tendon pain throughout the whole body in fact. We made a video to demo how Graston technique is performed for plantar fasciitis.
Graston is a fantastic treatment tool for this problem. However, it’s important to support the joints and tissue once the patient leaves the office. Enter in Kinesiotape. If you’ve seen any professional or collegiate sports in the last decade, you will have noticed colorful tape on the athletes. That’s kinesiotape. It’s an elastic tape, meaning it allows full normal range of motion and is able to support the tissue through that motion. Here is an example of how to apply kinesiotape for plantar fasciitis.
It’s important to our office to provide the highest level of musculoskeletal care in Burlington NC. That’s why we have advanced post-doc certifications in Graston Technique and Kinesiotaping. If you can’t find relief from the pain with self-care techniques at home, combining these tools in our arsenal to tackle even the most difficult cases of plantar fasciitis becomes a breeze.
Find relief by contacting Cardinal Chiropractic and Sports Recovery and scheduling your first appointment. We’ve made scheduling that appointment as easy as possible. Click on the “Schedule an Appointment” button at the top of your screen and select a day and time that works best for you. We’ll create a personalized care plan designed around your specific needs, and once executed together you can find the relief the comes when your life revolves around your passions – not your pain!
