Planters Fasciitis?

westiemom

I can't stand the pain, literally I can't stand either (for very long). I've been on arimidex for about 6 months, about 3 months ago the foot pain started, first the heels, now the entire foot even the top part of the foot, both feet, they feel bruised. I've read cytoxen can cause it, then I read it could also be a side effect of arimidex. I called my oncologist today, hopefully I will hear back from him tomorrow. I increased my vitamin d about 2 months ago. I wasn't low in vit d. I'm BRAC positive, had a bilateral mastectomy and oophrectomy. Wondering if anyone has had the same experience and what did you do to treat it? I'm really reaching out to everyone for advice, cause I'm thinking about asking my doctor to give me a few months reprieve from the arimidex to see if it's the medicine, but I don't want f"ing cancer to come back either. Ugh...

hrf

I'm also BRCA and had bmx and bso as well. Many years ago I had plantar fascitis. It was extremely painful. four months of wearing only running shoes with custom made orthotics took care of it



Now I'm on Arimidex - have been for almos 2 years and now I have Achilles tendonitis. I wonder if it's the Arimidex?

suzanneinphoenix

I had plantars fasciitis prior to BC...I twisted my ankle and when I fell, I ended up sitting ON my right foot/ankle.  After that all healed, I started with major heel pain.  I went to an orthopedist, had cortisone shots on two separate occasions.  That's been a maybe 2-3 years ago.....I do wear shoes that won't aggravate it, and I buy special heel cushions that go in my shoes.  Check out: www.footsmart.com and then click on items for plantar fasciitis.  Hope this helps.....I know how painful this condition is!

MBJ

I had six rounds of TC and a year later: plantar fascia.  I understand that the collagen that cushions the foot can be destroyed with chemo.  I have put orthotic cushions in all of my shoes but so far nothing has worked.

mdg

Ohhhh...I had PF a few times and once had it in both feet.  It is painful and it takes time to go away.  I worked with a physical therapist when I had it one time.  It gets super tight when you sleep at night and mine hurt the worst in the morning when I got out of bed...I could barely walk.  My PT said to massage the foot really well in the morning before walking on it.  She also had me do "bottle rolls" as an exercise/stretch. Just put a can (like canned veggies or soup) on the floor and put it under the arch of your foot while you are sitting down..  Roll the can with your foot forward and back so it massages and strectches the arch of your foot.  I also iced it.  It was pretty bad so they did do some ultrasound treatments on it and that really helped.  I did also have special orthotics for  a while.   See if you can get working with a PT....I hope it heals soon.  I know how painful it is!

MJLToday

Yeah, I've had it from the chemo drugs I'm on too.  Nasty little side effect. 

Here's what I do.  First thing in the morning, before you put any weight on your feet, take your foot in your hand and bent the toes backwards, and hold for 10 seconds.  Alternate feet, repeat 10 times. This stretches that tendon in your arch.  It is that tendon that causes the extreme pain in the heel where it attaches to the heelbone.  

 Wear a night splint if you can stand it.  The one the podiatrist gave me was horrible, I got two like this

 http://www.amazon.com/Futuro-Plantar-Fasciitis-Sleep-Support/dp/B000WZYXL

 Stretch your calves on a step several times a day, if those muscles get tight it affects your foot too.

Orthotics in the shoe can help.  So can wearing the "rocker sole" shoes, that they advertise for toning your butt LOL like the Sketchers or MBT ones.  Those help to stretch out that tendon in your arch.

 Plain old ibuprofen at night will help with pain and inflammation too.  

Good luck, it takes  a while to start healing.

MJLToday

PS if you need to google it, it's Plantar Fasciitis

crazy4carrots

I just had an appt with a podiatrist a week ago for this second bout of PF (first time was about 20 years ago).  Really, the only thing that has helped me is custom-made orthotics. The doc also gave me an exercise to do before getting out of bed in the a.m. -- take a long belt (bathrobe sash works well) and hook it around each foot alternately (just below the toes) and pull towards you.  This helps stretch the plantar tendon (which they now think is actually an extension of the achilles tendon).  The doc also said to never, ever go barefoot!

I can hardly wait for the new orthotics -- and my DH will be happy not to hear "Ouch ouch ouch ouch" when I hobble to the bathroom! 

SoCalLisa

I use an old velcro ankle and foot brace and wear it to bed also..it works for me ..I put it on the minute I feel the first twinge

the orthodics did nothing for me but drain my purse

westiemom

Thank you everyone for being there and for the wonderful suggestions!!   I am sincerely sorry you all are experiencing the same pain, not trying to sound like a pity party, but gosh haven't we been thru enough??

I'm going to try the stretching and massaging before getting out of bed in the morning. I did a little research on shoes and inserts; probably time to invest in a pair.

(((hugs))) to you all!!!!

DesignerMom

I had it before BC and it did eventually resolve.  It is inflammation of the connecting tissue on the bottom of your feet. I am a barefoot kind of girl, but you do not want to go barefoot, even in the house.  Many podiatrists recommend Fitflops to keep support in the arch. I used to take a small Poland Springs water bottle, fill it half way and freeze it.  When I was watching TV, I would roll the frozen bottle under my foot.  I swear it helped.  Also, definitely do the morning stretches holding your toes back for a few seconds.  It takes time, but will get better.

MBJ

Veggiegal:   Ultrasound is usually used to find and look at things how in the world can this be a treatment?

My Chiro has me take a golfball and roll my foot over it.  I do the stretches, I do massages.  I find that the lower my body temp, the worse my pain is.

crazy4carrots

Ultrasound, according to my podiatrist, "involves the use of sound waves directed to the site of the origin of the plantar fascia.  Usually 3 weekly tx lasting at least 2 weeks are required to notice an effect."  My guess is that it doesn't last....

Another method - new -- is cold laser -- "5 laser probes are directed at the heel, both near the surface and deep to promote a cascade of healing and pain reduction.  Often 10 to 15 tx are required for lasting effects". 

westiemom

Onc called back, gave me the name of a podiatrist! Not sure what response I was looking for but I guess I'd better exhaust all avenues before considering getting off meds. I have a chiropractor who I will call this week as well. I'm also thinking about seeing an endocrinologist.

pitanga

I also had a lot of joint pain with Arimidex. Fingers, elbows, knees, hips, lower back, feet and heels. Finally my onc switched me to Aromasin. After three months the heel thing, which had been excruciating, was GONE. The other pains are much better too. I still am creakier than I was before entering the wonderful world of aromatase inhibitors, but it is much more bearable.

pitanga

MBJ, in addition to the ultrasound that is used for imaging there is another kind that is used in physical therapy. I had a few PT sessions for the pain I got in my fingers from Arimidex and the therapist used a little ultrasound machine. I have no idea how it works but they do use it to soothe joint pain.

MBJ

Thank you for the US info--I also have something going on with the joints in my thumbs--they no longer work!  I am either dropping things or it feels like they are going to break if I try to bend them.  I am going to ask my PS to refer me for PT again.  First time was for my MX area.  I had no idea they could use US this way!

crazy4carrots

pitanga -- So wonderful to "see" you here again!  And thanks for the info on the US to soothe joint pain.  I could have used it on my wrists when I first started taking Femara!  Fortunately it went away after about 8 or 9 months.  It sounds as though Aromasin is working well for you, aches and creaky joints aside.  Hoping so, anyway.  Sending hugs!

coraleliz

I had plantar faciitis BC. What I found & it costs almost nil, is to take an older bedpillow & fold it in half. Put it under the covers at the end of your bed. It will do 2 things. 1. keep the weight of the covers off your feet   2. keep your foot more flexed & prevent it from extending like it wants to do when you are asleep. I could turn on my side & my foot would slightly extend but my PF got better anyway. I got to the point where even after my PF was gone, my foot still wanted to be up against the pillow. Orthotics caused many more pains for me. I do use an orthotic type insole that can be purchased at running/sporting good stores. Cost about $30-35. The brand in Montrail. You warm them up in the oven, then place them in your shoes, then stand in your shoes while they are still warm. They mold to your feet. Hope you find resolution/relief soon.

BonnieK

One other very simple thing you can try that helped my painful feet...  Fill 2 empty plastic water bottles with tap water and freeze them.  Sit in a comfortable chair, put the frozen water bottles on the floor and roll you feet back and forth over the bottles (one under each foot).  If the bottles feel uncomfortably cold, put a towel between your foot and the bottle.  I do this several times a day when my PF acts up and it really helps.  It also helps to stretch my feet first thing in the morning and to wear shoes with good support.  (I'm on Femara and also had chemo in early '09 (cytoxan and taxotere), but my feet have improved a lot in the past year.)  Hope some of the suggestings on this thread help your painful feet.

pitanga

Lindasa, thanks for the well-wishes. Yes, Aromasin has treating me pretty well, creakiness notwithstanding, it is still a whole lot better than the slew of pains that I had from Arimidex.

That is interesting that your joint pain eventually went away. Gives a person hope! How long has it been that way?

westiemom

I'm back with an update. I have an appointment with a podiatrist next week but decided to see an accupunture specialist today. Gave him the run down of all my history, chemo, and the lovely aches and pains that followed....(joint aches, hot flashes, foot pain, and tired). My accupuncture session was a full 2 hours, the last 30 minutes was cupping my back calves and the bottom of my feet. I must say the foot pain isn't as bad, we shall see how the night sweats are tonight (wish me "no hot flashes"). He didn't feel herbs would be right for me considering my diagnosis, but I will continue to take the 2 hours sessions once a week for the next several weeks. I'm hopeful.

MBJ

I have a fellow BCO friend who's dr. recommended taking a supplement called Phosphatidylserine caps.  I am going to try that today and I also started accupuncture last week so we shall see.

firebird

Oh boy, PF... I'm all too familiar with it, but I can't blame it on the chemo. It started about a year before I was even diagnosed with BC. I wasted that first year trying every single useless retail product on the market before finally going to a podiatrist and getting the only thing that REALLY worked: a pair of orthotics that the podiatrist made from actual molds of my feet. I practically kicked myself for putting up with the pain as long as I did, and not just going straight to a podiatrist instead of wasting all that time and money on the other stuff which never worked at all.



I did ask about the other stuff (exercises, ultrasound, laser, supplements, even NSAIDs or steriods) and he considers them a waste of money because all they do is address the symptom rather than the cause of the problem. The cause is structural and therefore the remedy needs to be structural as well (orthotics). Orthotics are the ONLY non-surgical therapy that has studies supporting its longterm effectiveness, and if the orthotics don't support the foot in exactly the right way they are useless at best, or cause more damage at worst. Since no two person's feet are exactly the same, what are the odds that any storebought orthotic will fit any given person's foot in exactly the correct way? About 0.00000000000001%, I'd guess.

SoCalLisa

the minute I feel a twinge that my plantar fascitis is coming back I throw on my

boot that I had for a sprained ankle., the one with velcro..and wear it , to bed too..it does the trick

coraleliz

I had orthotics made from molds of my feet twice. Once by a podiatrist & once by a sports physical therapist. I could never get use to them. Even after trying the slow gradual breaking them in. They caused shin splints worse than my PF. I do know others who swear by them.

ruthbru

I am on arimidex and had PF, but mine was because I overdid exercising on a new kind of curved step device. YOUCH! I learned is that you should never go barefoot, even around the house always wear a good supported shoe. Also I threw out all the cheap, cute shoes with no support and I bought some of the inserts you grab off the store shelf to wear with my regular (supported) shoes, and for my tennis shoes, I bought some good inserts. If you go to Walmart, their should be a Dr. Scholls machine. You stand on it and it tells you what level insert your shoe needs (about $50). I replace them whenever I buy new shoes (which I do pretty often too). Even with all that, it took a long time.....months...to totally resolve itself (I did keep exercising through it, but not on that step!).

firebird

I wear my orthotics 24/7 --- I never want to have that kind of pain again!!

The only time I take any steps without the orthotics in, are the few moments when for instance I have to get up in the middle of the night and walk from my bed to the bathroom, or when coming in or going out of the shower, or taking a shower, or sitting down watching tv. And when I do those things I make sure to walk on the ball of that foot and don't allow that bad heel to touch the ground.

I have never been a barefoot person and so wearing some kind of shoe all the time except when bathing or sleeping was nothing strange for me.

I have the "Sport" type orthotics which don't go all the way to the toes; the front edge stops where the ball of the foot begins. I threw away all my backless shoes and sandals because of course with orthotics those are a no-go. But I do have a few pumps which the orthotics are too wide to fit into, or make the foot pop out of, so I asked my podiatrist about the so-called "dress orthotics" will work with those. He said those are useless because they are too narrow/skimpy to give the required support. So what I did was to order a second pair of the Sport orthotics and we had them customized to fit into my pumps by having the orthotics company cut down the outer edges so that they will fit into the shoes. This way I get the correct orthotic support in whatever style of shoe (casual or dressy) I want to wear.

I also never wear any shoe that is either dead-flat OR has a heel higher than 1 1/2". I was never a fan of high/spike heels anyway, and I have a wide foot (either a W or WW width depending on the style) which is enough of a challenge in itself, LOL

Good comfortable supportive shoes are expensive and I hate having to shop for them because the standard mass market store brand names are either crappily made or don't come in the widths that I need. Clarks is pretty good but their sizing is hugely inconsistent from style to style. I recently discovered a brand called Waldlaufer which makes extremely comfy shoes but they are $$$ and hard to find. Only one small independent shoestore carries them in my major-metro suburb area at all.

apple

ice and nsaids... and more ice and more ice.. Reducing the inflammation really helps speed the healing.  Bags of frozen peas dedicated to your feet alone wrapped in a ziploc, just incase the bag breaks, work great.

I still coach diving but rarely 'demonstrate anymore... I got the worst case of planta..........  omg the pain. .. the pain.  My doctor told me " I told you to ice it down.. didn't I?"  "I mean really ice it.

All the ideas for avoiding it (above) are good too.

ANA_424

Westiemom - So many good suggestions from people. I had PF years ago in grad school. Left it untreated for a really long time before I finally saw a sports medicine/physical therapist. Wearing good shoes/orthotics is definitely important. There were two things that helped me tremendously with symptoms.

1. Ibuprofen before bed. Reduced the swelling overnight, which reduced the pain.

2. Stretched my calf muscles ALL the time. He actually told me to make an angled board that I could stand on that would stretch the muscles for 20 minutes at a time. I would stand on that while I worked.

Everyone is different, so who knows if what worked for me will work for you. But these are a couple of simple things you can try quickly. I really did get a lot of relief in a very short period of time.

Best of luck to you in getting this resolved!

Ann

firebird

Just FYI about the icing: When I first went to my podiatrist, it took about 2 weeks to actually receive the orthotics and in the meantime he told me to take the NSAIDS but he also gave me very specific instructions about the icing which was to never apply it for more than 20 minutes at a time, and to make sure that I went at least 20-30 minutes between icings; preferably longer. This because icing for longer than 20 mins at a time actually becomes counterproductive; the plantar fascia muscle has to warm up and relax sufficiently in between icings. He said "It's a fine line between reducing inflammation and causing muscle contraction, and you don't want to cross that line."



Here's a question: Do any of you fellow PF-sufferers find that the "PF foot" feels a little bit colder to you than your other foot? Not while you are standing or walking, but when you are sitting and/or lying down with feet elevated. And not 'cold to the touch' as compared to the other one, but feeling colder than the other 'inside' (if that makes sense).



I have had that sensation ever since my PF started. I don't have any PADD whatsoever, nor am I diabetic, so it's not from those factors. When I asked my podiatrist whether PF can cause that foot to feel a bit colder internally than the other, he said that a sensation like that comes from a nerve issue, not a muscle one like PF is. However, I'm not entirely convinced that there is NO connection, because it makes sense that an inflamed PF muscle could possibly press on a foot nerve just enough to cause a difference in sensation although not any actual pain. So I'm curious if anyone else gets that "slightly-colder-foot" feeling as well, or whether I'm just weird, LOL