Heal Your Heels

Heel pain is the most common problem that affects the foot and ankle. This is no surprise when you consider that every mile you walk puts 60 tons of stress on each foot. Your feet can handle a heavy load, but too much stress pushes them over their limit and can cause extreme discomfort.

Heel pain generally falls into two categories—pain beneath the heel and pain behind the heel. If you are experiencing discomfort under your heel, you may have one or more conditions that inflame the tissue on the bottom of your foot, including:

Stone bruise: When you step on a hard object such as a rock, you can bruise the fat pad on the underside of your heel. Although you may not be able to see a visible bruise, you may still experience tenderness when walking or running. Ample resting will reduce the heel pain.

Plantar fasciitis: Excessive running and/or jumping can inflame the tissue band—identified as fascia—connecting the heel bone to the base of your toes. This pain is centered under your heel; you will most likely need to do special exercises, take medication, and wear a heel pad in your shoe to reduce the swelling.

Heel spur: When plantar fasciitis continues for a long period of time, a heel spur—also known as a calcium deposit—may form where the fascia tissue band connects to your heel bone. The heel spur itself is not usually an issue; it is the injury to the soft tissue band that causes inflammation and irritation to your heel. Treatment is the same as for plantar fasciitis–sufficient rest, stretching exercises, and wearing shoe inserts.

If you are experiencing pain behind your heel, you have inflamed the area where the Achilles tendon inserts into the heel bone. This is caused by running too much or wearing shoes that rub or cut into the back of your heel. Pain behind the heel can occur slowly over time–causing a tender bump to form and skin to thicken. If it hurts too much to wear normal shoes or to carry out your daily activities, then you may need to see a doctor immediately.

Treatment for reducing the pain behind your heel includes:

• Rest from the activities that caused the problem. Take a couple days off from running or working out, or until the pain subsides.
• Stretch your Achilles tendon by leaning forward against a wall with your foot flat on the floor and your heel elevated.
• Medicate yourself to stop the pain and swelling; nonsteroidal and anti-inflammatory medicine works extremely well.
• Ice the back of your heel to reduce inflammation and tenderness.
• Heel inserts help cushion your heel while walking and running.

To create a treatment plan specific for your heel pain, contact our foot and ankle specialists at Southern California Orthopedic Institute at (877) 952-8484.

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