I have heel pain...?

Don't just go out and buy Birkenstocks hoping that they will alleviate your heel pain. First you need to discover the cause of the heel pain. If your pain is worst in the morning when you take the first few steps of the day, if it is located primarily on the bottom inside of the heel, if sometimes it feels like the arch of your foot is pulling on your heel bone, and if you have either very high arched or flat feet, then you most likely have a condition known as 'plantar fascitis'. This is an inflammatory condition of the plantar fascia, which is a thick band of connective tissue that runs from the heel bone to the base of the metatarsals in your feet. If you are an athlete who increased their training, or are on your feet a lot on hard surfaces, or are overweight, you are more likely to develop the condition. There are several options for the management of plantar fascitis depending on the severity of the condition.

1. stretching of the plantar fascia and the calf muscles. the yoga position 'downward dog' will effecitvely accomplish this

2. rolling you foot over a frozen water bottle. make sure you roll the bottle from toes to heel and not the other way around

3. massage theray to the affected leg and foot

4. sleeping with a night splint on your foot to keep the foot in a dorsi flexed position so that it does not contract during the non-weight bearing hours of the night

5. laser treatment to eleminate scar tissue and speed healing

6. the purchase of running shoes from a professional that are designed for your foot type (most people do not know that there are three distinct types of running shoe)

7. the purchase of specially designed orthotics to insert into your shoes to make up for any biomechanical abnormalities you may have

Sounds like you have Plantar fasciitis (pronounced PLAN-tar fashee-EYE-tiss) is an inflammation of the plantar fascia. "Plantar" means the bottom of the foot, "fascia" is a type of connective tissue, and "itis" means "inflammation". Heel spurs are soft, bendable deposits of calcium that are the result of tension and inflammation in the plantar fascia attachment to the heel. The classic sign of plantar fasciitis (which is often called a "heel spur" because it's easier to pronounce) is heel pain with the first few steps in the morning.

Due to the repetitive nature of walking, plantar fasciitis may be a repetitive stress disorder (RSD) similar to tennis elbow. Both conditions benefit greatly from rest, ice, and stretching. Surgery is a last resort and may result in more harm than good in up to 50% of the patients.

Here are the treatments that I think are the most important:

Stretching the calf muscles several times a day, especially in the morning and after prolonged sitting.

Ice after activity. Plain ice is good

Arch Support (especially if you have flat feet). We recommend the PowerSteps, Pinnacle. If you're looking for an insert with the thickest and best cushion without arch support, I recommend RoadRunners.

Losing weight

Rest

Tape can be used to give the fascia rest without reducing activity. Athletic tape can be bought at all pharmacies.

The Birkenstock shoes are well known to be comfortable and durable.

Good luck.

heel pain

Yes, they do. My mother has had bad knees, knee sergury, bad back and so on so that is all she can wear. If she wears anything but her Birkies then she is in pain... Hope that helps.