[at-l] Heel Spurs?

[rickboudrie@xxxxxxxxxxx (rick boudrie)]

>I'm suspicious that I may be developing heel spurs - the main symptom
> >being hobbling around like an old man for the first few minutes in the
> >morning with amazingly painful heels.  Any suggestions and wisdom from
> >other" folks who use their feet"?
>

Sound exactly like what I was had a year or two ago.  I went to a podiatrist
who told me that I had plantar fascitis.  He asked if I was a runner (I'm
not) then he intimated that putting on an extra 10 pounds might have been
triggered it.

He taped up my feet to see if I would get any relief.  The proposition was
that if I did get relief, orthotics would be indicated.

Anyway, the taping seemed to help a little.  Not sure if it really helped,
or if I just wanted it to help so much I told myself that it did.  When I
returned to the podiatrist, he had me step in a box of foam to get the shape
of my foot and mailed the box off to a company that makes the orthotics,
which are nothing more than hard (very hard)plasic insoles glued to a piece
of leather.  They cost about $300.  I can only imagine the margins in their
business.

My feet recovered over a few weeks, and I only backpacked in the orthotics
once.  WHile they felt fine on my feet, I did get a blister since my foot
tended to slide over the leather surface of the orthotic, since the leather
was cut for a street shoe, and not my hiking boots with thier wide toe box.
Nothing that I wouldn't have been able to deal with had my foot not improved
to the point where the orthotics were no longer needed.

Rick B

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