Plantar fasciitis physiotherapy
Physio for Plantar Fasciitis in Daisy Hill, North Lakes & Eight Mile Plains
Our feet do a lot of heavy lifting every day; they help us walk, run and keep us balanced. So it’s no surprise our feet can become sore and injured, especially if we are using them a lot or not wearing the right shoes. This is called plantar fasciitis, more commonly known as heel pain.
Plantar fasciitis is incredibly common and can affect anyone. And while putting your feet up at the end of a long day is a well-earned reward, you don’t want heel pain keeping you out of the game for too long.
If you’re experiencing heel pain, it’s important to diagnose and treat the issue before it worsens. At The Brisbane Spine Clinic we can work with you to put your best foot forward through high quality treatment and pain management techniques.
What is plantar fasciitis?
Plantar fasciitis is the medical term for describing heel pain. The plantar fascia is a strong, thick piece of tissue which runs along the bottom of your foot. It connects the heel bone to the toes and forms the arch in your foot.
Plantar fasciitis is when this tissue becomes injured or inflamed. Symptoms of plantar fasciitis include:
- A sharp pain at the bottom of the heel which can extend to the arch
- Stiffness
- Tenderness
- Swelling around the heel area
- Limited mobility or difficulty walking
What causes plantar fasciitis?
Because we are on our feet all day, there are many ways plantar fasciitis can begin.
Some common causes of plantar fasciitis are:
- Overstretching your foot
- Playing sports which put pressure on your feet including running, jumping and dancing.
- Being overweight
- Being pregnant
- Having a high arch
- Wearing shoes with poor arch support
Understanding the cause of your plantar fasciitis heel pain is essential to treating it and preventing reinjury.
Treatment for plantar fasciitis
Treatment of plantar fasciitis is often dependent on the severity and frequency of your pain. There are a number of health practitioners you can work with you resolve plantar fasciitis, including a physiotherapist.
Working with a qualified physiotherapist can help manage, treat and strengthen your elbow.
When you book in with the team at The Brisbane Spine Clinic, we’ll support you with:
Pain management – including rest and activity modification
Manual therapy – massage and mobilisation of muscles and joints
Exercise – stretching, strengthening and functional training to help you return to normal activities and prevent reinjury
Ergonomics – looking at things in your day-to-day life which could be causing the pain, but also aides and supports like ankle and foot splints for sleeping
Physiotherapy and plantar fasciitis
Physio for plantar fasciitis is very similar to the physiotherapy treatment of tendon pain.
The first step is to understand what is causing or worsening your heel pain. To do this, our qualified physiotherapist will undertake a comprehensive assessment.
As part of this assessment, the team at The Brisbane Spine Clinic can help diagnose and treat your plantar fasciitis pain.
Our assessment process includes:
- Assessment of your foot
- Questions about your medical history and injuries
- Questions about your lifestyle and daily habits
- Movement and manual therapy to temporarily trigger the pain
- Potential referral for medical imaging.
When we have identified what is causing your plantar fasciitis, we will undertake some physio treatments. These include:
- Physio tape for plantar fasciitis – which will hold the tendon and muscles in place
- Manual treatment – which includes mobilising and treating the pain areas
- Physio exercises for plantar fasciitis – which can be done at home
Exercises for plantar fasciitis
Once a qualified physiotherapist has diagnosed your plantar fasciitis and undertaken manual treatment of the foot, our team will likely give you some exercises and stretches to do at home.
These physio exercises for plantar fasciitis will focus on stretching and strengthening.
Some exercises you can do at home for plantar fasciitis are:
- Seated towel stretch. Sit on the floor with your legs stretched out in front of you. Roll a towel and place it under your arch. Use the two sides of the towel to gently pull your foot towards you. Hold for 5-10 seconds depending on your pain.
- Wall calf stretch. Lean your hands against a wall and straighten one knee, bend the other knee in front. Keep both feet flat on the ground. Hold the stretch for 10 seconds. Repeat on both sides.
- Rolling stretch. Seated, place a round item under your foot (like a tennis ball or water bottle). Roll the item around with your foot, placing gentle pressure on the heel and arch.
- Seated foot stretch. Sit on a chair and put one leg stretched out in front of you, resting on your heel with your toes in the air. Lift and lower the toes 10 times. Repeat on the other foot.
Book an appointment with The Brisbane Spine Clinic physiotherapists now:
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Our Physiotherapists
Yu-Tsung (Justin) Lin
Co-Founder and Senior Musculoskeletal Consultant
Sang Bin (Leo) Hyun
Senior Spinal Consultant
Chun Man (Kelvin) Choi
Physiotherapist and Accredited Exercise Physiologist
Marco Lin
Physiotherapist & Clinical Exercise Physiologist
Raymond Sidhu
Physiotherapist
Yuji Chen
Physiotherapist
Matthew Choi
Physiotherapist
Michael Pham
Physiotherapist
Disclaimer:
All information is general and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The Brisbane Spine Clinic can consult with you regarding your individual health needs
References:
Sources, links and date of access. Scientific references only required for large medical device or if specifically requested.
[1] healthdirect, Tennis Elbow, Tennis elbow – symptoms, causes and treatment | healthdirect, accessed 22 June 2024.