In December 2021, I woke up one day, and my left foot hurt! My heel was just sore with every step I took. I had never felt the pain before and I kept trying to think about what I possibly had done to cause the pain. It was so weird and wasn't fun. After about two weeks the pain just went away. Little did I know that pain was just a tiny taste of what was to come for me. I had about a week or two where my feet were fine and then again out of the blue, I woke up to both of my feet hurting! It was some weird nasty trick my feet were playing on me! I mean, I know I'm aging and all but should I really just start hurting for no reason just yet? I'd say not. 

Right after Christmas, we went on a vacation. Our kids had three weeks off and we decided to go somewhere. My feet had just started hurting at this point. We went on our trip and we had planned a week full of hiking, walking, and playing. I was so miserable after one day of walking. the next day we took it easy for my feet and then hiked like we had planned to. I was so miserable! I had never had such issues with my feet!

When we got home I knew I had to see a doctor about what was happening. It was too painful to ignore. It turns out I had plantar fasciitis. Like really? I couldn't even pronounce the word. I left with exercises to do and anti-inflammation pills. I also got custom orthopedic insoles for my shoes. When that didn't seem to help it was trying an injection in my heel to lessen the pain and inflammation. I was so willing to get a shot into my foot if it meant less pain! I was excited even. The shot did nothing. I found no relief from it. 

Next was Physical therapy. The plan was six weeks of physical therapy and then I'd probably be good. six weeks turned into 4 months. Zero improvements. I got really good at doing everything despite the pain. It didn't feel good but I mostly didn't let it stop me either. I would stop and ice my feet until I could keep on going. I just was living with it. Some days felt unbearable and some weren't so bad. 

Finally, my doctor said it was time for surgery. We had exhausted all efforts and my pain level wasn't budging. Why do my feet have to be so stubborn? I mean, I'm a pretty stubborn person but every inch of me is stubborn too?! It's not the best discovery. 

I had surgery on my left foot to help lessen the tension in my tendon. That was last July. I am still in pain. I would say I see a difference in my tendon. I can tell it's looser than my right foot but it wasn't enough of a relief to have surgery on my right foot too. Recovery was hard enough to not want to go through round two of it.

So, I live with plantar fasciitis in both of my feet. it's kinda how things are for now. I've got my favorite pair of sandals that ease the pain the best and then I just deal with the pain from there. I hope someday I find the magic solution to this pain but for now, I just keep living with it. I guess it gives me empathy for others in physical pain. I'd rather be empathetic without feeling the pain personally but I guess it's what is happening for now. It's amazing to me how many people I meet who also have this annoyingly painful condition. It's a lot of people. I feel for you fellow plantar fasciitis peeps. We have a lot in common.