Custom Fit Orthotics For Plantar Fasciitis -10 things You Need to Know

 Custom Orthotics Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis are a Natural Solution

Custom orthotics hug the contour of the foot and provide support and  shock absorption in a way that the foot recognised as being far more like natural terrain than it does the combination of fashion shoes & concrete. 

Your ancestors walked mostly on soft ground like that of grasslands, forests and sandy terrain. You walk on hard flat ground like concrete, paving and tarmac. If you reflect for a moment on a human footprint it is fairly obvious that there is an arch support built in to it. As your ancestors ran and walked they left footprints much of the time and every time they did so they received the benefit of a nice soft arch support made of mud, sand or vegetation. Not you though, you live in town and you wear fashionable footwear. This means your joints and soft tissues get an absolute pounding. Custom orthotics provide natural protection from that beating, this is an excellent way to prevent plantar fasciitis.

 Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis are the Ultimate Life Hack

The tangible benefits that people report as a result of all this custom orthotic induced support and shock proofing include positive changes for those struggling with … 

You can put a custom orthotic device in your shoe that costs about the same as 90 minutes in a dentist chair, a device that provides a long term reduction in strain and pain within the lower half of your body. Once it is in your shoe you can completely forget about it and it does it’s job without any further conscious effort on your part. That’s a life hack for sure !!! 

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis must be flexible. 

Hard, ridgid custom orthotic insoles are one of those healthcare ‘practices’ that we now look back at and roll our eyes. It is sometimes hard to believe how silly people were in the past when they came  up with certain ideas, but that’s progress. 

The first reason why hard, inflexible custom orthotic insoles are almost laughable to us now is that that we have learned about flexibility and movement and that they are valuable to the body. We are reluctant to put people in whole body plaster casts these days but they loved doing that not long ago. The human arch is a flexible dynamic living structure and it needs flexible dynamic support from modern style custom orthotics. 

The second reason that hard custom orthotic insoles are now so obviously a healthcare booboo is that our flexible dynamic arches evolved to interact with flexible dynamic terrain. 

An inflexible custom orthotic insole reduces the complex, dynamic, flexible relationship between arch and ground to a hard immobile block. This remedy wasn’t much better than the concrete those orthotics are designed to protect us from. I have met countless people over the years who have concluded that custom orthotic insoles were simply not for them after an experience with devices that were too stiff. Many of those same people have had ‘aha’ moments once they felt what a flexible custom orthotic or insole can do for them

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis Must Be Stiff.

Obviously seems like a contradiction to anyone who took the trouble the read no. 3 .. but bear with me. 

These days there is somewhat of an opposite trend than the old ways of insoles and orthotics that are were as supple as your tv remote. Many store bought insoles and even some custom orthotics are much too soft and squishy to effectively correct your foot position under load.. If an arch support is just that, ‘a device that supports your arch when it bears your body weight’ do you think that it will do that successfully if it is so soft that it can be flattened out with the tip of your finger ? 

If your insoles or custom orthotics can be depressed with the tip of your finger they won’t be able to support your whole body weight moving at speed 3 million times a day. If your insoles or orthotics don’t support your arch they won’t take stress off your plantar fascia. If they don’t take stress off your plantar fascia they probably won’t make you feel better! 

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis Are Not Expensive If They Work.

It’s completely understandable that we often whince at the price tag attached to custom ‘medical’ devices, especially when we have yet to feel the tangible benefits they can bring. It is also only human nature to feel more emotion around one off costs than costs spread over time, not many people would sign up for 3 years of Netflix if it was a 1 off up front payment. 

The truth behind it is we feel about spending however that if custom orthotics do the job for you that they have done for countless others they are an absolute bargain. Let’s ignore for a moment the virtually incalculable value there is on being able to move confortably through a healthy active routine and just reflect on potential for reduced healthcare costs. The average episode of plantar fasciitis or back pain takes around 10 visits at the physiotherapist or chiropractor to achieve pain relief. That average treatment episode has about the same monetary value as a pair of custom orthotics,  that potentially provides you the best part of a decades preventative support against such episodes. 

There are no promises and no guarantees in healthcare, you could get a filling done at the dentist and still lose that same tooth a few short years later. There is no question though that for those of us who have found successful preventative means the real bargain has landed! 

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis CAN MAKE YOUR PAIN WORSE! 

Many people find that if they throw a pair of custom orthotics or insoles in their shoes and start wearing them that their pain gradually starts to worsen. Some even find that their shiny new custom orthotics make their pain worse virtually overnight. 

Plantar fasciitis is caused by repetitive strain! When the bodies tissues are placed under pressure and strain for long periods they have defensive strategies to fall back on. If a bone comes under excess load over time  it develops a callus that reinforces it structurally, when the body’s soft tissues are subjected to repetetive strain they lay down scar tissue to reinforces themselves. 

We know from looking down microscopes that the feet of plantar fasciitis sufferers have damaged collagen fibres and scar tissue in their plantar fascia. Custom orthotics are a potential long term solution for plantar fasciitis because they support natural foot mechanics and relieve strain in the precious soft tissues of the foot. Custom orthotics don’t however break up scar tissue. Many people who are prescribed custom orthotics for plantar fasciitis find that they have no improvement in their symptoms because the scar tissue is still in the foot. 

The solution is to work with a practitioner who knows how to break up scar tissue safely and effectively. A good physiotherapist, osteopath or sports chiropractor will be keen to get into it for you. Most people find that once they have the scar tissue associated with their plantar fasciitis broken down that wearing their custom orthotics brings more symptom relief. 

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis Are Not a Miracle Cure.

Most plantar fasciitis sufferers have scar tissue in their feet, damaged collagen fibres in their feet, genetic tendencies towards being flat footed or having high arches and muscle weaknesses throughout their lower limbs. For most these are problems that they have had for a long time prior to the onset of symptoms.

Plantar fasciitis isn’t a simple or an easy condition to manage for most sufferers, it is a complex condition that has usually taken years to quietly manifest without the patient being aware of the strain that was occurring. It really is too much to expect magic bullets when you are dealing with lot standing issues like plantar fasciitis. Expect that your custom orthotics or foot insoles won’t be sufficient to sort you out all in their own, and be pleasantly surprised if they do. 

If your custom orthotics don’t give you the miracle you are hoping for be prepared to work with the right practitioner on pain management, lifestyle changes and rehabilitation to get you where you want to be. 

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis Must Be Worn Consistently In Order To Work.

Concrete, paving and tarmac are for your feet what sugar is to your teeth… toxic and unnatural. Our feet need support and shock absorption to manage the every present strain of these hard surface.. that’s where custom orthotics come in for plantar fasciitis sufferers.The concrete never takes a break so neither should the custom orthotics if you are on those surfaces. Being on the beach is of course a completely different matter. LOTS of people only wear their orthotics or insoles for plantar fasciitis in their training shoes, or walking shoes, and most of them haven’t had the type of relief they were hoping for. 

The more consistent you can be in wearing your custom orthotics or insoles for plantar fasciitis the better they will serve you. Part of the secret to this for many is to own a second pair of orthotics that fit their business of dress shoes. If you are at the beach or on grass take them off and go bare feet it will do wonders for your feet and for your plantar fascia. 

You Don’t Have to Visit a Practitioner to Get Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis.

If you want custom orthotics for your plantar fasciitis even though you can’t make it to a clinic get in touch and we will send you a foam box for you to step in. We can make a prescription based on that and post it to you. 

Custom Orthotics for Foot Pain & Plantar Fasciitis Help Your Knees, Hips & Spine Too.

Countless people have found significant relief from ankle pain, ankle sprains, knee pain & hip pain through the use of custom orhotics. These tissues suffer terribly under the reign of terror concrete and paving holds over our bodies tissues, and they too can benefit from support and shock absorption for custom orthotics and foot insoles. Subtle wear and tear in the body is a major part of how we ‘age’ and all of us do so at different rates depending in part on our self care. The wellbeing of our joints is something well worth being proactive about for those of us who value an active life. 

 

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