I was a teenager the first time I experienced the pain of plantar fasciitis – that horrible pain in the arch and/or heel of the foot that makes the first steps out of bed absolutely excruciating. I went to a physical therapist and they utilized modalities like ultrasound and microcurrent, gave me very painful foot massage and stretching exercises and then recommended that I get custom orthotics for my shoes. My insurance did not cover custom orthotics, so my amazing mother shelled out $400 for a piece of hard plastic that truthfully, I only wore a few times. They were incredibly uncomfortable and did not fit into the shoes that I wanted to wear as a somewhat fashion-conscious teenager. When I moved out of my house for college, I found them stuffed away in the back of my closet and I felt so guilty that my mom had spent all of that money for nothing. Despite not wearing my orthotics and being very inconsistent with my exercises, my plantar fasciitis improved and I completely forgot about it.
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