When gift giving, I pride myself on finding the most perfect gift- you know, something that the receiver didn’t even know they wanted (or needed) until they open it. This can be quite a chore at times and I can spend hours on end searching for these items. With only a few weeks left before Christmas I find myself frantically trying to finish up my holiday shopping. One gift I still need is a grab bag gift.

Every year my extended family does a grab bag where every person brings a gift and then we draw numbers to see who gets to choose a gift first. The next person in line can then steal any gifts that have already been opened or choose an unopened item from the grab bag items. If they decide to steal an open gift the person they steal it from gets to take another turn and either steals a gift or chooses from the unopened pile. As you can imagine, this family tradition can get pretty intense as each person is vying for the best prize. Each gift can only be “stolen” up to 3 times. This swapping frenzy continues until everyone has a gift, so as you can imagine some years this has taken hours…

Each year my goal is to bring a gift that anyone would like (easier said than done, right?!). I prefer that my gift is one of the most popular gifts, or one that is stolen the most throughout the grab bag process. This year I decided to put together a basket of Heartland Foot and Ankle products to pamper my gift recipient’s feet. My favorite item will be included: a foot roller that massages tired feet, loosens up tight muscles, helps with inflammation, and relives pain! Anyone can use it- its small enough to fit in a purse, bring on trips in the car, plane, or train, or even use while seated at your desk.  Also included will be a BioFreeze roll on to relieve all their aches and pains, hands-free.  This will be great for many of my Aunts and Uncles who suffer from arthritis and joint pain.  There will be a pair of aertex copper sole socks because many of my family members have sweaty smelly feet.  These socks naturally wick away sweat and they’re anti-fungal and anti-bacterial.   Aloe Grand Crème will hydrate their skin and lock in moisture, with vitamins A and E as well as aloe vera. My other favorite, Dr. Remedy’s nail polish, will be included in Focus Fuchsia, a very popular color that looks great on fingers or toes.  Among all of the candles, martini glasses, and cocoa mixes, there will be on very unique basket of fabulous foot fixers that anyone is sure to enjoy!

Being new to the world of blogging, I decided it was necessary to do some “research.” As I was conducting this research, I came across a blog that delivered a very interesting, random fact: the male platypus secretes poisonous venom through a spur on the calcaneus, also known as a heel spur.  The venom isn’t fatal to humans but does give a sense of hyperalgesia, or heightened sensitivity to pain to the affected area.

Unlike the heel spur of the platypus, many of us humans experience heel spurs that are “harmless” to others. Many people have experienced the pain of a heel spur; however it’s very seldom that the actual heel spur is the issue causing the pain. The plantar fascia is the thick ligament on the bottom of your foot that attaches at the ball of the foot and the front part of the calcaneus, or heel bone. The point where it attaches to the heel bone is the area that most often is painful for people. The plantar fascia can pull at the insertion point on the calcaneus and become inflamed, causing pain. The pulling of the fascia on the bone can cause bony growth, creating a spur.  The spur, in a sense, is your body’s way of trying to decrease the stress and pulling on the plantar fascia.

In order to decrease the pain it is necessary to stop the inflammation. This is done by icing and/or a consistent dose of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory such as Aleve or ibuprofen. Once the inflammation is calmed down it is necessary to maintain good biomechanical support to prevent it from reoccurring.

For those of us suffering from plantar fasciitis stretching and good supportive shoes will be our best friends for life. Stretching, especially after prolonged periods of rest, is necessary to loosen up the plantar fascia before activity. This will help to decrease those painful first steps in the morning and after sitting for a long time. Supportive shoes and/or arch supports, such as Powersteps, or even custom orthotics, will help the biomechanics of your foot and stabilize the plantar fascia to keep the inflammation at bay.

While the heel spur of the male platypus can cause pain to others, our heel spurs do not. However, the plantar fasciitis that coincides with the spurs can be in some cases just as painful as the platypus’ venom!