I have had a heel spur now for about a year. It is a pretty good sized one, according to Doc, and the cortisone shot I got only lasted about 3 months. I also have developed tendonitus, but I think it is Achilles Tendonitus. It goes from my the bottom of my heel, up the back and into my calf muscle. It causes horrible night cramps that force me to walk my house all night to work them out of my leg and foot. The spur has shown back up but this time it has worked it's way into the back part of my arch;where my arch goes down into my heel. I cannot afford the shot again or the operation to remove the spur, which might not fix it anyway. If ANYONE has any ideas to help me, please write. I am about at the end of my rope. One question: the doctor I saw said stretching my foot and leg(like calf raises) would just aggravate the situation. He did not specify which problem it would aggravate.My husband and I thought stretching would help the tendonitus. Will it aggravate either one or will it help? Thanks in advance.

You have two different problems.

#1. Plantar Fasciitis / Heel Spur
stretching you calf muscle / achilles tendon will definitely help this. Ice massage will also help. If you are cost conscious, you might want to try an over the counter orthotic. There are several out on the market today. I would recommend something like the sof sole motion control. You can get this at most sporting good stores like sports authority. Also, anitinflammatory medications also help like motrin, aleve etc...

2. Achilles tendonitis
stretching may aggravate this condition. Your tendon is inflammed and any traumatic force such as an overzealous stretch may cause more damage to the tendon itself. I would recommend that yuo try a heel life in yuor shoes to take the tension off of the achilles tendon somewhat. I would put the heel lift in both shoes in order to prevent you from being off balanced. Also, the over the counter orthotic may help with this condition by controlling some faulty biomechanics you foot may go through when walking. I would also try ice to the tendon. A bag of frozen peas will conform very nicely to the area. Good luck.