I started wearing heel inserts when I was working in the salon to relieve knee pain. Then I had trouble with heel pain. My doctor took x-rays and I did not have a heel spur. I did the exercises she suggested to relieve plantar fasciitis and the pain went away. Now I have a sharp needle-like pain at the side of my heel when ever I put certain types of pressure on my foot, most often when I reach down to pick something up. Though this pain is different that the last time, my doctor thinks it is a recurrence of plantar fasciitis, so I am doing the exercises again. My shoe inserts were old, so I went to Walmart and tried out the Dr. Scholl's footmapping machine. It identifies the pressure points for each foot and recommends a custom orthotic insert. These inserts are a bit more expensive than regular Dr. Scholl's inserts, so I hope they work
http://www.footmapping.com/