[JoanMiner]

I started having heel pain on Nov 30/Dec 1, and was diagnosed as having plantar fasciitis on July 28 (orthopedic diagnosed this). He gave me a handout with a brief overview of PF and stretches for me to do 4-5 times a day, with which I have been keeping up. I started icing my foot for 10-15 minutes every 2-3 hours as suggested by the handout last Sunday (August 9). I have taken 2 Aleve (since the orthopedic said I could take NSAIDs), but I want to keep the meds (both NSAIDs and cortisone shots) to a minimum. Since I saw the orthopedic, I have only had 1 completely pain-free day (not due to meds), which is unusual for me because I was not experiencing pain almost every day. The pain would kick in (not in the morning like for a lot of people, but sometimes during a lot of walking or standing or after sitting for a long period of time after a lot of walking/standing) and then completely subside that day or a day or 2 later. It would disappear for at least a few days or even for a week or longer. I'll be picking up my custom orthotics tomorrow. The guy who evaluated and fit me for the orthotics said my right arch is collapsed.
Is it normal to have the pain worsen some before getting better? When can I expect it to start feeling better? Will the delay in getting diagnosed adversely effect how long it will take to start feeling better and fully recover? Why is my heel pain worse now after stretching than what it was before? (My mom seems set on the explanation that it's because my muscles were just so inflexible before (and therefore-of course-they're somehow taking it out on an area that has already been experiencing pain) but I don't understand that reasoning.) Is it possible that the orthopedic misdiagnosed my condition (nothing abnormal showed up in x-rays)? Would the orthopedic noticed that my arch was collapsed? Could the collapsed arch be causing some of the pain (just heel pain not in the arch)?