Pulled Calf Muscle
Q: I pulled my calf muscle and it really hurts to walk. What should I do?
A: First, stop walking so much and rest the sprained or torn muscle. If you can, visit a doctor so they can evaluate the severity of your muscle pull. The worse it is, the longer your recovery. Immediately begin R.I.C.E. -- Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation to relieve pain and swelling. Even though you can't see it, your pulled muscle is bleeding and inflamed and you can help it get better. Rest: Stay off the leg as much as you can-- allowing it to heal and allow scar tissue to form and repair. Ice: Keep cold on the injury. Ice packs, cold packs preferably guarded by a towel will help with the pain and will limit swelling too. I usually keep ice on an injury for 15 minutes, then off for 15. I do this for about an hour. Compression: compress the injury with an ACE bandage to limit swelling. It can also help relive pain. Elevation: Keep the injury raised above the heart to reduce swelling.
After a day, the healing should begin, but if swelling and pain persist, see a doctor. Once you have flexibility back in the muscle and swelling is NOT an issue, use Blue Goo to aid in pain relief or Blue Goo Red to help loosen the muscle before stretching, walking, or playing sports.
Heat or Ice?
Q: How do I know when I should use heat or ice on a sore or injured muscle?
A: Good question. Ice treatment is most commonly used for acute injuries. If you have a recent injury (within the last 48 hours) where swelling is a problem, you should be using ice treatment. Ice packs can help minimize swelling around the injury. Heat treatments should be used for chronic conditions to help relax and loosen tissues, and to stimulate blood flow to the area. Use heat treatments for chronic conditions, such as overuse injuries, before participating in activities.
Relief for Osteoarthritis?
Q: I have osteoarthritis and my joints are killing me, always swollen, always in pain, what can I do?
A: First I'll say, if there was a cure my mother would be really happy. So you can't fix the problem but there are some measures you can take to help with the swelling and the pain. Aspirin and ibuprofen help relieve arthritis pain for millions, and sometimes heat helps. But the decision to use either heat or cold for arthritis pain depends on the type of arthritis and should be discussed with your doctor or physical therapist. Moist heat, such as a warm bath or shower, or dry heat, such as a heating pad, placed on the painful area of the joint for about 15 minutes may relieve the pain. An ice pack (or a bag of frozen vegetables) wrapped in a towel and placed on the sore area for about 15 minutes may help to reduce swelling and stop the pain. If you have poor circulation, do not use cold packs.
If it's for you, try the extreme heating arthritis cream Blue Goo makes. People have said that it really heats up the joints and makes it easier to move freely. It does help focus the pain relief on specific problem areas.
