5 Tips for Recovering After Injury

Most doctors and physical therapists recommend the RICE method for injury response. Get an overview of this traditional method along with an explanation of how innovative developments, such as shock or stem wave therapy, can enhance and expedite recovery. Here are five helpful tips to help you recover faster and more completely from any injury.

1. Rest an Injury To Limit Severity

Immediately after you suffer an injury, you should avoid putting pressure or stress on the injured area. Experts recommend stopping, changing or taking a break from activities that cause or exacerbate pain. It is a good idea to keep resting until an injury heals, with the exception of stretches or exercises recommended by a doctor or therapist.

While resting creates the conditions that a musculoskeletal injury or wound needs to heal, it may be possible to heal injuries faster. Look for non-invasive stem wave therapy near me to find a treatment that can be pursued at almost any point to help you have a quick and complete recovery.

2. Ice the Injury To Reduce Inflammation

Sports medicine specialists recommend icing injuries that involve pain and swelling by applying a cold compress or ice pack to the area. Icing should be done for relatively short sessions of 10 to 20 minutes and this treatment should be repeated every two to three hours during the first day or two following an injury.

Later on in injury treatment, heat may be beneficial for releasing muscle tension. Reducing inflammation is the most important priority for the initial response to an injury. Temperature-based therapy can be combined with effective physical treatment methods to have more desirable chemical and biological effects that promote healing.

3. Use Compression To Reduce Swelling

A specialized compression sleeve or a simple elastic bandage can provide compression. In many cases, athletes may prefer to invest in compression solutions for injury-prone areas such as ankles, elbows, knees or wrists. It is important not to wrap any injury too tightly, and to loosen compression if it begins to feel tight.

Compression an injury is most effective within the first two to three days. If an injury continues to need additional support, healing may not be proceeding as effectively as it could be. physical therapy can play an important part in making a full recovery from a moderate to major injury.

4. Elevate The Injury To Promote Recovery

The last stage of the RICE method involves elevating an injury. If you are home, you may sit or lie down and find a way to prop up an injured leg or arm. In hospitals and professional care settings, a variety of suspension options are available for a wide range of injuries.

Keeping an injury at or above the level of your heart is helpful for keeping down swelling. You may also want to consider taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as directed. This method of responding to injuries can promote faster healing, especially when combined with stem or shock wave therapy.

5. Pursue Shock Wave Therapy Treatments

Shock wave treatments may be available as high-intensity, low-intensity focused or low-intensity unfocused methods. A high-intensity shock wave treatment is a method called lithotripsywhich was shown to be able to indirectly dissolve kidney stones in research studies that date back to 1971. Lower intensity waves may be beneficial for targeted or general treatments.

The three types of shock wave therapy that you should consider include electrohydraulic, electromagnetic and piezoelectric treatments. A specialist can recommend the right type of focused, parallel or a more general and unfocused treatment based on the type of injury from which you are recovering.

These recovery tips are useful for most types of injuries. In general, the RICE method is recommended for soft tissue injuries such as pulled, sprained or torn muscles. Shock or stem wave therapy can be performed on injuries of this type to stimulate angiogenesis, healing, tissue regeneration and remodeling.