Improper Treatment Of Sore Muscles May Cause A Lengthy Recovery
Over the years there have been many different treatments and medications suggested for the treatment of sore muscles and overworked joints, especially in the field of professional athletes, but recently there have been medical claims suggesting that some of this information might not be one hundred percent valid. Although there is a time and a place for pain killers, and surgery, there are a few other treatment methods that can be used for muscle soreness, whether it’s acute or chronic. This doesn’t qualify for the treatment of serious injuries where tearing or breaks have occurred, but in the case of strained muscles and overworked tendons, there are a few natural methods of treatment that can actually outperform medical practices.
Overuse Can Extend Healing Time
One problem that often effects muscle soreness in a negative way is overuse, and it’s a big problem facing athletes today. When being active is your bread and butter it’s difficult to lay low and take yourself out of the game, but it can be important to your wellbeing and the success of your healing to lay low for a while and give your body a chance to heal properly. This doesn’t mean that you should lay up in bed for weeks at a time, just that hitting the gym or running track as hard as you normally would is probably a bad idea, and trying to keep up with sports may take a toll. Science Daily reports: “Continued exertion of sore muscles can cause further swelling and pain, and lengthen the period of muscular soreness.”
Obviously at this time you’ll want to consult a doctor and make sure that the pain or soreness that you’re feeling is normal and not caused by any breaks or tears, but in general cases of overstraining a muscle group, it can take a week or two, sometimes more to fully heal and get back to where you were in the way of being active. This is especially true for any nerve soreness, which can be experienced in areas like the lower back where the sciatic nerve can cause quite a pinch when pulled improperly, and leave you in pain for more than a month.
Misdiagnosis And Mistreatment Can Also Prevent Healing
Although most doctors should be able to diagnose a sprain, pulled muscle, or just an overworked body part, there are times when misdiagnosis can call for more drastic measures than are necessary, and while the painkillers that may be prescribed to you should have no lasting effects once they’re out of your system, putting any unnecessary drug into your body is generally considered a bad thing. One of the most common areas of misdiagnoses in muscle and joint pain comes in the form of back injuries. Dr. Mercola of mercola.com announces: “Back pain accounts for an estimated 10 percent of all primary care doctors visits each year, costing Americans as much as $86 billion annually. According to recent studies, much of this treatment is unnecessary, and ultimately fails to address the problem.”
As mentioned above, some areas of the back such as the sciatic nerve can cause extended pain that might make an injury appear more serious than it actually is. One example of this can be seen in the gym with body builders and weight trainers who perform a particularly dangerous exercise called the dead lift. This lift requires heavy weight to be pulled up from a bent position and lifted up, and if the stance and posture of the lifter isn’t exactly on par then injury almost always ensues, in fact, it’s one of the most common weight training injuries to be reported in North America.
Get Herbal Rather Than Diving Into The Painkillers
If you’re wary about taking pain killers for something that might go away in its own time and your doctor has assured you that you’re not facing something that needs serious treatment then you might want to consider the use of herbal remedies. Recent studies in the United States have shown that herbs like ginseng and ginger have healing qualities, particularly in the range of anti-inflammatories. Healthy Living hosted by msn.com suggests: “Ginger, a relative of turmeric, can reduce inflammation and increase circulation, and is particularly helpful for joint pain.”
Ginger and ginseng can both be brewed into a tea, or taken in capsule form as a supplement. You might also find that you enjoy the taste of ginger in some of your foods, and although the effects of this herb are better rendered through raw used, tossing a bit of shaved ginger into a veggie stir-fry at dinner time will certainly only help in the healing process.
Don’t Sit Still To Ease The Pain
Above it was mentioned that when you’re injured you shouldn’t overwork the muscle group that is feeling sore, and while it’s true that resting those muscles are necessary, you also shouldn’t just sit around and let those muscles lock up and become stiff. One of the most difficult tasks to face when you’re in pain is moving that sore area, but it can also be the most beneficial practice to rid yourself of muscle soreness. The key is to ease yourself into it, and not over strain your body while it’s trying to heal. How Stuff Works explains: “When you're feeling sore and stiff, the last thing you want to do is move, but it's the first thing you should do. Go easy, though, and warm up first with a 20-minute walk.”
As you first begin to stretch out your muscles you’ll find that it’s painful, and you may want to quit, but if you work through the pain and gently ease into position to stretch out those sore areas you’ll be surprised at how much better they feel almost immediately afterwards. Getting blood flowing and loosening up stiff muscles and joints can make it easier to go about daily activities without being blocked by the pain of your injury.
It’s important to consult a doctor after any sports injury and to abide by the rules that they set forth for healing practices. In some cases medication may be necessary, but if you’re worried about taking pills that you don’t need you can also inquire about more natural treatments.
Mitchell Cohen, M.D. is Board Certified doctor specializing in Orthopedic Medicine and Spinal Surgery. Graduated from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia, PA with a degree in Human Physiology (1983) and subsequently achieved his medical degree in 1987 from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. Dr Cohen did his Surgical Residency at the University of New Mexico in 1992 as well as a Spine Fellowship in 1993. Dr. Cohen has published the following medical journals: "Biomechanical Efficiency of Spinal Systems in Thorocolumbar Fractures" (1993), "Kaneda Anterior Spinal Instrumentation" and "Spinal Fusion Stabilization amongst many others. View Dr Cohen's Twitter Page.
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