Many times we see clients in the office who are complaining of new pain or they suspect a recent injury is leading to pain, immobility, swelling, and other not-so-pleasant side effects. They’re not quite sure what to do about it – especially with a lot of conflicting advice out there. Fortunately, we’ve got a pretty foolproof plan for you to manage new injuries or  joint/muscle pain that should help.

Step 1: Recognize What’s Going On

This may seem straightforward, but if you’re someone who always pushes through pain or deals with other types of chronic pain it’s not so simple. People can become somewhat desensitized to pain, especially if the onset is slow or comes and goes. The tendency is to ignore it and hope it goes away on its own. And, maybe in a small amount of cases, that method might work. But what we typically see is a pattern of ignoring the issue for weeks or months before finally coming in to seek treatment.

Step 2: Halt The Damage

Once you realize there is an issue (hopefully sooner rather than later), try to think about any new activities that might have triggered it. If you can’t think of any, that’s ok. Instead, do what you can to limit activities that cause pain – either right away or soreness later on. Don’t worry, it won’t be forever!

Step 3: Start Reducing Inflammation

We like ice therapy for inflammation, especially for a new injury, because it can reduce swelling as well as provide pain relief. If you can, apply ice for 20 minutes several times a day. In many cases, this can dramatically turnaround your painful problem in a matter of days. But, you may still need to move to the next step.

Step 4: Come In For An Evaluation

Once you’ve identified the pain, stopped aggravating it, and started an ice regimen, schedule an appointment to come in for an assessment. During this time, we’ll discuss the onset and duration of the pain and can make further recommendations. In addition, we’ll start to (gently) release any adhesions or move swelling via lymphatic massage to aid in healing. We may want to see you twice a week in the initial stages to get things back on track.

Step 5: More Tests If Necessary

If the injury is not improving over the next few weeks, we’ll recommend next steps like imaging and checking in with your doctor to find out if something more serious is going on. We know that dealing with pain, no matter the cause, can be extremely demoralizing. But, by following these steps, most people can heal and recover with consistent, targeted treatment.