The R.I.C.E. Method of Acute Injury Treatment

A sprain is caused by the twisting or bending of a joint into a position it was not designed to move. The ankle is the most commonly sprained joint. Some common symptoms of a sprain are pain around the joint, swelling, and bruising.

I sprained my ankle yesterday while playing soccer and it's a hurtful experience. I was chasing for a loose ball together with an opponent. I slide in first followed by the opponent. I got the ball but the opponent got my leg.

I knew the moment when I stood up, there was something wrong with my ankle. I can't seem to stand properly. I look towards my team captain and told him that I need to be subsituted. It's only 5 minutes into the match and I made my way to the subsitution bench. Took out my soccer boots and I looked into my swollen feet.

The rain poured together with my hopes about playing further action into the match. Half-time, I sms Marffin about my situation.

Didn't have the chance to meet her, I went back home slowly. That was my few times in my whole life that I took my time to walk back home. It was quite painful, passerby stared at me as I walked pass them.

Not sure when I can recover from this. Looking at my schedule, there's Marffin's Graduation Ceremony, other soccer match, Work, 42km Night Marathon at the end of the month. I'm sure I need to recover fast.

So how can I recover fast? Here are some ways that I found out through the internet. I searched this information from Sportsmedicine.com

The R.I.C.E. Method of Acute Injury Treatment

* Rest: Resting is important immediately after injury for two reasons. First, rest is vital to protect the injured muscle, tendon, ligament or other tissue from further injury. Second, your body needs to rest so it has the energy it needs to heal itself most effectively.

* Ice: Use ice bags, cold packs or even a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a thin towel to provide cold to the injured area. Cold can provide short-term pain relief. It also limits swelling by reducing blood flow to the injured area. Keep in mind, though, that you should never leave ice on an injury for more than 15-20 minutes at a time. Longer exposure can damage your skin. The best rule is to apply cold compresses for 15 minutes and then leave them off for at least 20 minutes.

* Compression: Compression limits swelling, which slows down healing. Some people notice pain relief from compression as well. An easy way to compress the area of the injury is to wrap an ACE bandage over it. If you feel throbbing, or if the wrap just feels too tight, remove the bandage and re-wrap the area so the bandage is a little looser.

* Elevation: Elevating an injury reduces swelling. It's most effective when the injured area is raised above the level of the heart. For example, if you injure an ankle, try lying on your bed with your foot propped on one or two pillows.

There you go, some things that you need to look out for when you sprained your ankle.