Injuries like stubbed toes, twisted ankles and strained
muscles are all common. Some minor injuries can be treated at home with ice, heat and rest. There are
a few important things to remember to safely treat your injury.
- Do not ice the area for more than 15 minutes per hour.
- Icing is most effective during the first 24 hours of your injury.
- Do not put ice directly on the skin. Use a cloth or paper towel between the ice and the injured area.
- Do not use a heating pad over 30 minutes.
- Make sure the heating pad is not too hot.
Try staying off the injury to give your body time to heal
and elevate your feet to help reduce swelling. Be sure to gauge your progress.
If swelling does not go down, if it remains difficult to move around, if
bruising is persistent, and/or pain lasts, it is time to see a physician. The
injury may be more serious than you initially thought. Your doctor may order
you to get an x-ray to see what is going on under the surface.
Image by andriuxphoto. (2010). Flickr. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/andriuxuk/
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