Patients ask me all the time, should I
use ice or heat when it hurts? Well, there is no clear cut answer but when in
doubt, Ice it out... Icing on/ off for 15-20 minutes will help reduce the local
inflammation that is often causing pain.
However... if it is the same old pain
that has ailed you for years and you have not had a recent flare up where it is
now worse and ice is not cutting it, try MOIST heat. No electric heating pads!
Here is a great way to wake up tomorrow
feeling less like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz:
1. Soak in a warm bath with Epsom salt for 15-20 minutes.
The Magnesium in the Epsom salt acts as a natural muscle relaxant
2. Because we have
brought blood to the area with the heat of the bath, now we want to constrict
the tissue to push the fluid out so now Ice the painful area for 15-20 minutes
3. Apply a topical natural anti-inflammatory such as
Cryoderm. By staying ahead of the inflammation you will wake up with less pain.
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