by Dr. Jessica Corbeille Harris, ND

Many people deal with chronic pain (and I have a lot of remedies both at-home and in-office for helping with that), but what about those recent injuries (i.e. acute injuries)?

What do you do if you sprain your ankle playing soccer tomorrow? Or how about if you tweak your back doing some gardening this evening?

Many people have heard of the R-I-C-E acronym for injuries which promotes the use of rest, ice, compression, and elevation. What if I told you those were the exact opposite of what is actually needed for proper healing of the tissue? Instead, when people are injured, I always say, “Ask for your M-A-M-A” – which promotes the use of massage, alternating hot and cold, movement, and arnica to encourage a healthy inflammatory response to allow for proper tissue healing. Generally speaking, most of these are safe for most people, but as for any of my recommendations, if you have any questions or concerns about the safety of the remedies for you, it’s always best to consult your physician. 

1. Massage:  I’m not talking about deep tissue massage here but rather a light massage (how you might rub a baby’s head or back) to promote lymphatic movement and drainage. Not familiar with lymphatic tissue? The lymph system is another vessel system in the body that helps to move toxins and inflammatory modulators. The lymph system is very important for detox and also for healing. With a light touch massage moving from the furthest part of the injury or just past the injury (“distal”) to the more central part of the body (“proximal”), you can help to clear inflammation and swelling and promote the movement of the right molecules to the area for healing of the injured tissue. 
2. Alternating hot and cold:  Sometimes we call this “Contrast Hydrotherapy” and it traditionally involves alternating between hot and cold baths of water. This can be modified to include only an affected limb in a tub of water or even the use of hot and cold compresses if the affected area is on the core of the body. Generally speaking, the rule of thumb is 3 min of hot/warm followed by 30 seconds of cold, repeated 3 times. This whole process should be repeated several times a day initially (at least 3-5 times on the first day or two after an injury) but can be decreased as the swelling declines and the injury/pain improve. The idea here is to promote “exercise for the blood vessels” – which helps to decrease swelling and encourage good lymphatic movement.   
3. Movement:  While it is best to take it easy after an initial injury, it is NOT best to completely immobilize the affected area (in most cases). For example, an ankle sprain should not be wrapped, elevated, and not moved for 3 days. A better solution is to include light movement (non-weight bearing usually) such as ankle circles in the air to continue to encourage movement of the lymph and blood to the area. Again, the idea here is to draw the proper inflammatory components to the affected area to promote proper healing of the connective tissues. 
4. Arnica:  A popular and long-time used home remedy for acute injuries, Arnica seems to never let us down! With a recent injury, oral Arnica 6X and up to Arnica 30C can be used every 3-4 hours for days 1-3 of the injury. After that, usually dosing 1-2x/day is enough, depending on the pain and severity of the injury. Arnica also is available as a cream or gel application which can safely be used topically over any injury as long as the skin is fully intact.  Along with the M-A-M-A tactics above, I always promote healthy intake of water and proper nutrition (lots of fruits, vegetables, and protein) after an injury, so your body has the fuel it needs to heal. Trauma to your body is no small thing, and treating your body well in the acute (initial) phase of an injury is in investment into the health of your tissue for the long term! 

 
On the other hand, if your injury is not improving after a day or two or seems to be getting worse over that period, it’s always best to seek medical attention either at the emergency department or with your primary physician. Similarly, if your injury initially improves but you are left with pain or inflammation weeks or months after the injury occurs, it’s also a good time to seek attention from a trained physician to help with this situation. (This may be a good time for some of the prolotherapy treatments I write about as well - check them out here!) 
 
Questions? Would you like to discuss your acute or chronic pain/injury? I’d love to connect with you! Check out the Contact page on our site or send me an email at [email protected]. 

There are two simple home exercises that research has shown to be the best at preventing osteopenia and osteoporosis - one upper body exercise  (to target the shoulder joint and it's involved bones) and one lower body exercise (to target the hip joint and it's involved bones).  
Please consult a physician before beginning any exercise protocol.  

How:  Bring your feet about hip-distance apart at about 3-4 feet from the wall or counter.  Lean forward to bring your hands to the wall or counter at a distance slightly wider than shoulder distance apart while keeping your heels on the floor, if possible.  Take a breath in, as you exhale slowly lower yourself down to the wall and slowly back up.  
How many:  Do 10 repetitions at a time; repeat for 1-3 sets 3-7 times per week.  
To increase intensity:  As these become easier, move your feet farther from the wall to increase your incline.  Also try these on a lower counter or on the floor to maximize the angle against gravity.  

Tip from Dr. C:  Keep your bottom down so your body stays in a straight line. 

How:  With feet a bit wider than hip distance apart, inhale and slowly lower yourself down to a squat position.  As you exhale, slowly raise yourself back up to a standing position.  Keep your knees tracking directly above and behind your toes at all times.  Also keep chest and head up and squeeze glut muscles.  How many:  Do 12 repetitions at a time; repeat for 1-3 sets for 3-4 times per week.  
 To increase intensity:  As these become easier, try moving your arms to different positions - lift them over your head, out in front of you, out to the side, hold a small weight, etc.  As long as you keep your back straight and strong, these arm positions will all increase the intensity of the exercise and enhance the benefits of the exercise.    

Tip from Dr. C:  If balance is an issue, try doing these in front of a chair.  

Have you been burning the candle at both ends again this winter season?  When work and play aren't leaving us with many hours for sheep-counting, a sore throat seems to be the first way we realize we are getting a bit too worn out.  If this sounds familiar, try some of these Sore Throat Shots to ease that prickly throat:

The Spicy Lemon Drop
- 0.5 oz very warm water
- 0.5 oz lemon juice
- 1 tsp honey
- a pinch of cayenne pepper (as tolerated)
Shake and shoot - but WAIT!  Before you swallow, gargle this shot in the back of your mouth for 1 minute for an added pain killing affect.  Enjoy!

Warming Winter Punch
- 0.5 oz very warm water
- 0.5 oz apple cider vinegar 
- 1/4 tsp grated fresh ginger root
- 1/4 tsp grated fresh garlic 
- a pinch of cayenne pepper
Shake until well combined.  Gargle and shoot!  
Tip:  Make this shot in bulk  so you can store the leftovers in the refrigerator for the cold/flu season.  The vinegar acts as a preservative as the antimicrobial constituents of the ginger and garlic infuse into the water-soluble mixture.