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Learn the Difference between a Strain & a Sprain, plus Tips for Getting Back On Your Feet
The temperature’s dropping, which means we’re out early, scraping our cars, walking the dogs, hoofing our kids to school over frosty blades of grass and ice-covered sidewalks. Maybe we’re prepared. We’ve got our traction snow boots on. We’re doing the ‘slide walk,’ never really taking one full step, all the while hanging on for dear life to our kids’ hands, our spouse’s arm or that large walking stick you bought five years ago for that hike through Alaska you never went on. You barely manage to stay upright, until at last, the inevitable happens.
Like all things in life, we fall. Sometimes it’s a graceful recovery. Others times… not so much. We twist and turn, splaying out our feet in desperate attempts to stay vertical, but to no avail. We crash down hard. We land on our bums, our backs, our sides, our knees. We try to break the fall by throwing out our arms. That jarring bit of whiplash hits us.
Sometimes it’s a little worse. We hit our heads, we tumble and turn and before we know it, we’re flat on our faces with a mouth full of snow and everything hurts.
As we can imagine, this time of year can be treacherous to our bodies, which means we need to prepare ourselves for when these accidents happen. Because let’s face it. They will happen. Whether it’s you, a loved one, a friend, some stranger on the street, we need to have a plan when things get bent out of shape. But how do we know when we need help? How do we know that when we fall, or even partially fall, we’ve actually hurt ourselves?
We may think we’ve sprained something, but maybe it’s a strain instead. In our attempts to stay upright, we feel like we’ve pulled something and things just don’t feel right. Or, if worse comes to worse and the fall happens, we feel the twist of something unsavory going on and the sinking dread of knowing something bad has just happened. Either way, we’re hurting. Maybe we don’t feel it at first, but over time, the soreness starts to settle in and it won’t go away.
With whatever the fall, whatever the injury and whatever the pain, it’s going to be a good idea to get treatment as soon as possible. One of our recommendations is to invest in some chiropractic care, in addition to physical therapy, to help you get back on your feet.
Let’s start with why chiropractic care and physical therapy are great ways to keep your body nimble from the get-go.
What is Chiropractic Care?
Palmer College of Chiropractic tells us that chiropractic care “focuses on the spine and other joints of the body, and their connection to the nervous system. The word ‘chiropractic’ means ‘to be done by hand.’ Chiropractors use adjustments to restore joint function and support the nervous system. They help patients maintain optimal health while avoiding unnecessary drugs or surgery.”
Just so, a chiropractic adjustment is “a very safe, specific, controlled force applied to a joint to restore proper function and mobility. Accidents, falls, stress or overexertion can negatively impact your spine or other joints. These changes impact tissues, the nervous system and other areas of the body. Left unresolved, this can make you more susceptible to chronic problems. Chiropractic adjustments reduce pain, increase movement and improve performance.”
How about Physical Therapy?
Olean Physical Therapy Professionals in Olean, New York, tell us that physical therapy is, “a non-invasive discipline that helps individuals develop, maintain and restore maximum body movement and physical function. Physical therapy can help clients recover from an injury, relieve pain, prevent future injury or deal with a chronic condition.”
Utilizing a wide degree of modalities such as electrical stimulation, ultrasound, traction and many others, physical therapy helps to restore range of motion and improve quality of life, making this form of treatment a great go-to when that nasty fall hits us…literally.
So now that we understand what chiropractic care and physical therapy are, how do we know when we need them? The short answer is, all the time. Whether for a new injury, stress, aches and pains or chronic conditions, it’s good to receive regular care. For standard maintenance to account for our daily lives, weekly or monthly visits are recommended to maintain proper alignment and range of motion.
Since we’re focusing on new injuries, such as when we slip on the ice and have a world-class tumble, let’s go a little bit deeper into what those injuries may look like, and how we can get them treated.
For example, when we fall, we can sometimes experience the instant feeling that we’ve sprained something. It could actually be that we strained something instead. But what’s the difference? And how do we know to go to the doctor, a chiropractor or both? Let’s take a closer look.
What is a Sprain?
We’re all familiar with this term. We had Elk Ridge Chiropractic & Wellness Center’s very own Doctor of Chiropractic, David Juratovac, give us his take on what constitutes as a sprain.
Dr. Dave defines it as “a moderate to severe injury, in which the bone-to-bone connections are stretched or torn. Ankles and wrists are the most likely to be sprained due to the high mobility of those joints. Sprains typically happen after high impact, such as landing awkwardly from a jump, landing on an outstretched hand when falling or ‘jamming’ your finger on a basketball.”
What About a Strain?
Alternatively, Dr. Dave tells us that, “A strain, sometimes referred to as a ‘pulled muscle,’ is a mild to moderate injury in which either the muscle itself or the tendon where it attaches to bone is damaged. Strains can happen after a variety of events, but most commonly after failing to warm up and cool down, shortly after returning to sports from the off-season, overcompensating when falling or simply doing too much too soon.”
How do We Know if We Have a Sprain or a Strain?
Dr. Dave says, “Symptoms vary in severity, but are similar for both types of injury. These include pain, swelling, bruising, limited movement in the affected area, and/or hearing or feeling a ‘pop.’”
While symptoms tend to be similar, there are things to look for that will help you differentiate which of the two is a more likely diagnosis for your pain. Dr. Dave identifies this for us.
“A strain will likely have associated muscle spasms, while a sprain will have pain with a lot of movement.” Be on the lookout for these symptoms in particular, as they might be the determining factors in understanding which type of injury you may have.
How Do We Treat Sprains & Strains?
Now that we’ve got a pretty good idea of what types of injuries we might be looking at when we have that impromptu skate on the ice, let’s see what Dr. Dave recommend in terms of care.
“Chiropractic care is essential for these injuries, as it helps to make sure the brain is communicating with the injured body parts.” This means that a faster healing process can begin when chiropractic care is received.
Dr. Dave also says that at-home treatments are another beneficial tool to our recovery process. He tells us, “Home care for each injury is very similar. The ‘old’ method of treatment used to be RICE, which stands for rest, ice, compress and elevate, however this treatment actually slows the healing process by limiting blood flow to the injured area. More effective treatment now follows the acronym CEM, which stands for compress, elevate and move. This is important for two reasons: 1) Swelling will continue to flush with this method without slowing blood flow to the area as ice does; and 2) it allows the brain to start rebuilding connections with the injured area faster, which will help prevent future injuries.”
As we recommend chiropractic care, so also do we recommend a visit to your primary care physician. Dr. Dave recommends seeing your PCP in particular “if you can’t move or bear any weight on the affected joint, have pain directly over the bone or if you have numbness in the injured area.” These could be an indication that there’s something more going on that needs extra care. Check with your doctor in these instances to see what type of additional care they recommend.
Booking Your First Appointment
At Elk Ridge Chiropractic & Wellness Center, we are currently accepting new patients. To book your first appointment, where you’ll receive your primary exam, initial adjustment and treatment plan set up with Dr. Dave, give us a call at 541-388-3588, or email us at elkridgechiropractic@gmail.com. Our hours of operation are Mondays and Wednesdays from 9:30am-6:30pm; Tuesdays and Thursday from 2:30-6:30pm; and Fridays from 9:30am-1pm. We hope to see you soon! In the meantime, stay safe out there!
Sources: Palmer School of Chiropractic: palmer.edu/about-us/what-is-chiropractic
Olean Physical Therapy Professionals: oleanpt.com/library/4298/WhatIsPhysicalTherapy.html
