Reclaiming Mobility After Injury: Tips From an Orthopedic Doctor in Fresno

Any injury disrupts your daily routine. Whether it’s the result of repetitive use over years of activity or a sudden injury or accident, it’s going to impact your life. The loss of mobility impacts more than your physical health. It also affects you emotionally and mentally. 

Regaining your strength and mobility is going to take time, but it doesn’t have to be impossible. It’s a process with several stages. Our Fresno orthopedic doctor offers several tips to help you reclaim your mobility following an injury.

Seek Medical Attention ASAP

After an injury, the rules of RICE always apply. Rest-Ice-Compression-Elevation is important, but you also need to see a doctor. Maybe it’s not as bad as you think, but it could be so don’t take the chance and hope the pain goes away in time.

The earlier you see an orthopedic doctor in Fresno, the faster you get onto a path for recovery. If you delay, you could cause additional injuries that impact how easily it is to reclaim your mobility.

Don’t Try to Power Through the Pain

So many people worry about becoming dependent on pain medications that they deal with the pain rather than alleviate it. Studies find that healing correlates to stress and anxiety, and people with unmanaged pain have higher rates of stress and anxiety. 

Powering through the pain is a mistake. You may think you can handle the pain, but why force yourself to deal with the pain when you could use over-the-counter medications to manage it? After a surgical procedure, many surgeons recommend alternating doses of acetaminophen and ibuprofen every few hours to aid healing. As long as it’s okay for you to use those medications. Listen to your orthopedic doctor and take the medications as directed.

If you find that those aren’t enough to ease the pain, speak up. Many other options are available to help with pain relief and healing. 

EMS Training: 

When pain keeps you from wanting to exercise, EMS training can help. You don’t work with heavy weights. Instead, muscles contract without as much effort because electrodes are stimulating them. This helps you tone muscles faster. 

Massage: 

Both water and pressure massages are a great way to ease pain following an injury. Massage is something a physical therapist can offer, but water massage is equally helpful and can be even more soothing to someone dealing with the emotional impact of an injury.

PRP Injections:

This is one of the best alternative options for pain management. Your blood is drawn and the platelet-rich plasma is separated before it’s injected into the muscle, joint, or ligament. PRP injections help accelerate the healing process, which helps with pain.

Stem Cell Therapy:

Stem cell therapy helps tissue heal. An appointment takes about an hour and a half as blood is drawn, the healthy stem cells are extracted, and then those stem cells are injected into the treatment area.

Gain the Benefits of Physical Therapy

A qualified physical therapist is one of the best people to have in your corner. Your first physical therapy appointment allows you and the therapist to get to know each other. Your injury is weighed against your needs, and your therapist creates a personalized plan to help you gain strength, balance, mobility, and pain management. 

Typically, a physical therapy program teaches you the right way to do exercises that improve range of motion, muscle and joint strength, and balance. The idea is to gain as much mobility back as possible without causing additional damage. You’ll have exercises you do while the therapist helps and exercises to work on at home. Do them as often as is recommended.

If pain is holding you back, your therapist might introduce massage, ice and heat, or electrical stimulation to help ease pain. Make sure you continue to use ibuprofen and acetaminophen as directed.

Overcome the Emotional and Mental Hurdles

Any loss of mobility will impact you mentally and emotionally. You’re frustrated that you cannot move around as easily as you used to. You’re angry that you must rely on others. You might be scared or anxious that if you try to get back to your routine, the same injury will occur and the pain will all come rushing back. This is normal.

Work with your orthopedic doctor to create a realistic plan. If you are struggling with anxiety or depression, speak up. Counseling or a support group from others who’ve been where you are may help a lot.

Regaining mobility is not just a physical journey; it’s a mental one as well. Injuries can be emotionally draining, leading to frustration, anxiety, and even depression. Here are ways to navigate these mental challenges:

Use mindfulness techniques like deep breathing to ease the stress. Some people find that sitting quietly with their eyes closed and imagining they’re in a favorite place helps ease stress. If you love a sunny beach, close your eyes and imagine being there. Think of all the details that make that beach come to life.

If there are things that help you ease stress that don’t put you at risk of a new injury, do them. You find fishing relaxes you. Go to a pier and bring a camping chair. It’s better to focus on your emotional health for a day than to let the stress build up and lead to additional issues like panic disorder or anxiety attacks.

Keep Follow Up Appointments With Your Fresno Orthopedic Doctor

If you’ve been told to come back for follow-up care, keep those appointments. You might feel better, but that doesn’t mean that your bones, joints, or muscles are ready to dive into your usual routines. A full recovery takes time and patience. You have to keep doing the recommended exercises to maintain strength and stamina.

Ask about a home exercise routine that you can do at home. If you’ve been working with a physical therapist, you’ll often get instructional guides on the exercises to do at home and how often to do them. Make sure you’re doing them. If you find they’re not enough, speak up and ask for additional routines to add to your daily routine.

If you’re involved in sports, make sure you’re not overexerting. Warm up before a game or practice and try half an hour. See how you feel. If you find yourself tiring out or feeling a bit of strain. Stop and rest. Your return to past activities doesn’t have to be rushed.

The critical first step to healing and regaining mobility after an injury is to see an orthopedic specialist. Premium Sports and Orthopedics is here for you. Book an appointment online or by phone and get started on a path to regaining your mobility and coming back stronger than you were when you experienced your debilitating injury.