Rolled Ankle

[tjones1]

About half way through the 4th quarter in tonight's game I rolled my ankle really bad. I heard a very loud popping sound and thought "oh ship." Turns out the trainer was sitting right there and asked if I was ok. He took a quick look at it and asked if I could put pressure on it. I could and there wasn't much pain so I finished the game. After the game, I had just completed my shower and the trainer comes walking in. He wanted to make sure if I was alright and told me there was an ice pack waiting in the trainer's room for me to grab when I left. In addition, he told me to come in within a few days and he would show me a few exercises for my ankle.

Great job by this man who helped me and I certainly tip my cap to him.

I'm pretty sure tomorrow will be a rough day, but I'll make it through. My next game isn't until Thursday so I've got to be careful so I'm ready to hit the floor Thursday evening.

Any suggestions on what to do from those who have rolled their ankle before?

[jdw3018]

Ice, ice, ice and more ice. Oh, and elevate it.

The biggest challenge will be getting the swelling down. Ice it on and off throughout the day and some ibuprofen will be helpful (and necessary, depending on the pain). Move it a lot in between icing. My wife is a physical therapist, and she calls ice the "magical medicine" that nobody uses anymore.

How does it look today? Lots of swelling? If it's not too bad, you'll just be stiff and sore for a couple days.

Before the game tomorrow take extra time to warm up and get as much movement in the ankle as possible. Good luck!

[chartrusepengui]

After swelling has gone down and it doesn't swell up every time you move it, our trainer has said that alternating ice and heat 20 min at a time will help.

[bob jenkins]

option 1: RICE -- Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.

Option 2: Tourniquet around the neck. That treatment is indicated only for nose-bleeds, but I believe it to be effective in reducing many other injuries as well.

[TimTaylor]

What jdw3018 said.....edited to add "and Bob"

The acronym HCP's use for first aid treatment of this type of injury is RICE - Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. NSAID's like ibuprofen will help with pain and reducing any swelling.

You probably should get it looked at before you run on it again just in case, especially if there's any swelling or residual pain, just to make sure there's no significant damage.

In any event, for the next few games you might want to think about either taping the ankle or wearing some type of brace for support. There are several that will will limit lateral rolling of the joint while still allowing normal flexion/extension.

[rainmaker]

Tanner, I know that men's and women's joints are somewhat different, so what I say may not apply to you. But both my daughter and I have had problems with rolled ankles. Once we had one injury, it just kept re-rolling. It was really, really hard to get it stabilized. I know that it's hard to take off the rest of hte season, but you should really think about cutting back, or taking a week or two off. Each time you re-roll it, you're doing more damage, and it can snowball in a hurry. Please be very careful.

[jdw3018]

Originally Posted by rainmaker

Tanner, I know that men's and women's joints are somewhat different, so what I say may not apply to you. But both my daughter and I have had problems with rolled ankles. Once we had one injury, it just kept re-rolling. It was really, really hard to get it stabilized. I know that it's hard to take off the rest of hte season, but you should really think about cutting back, or taking a week or two off. Each time you re-roll it, you're doing more damage, and it can snowball in a hurry. Please be very careful.

Juulie makes a good point that this type of injury can feel okay before it actually is. I will disagree that you need to cut back right away because everyone is different, but taping or bracing and being a bit careful is a good idea. If you have further trouble you should definitely get it looked at.

I'm fortunate (from this perspective) to have loose joints - I've never had a severely sprained ankle because I can roll a long way without doing any damage. (I'm sure I'll have other problems down the line, but these genes are teh only ones I have!) My point is only that everyone is different and the only way to find out is to work your way back onto it.

Many people won't ever have other issues after a sprain.

If you get a chance, can you tell us what it looks/feels like today?

[rainmaker]

Originally Posted by jdw3018

Juulie makes a good point that this type of injury can feel okay before it actually is. I will disagree that you need to cut back right away because everyone is different, but taping or bracing and being a bit careful is a good idea. If you have further trouble you should definitely get it looked at.

You could be right for Tanner. I know one of the things lots of trainers and doctors say is that women's joints aren't as strong, and women do tend to have more problems. But I think cutting back sooner than later is generally a good idea for everyone. It's those first few days that the most important healing can be done, and also when any further mishap can be the most damaging. I think that's probably true for women and men. A few days of the old RICE, can make for a much faster recovery.

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by bob jenkins

Option 2: Tourniquet around the neck.

I recommend this treatment for all coaches.

[jdw3018]

Originally Posted by rainmaker

You could be right for Tanner. I know one of the things lots of trainers and doctors say is that women's joints aren't as strong, and women do tend to have more problems. But I think cutting back sooner than later is generally a good idea for everyone. It's those first few days that the most important healing can be done, and also when any further mishap can be the most damaging. I think that's probably true for women and men. A few days of the old RICE, can make for a much faster recovery.

Can't disagree with anything you said there - I'm assuming if he's banged up enough to not go he won't try, but we'll see!

And my wife would agree with you 100% - muscle strength has a lot to do with joint stability, and men tend to have more natural muscle strength, hence more stable joints. But each and every person is different in both their stability and elasticity in their muscles, tendons and ligaments.

So...bottom line - diagnosing and giving advice other than "ice it and see the doc" is probably silly on all our parts!

[tjones1]

The swelling isn't too bad. I would say very mild. It's certainly a little sore, but I thought it would be much worse.

I might have lucked out. Tomorrow I am going to get taped by a trainer before the game.

I'm certainly taking it easy all of today. Thanks everyone for the great advice.

[jdw3018]

Originally Posted by tjones1

The swelling isn't too bad. I would say very mild. It's certainly a little sore, but I thought it would be much worse.

I might have lucked out. Tomorrow I am going to get taped by a trainer before the game.

I'm certainly taking it easy all of today. Thanks everyone for the great advice.

Sounds like you're going to be just fine. Remember - ice and ibuprofen!!

[tjones1]

Originally Posted by jdw3018

Sounds like you're going to be just fine. Remember - ice and ibuprofen!!

Check. Getting ready to log off for a few hours and go watch some TV. Ahhhh, the tough life.. eh M&M?

[PIAA REF]

I prefer the poor man spa treatment.

Put foot in toilet and flush... Repeat as needed.

[Lotto]

I once had a rolled ankle that just wouldn't heal. I'd rest, then my first time back I'd roll it again. After a couple of iterations of that, I got a lace-up brace (Mueller brand, I think) and it was great. It really helped me prevent reinjuring the ankle.