Hurt my ankle

[tyler711]

I am leaving for a fire academy in 6 days. It is going to be very strenuos. I sprained my ankle a little over a week ago. It swole up on both sides (mostly on the outside) and hurt like crazy. It swole up alot and bruised. The bruising is gone and the swelling is way down. I can walk on it now, but it still is very sore. The pain went from about an 8 out of 10 to a 3 now. I can almost walk normally. I still can't squat down on it or do much with my toes. Will this be able to heal completely in 6 days? Is it still sprained or is it just sore from healing? What can I do to help speed up the recovery? I'm taking ibuprofen everyday. I iced it and wrapped it for the first 4 or 5 days. There is still some swelling and minor pain. Thanks

[DaDancingPsych]

I'm not a physician, but I do know that sprains take a long time to heal (longer than a break) and if you push it, you can injure it even more. I would recommend speaking to your doctor. Also, I know you are excited to move forward with your career, but being that you're in a VERY physical field, could this trainning be moved back? I'd hate to see you hurt yourself to a point where you could no longer fire fight... and we need passionate people like you!

[Slagar]

I'd agree with DDP, see a docter, and maybe get an x-ray. If you're sure it's not broken, a physiotherapist could be a good alternative. They'll give you good advice on what you should and shouldn't be doing with it, and how it may be affected if you push it too hard. Physiotherapy will also give you some exercises to ensure it heals properly, because often bad sprains can cause more harm than you'd think.

 

Also, wearing a protective ankle-brace would be a good idea for a while. They protect the area, ensure safe joint-movement, as well as keep it warm to help prevent further injury.

 

My brother has sprained his ankle playing soccer a few times, and now he has to be fairly careful with it.

 

Good luck, I hope you're able okay at the fire academy!

[Beec]

If you cannot put back that training, tape your ankle. Learn how before you go, and tape it up to add some stability. I would also keep using the ice. And stay off of it, let it rest. Do not test it. It will be tested in training.

 

To tape an ankle, you usually put strips of tape that run from the inside of your leg, down in front of your heel and back up the other side. You can have these strips going from the front of your heel and into your arch. The more strips the more stable, but too tight can be a problem. Then you put strips around your ankle. Rip the tape so it makes it more than once around your ankle, but not twice. A strip that's about 1.333 or 1.5 times the cirucmference of your ankle is good. Wrap them around your ankle. These strips will bring the strips towards the front of your arch together and make it tighter.

 

See:

 

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Good luck.

[annie24]

I think you need to see a doctor ASAP! You can be damaging it more by walking on it instead of getting crutches.