Leg injuries: fractures, dislocations, strains, and more...

Honestly, I’m starting to doubt if there's even a way to speed up the recovery, but well... I went and messed up my ankle last weekend. Luckily, nothing is broken, thank God. It was pretty swollen for the first few days—actually, it still feels a bit puffy—but at least I can walk without a limp now. I just have to be careful not to do any sudden pivoting or twisting movements because that really hurts.

Does anyone know of any specific exercises, creams, compresses, or maybe some other kind of therapy that could help this clear up faster?

thanks!

dustyharbor7 said:I honestly doubt you can speed up the healing process, but here I am—I messed up my ankle last weekend, and thankfully nothing is broken. It was pretty swollen for the first few days, and to be honest, it’s still a bit puffy, though at least I can walk without limping now. I just have to avoid any sudden twisting motions because the pain comes back immediately.

Are there any specific exercises, creams, compresses, or other therapies that could help this clear up faster?

Thanks!

Hmm, last year at a Metallica concert, I stepped awkwardly on some kind of ledge and ended up with symptoms almost identical to yours. I didn't bother with anything fancy other than wrapping it in one of those stretchy compression bandages, and within a week, I was fine. For me, that wrap is the universal fix whenever I manage to wreck a joint; it consistently does the trick. 🙂

In situations like this, I’ve found that using a vein cream really helps speed up the recovery process. Of course, you also need to try and rest your leg as much as humanly possible.

Honestly, just track down a local homeopathic practitioner; they’ll probably give you some pellets that can kickstart the healing process and actually get that joint back to its original state, which is pretty much unheard of. Usually, once you suffer one sprain or strain, you're basically just waiting for the next one to happen even easier.

dustyharbor7 said:I honestly doubt you can speed up the

Are there any exercises, creams, compresses, or some other kind of therapy to get this over with faster?

There definitely are.
I’m prone to dislocating my joints all the time.

The last time I totally trashed myself, my doctor gave me this incredibly strong ointment. It worked wonders for joint pain, swelling, and all that junk.

The catch is I live in Sweden, so I have no clue if you can find it here in the States.
But just so you know,
it's called ORUDIS GEL 2.5% with Ketoprofen as the active ingredient.

Method number two: Chinese acupressure.

Last time I dislocated a joint and it swelled up, I had an appointment with an acupuncturist. Besides the needles, they gave me a foot massage.

When the woman saw my joint, she was like, "Don't worry, I've got this," and spent ten minutes pressing and squeezing it so hard I was practically crying—and then I limped my way home (after hobbling in on one leg).

Thanks so much to everyone for all the advice!

You really should've applied some ice packs right away
I’ve dealt with something similar a few times myself
The best thing is just wrapping a towel soaked in cold water around your ankle
That’s exactly what I did before heading to bed
By the next day, I could walk again, and by the third, it felt like it never even happened

It really depends on how much you actually damaged those ligaments.
I once tumbled down a flight of stairs and couldn't walk normally for two months. I went to my doctor and asked for a referral to an orthopedist, but she just gave me this blank stare: "Nothing is wrong. Just wrap it up and keep your leg elevated."😠

Luckily, my boyfriend's godmother is a physical therapist. When she started working on stretching me out... man, I was crying like a baby.🙂 🙂 🙂

Basically, once my ankle finally "cooled down," the ligaments had tightened up so much that they needed to be stretched all over again. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to walk at all.

For a month, it was nothing but ice massages, followed by Heparin cream to break up the swelling, and then stretching until I was in tears.
It was incredibly painful, but thanks to all that work, I can walk perfectly fine today!!👍

Don't laugh, and please don't think I'm joking around here.
🙂
For situations like this, nothing beats a compress made from your own biology.
Basically, you just pee on some cotton, slap that onto your injured ankle, wrap it up tight, and boom—you're back on your feet in no time.

I first heard about this trick from a pro volleyball player over in Europe who picked it up during her training at a Russian volleyball academy. And honestly? It actually works.👍

look, here’s the deal ☕ .... about two weeks ago I had this little mishap where I stepped wrong into a pothole on the street and twisted my ankle. I went to the ER and they scanned the joint, but they didn't give me anything except ice packs and told me to rest for a week since apparently nothing was broken. So, I rested for maybe two days—everything was fine at first—but... since I'm a full-time college student and I have to show up for classes this week, I started walking again even though my ankle is still swollen. Even after hitting the ER twice in a single day, they didn't give me any meds or put me in a brace or anything. After two weeks of icing it and trying my absolute best to stay off it, the swelling hasn't budged and it still hurts like hell 😕 🤷 so... here is what I'm wondering... what am I supposed to do? Should I keep resting? Should I go see my primary care doctor, and if I do, what kind of referral should I ask for? And how am I even supposed to treat this joint until then...? Because honestly, I'm just lost at this point. Thanks in advance for any advice or help 🙂 🙂

Anyone out there? 🤔

Hmm... either way, you should go see your primary care doctor... though, if there isn't actually a fracture and you've been resting like they told you to, I don't really see why it would still be swollen... 🤔

Anyway, seeing a GP is the right call, that much is certain... ☕

e, thanks for the advice, I'll definitely check it out. I don't see any logic in doing that damn rehab either, not after being stuck at my desk for two weeks straight, basically just walking on stilts between my room and the bathroom, and following every single instruction they gave me only to end up right back where I started two weeks ago... honestly, those guys at the ER totally botched it, as usual. We'll just have to see what happens... but thanks for the tip, I'll be 😬

So, my mom broke her ankle back on January 9th. The diagnosis was a bimalleolar fracture of the left lower leg. She had surgery for bimalleolar osteosynthesis that very same day, and the doctor told her she can't put any weight on it for three months. She went in for a checkup two weeks after the surgery to get her stitches removed, and her next appointment isn't until March 20th. The ankle still looks a bit wide compared to her other one. It doesn't swell in the morning, but by the evening, it’s definitely swollen. I'm wondering what she should be doing for the joint to maintain as much mobility as possible. Right now, she just moves it slightly without much effort and uses a massage bag. She still can't move the operated ankle quite like her healthy one. I'm curious about what the rest of her recovery should look like and if it's normal for the foot to swell up by nighttime. Oh, and my mom is only 44!
Thanks in advance to everyone for the help—any info is appreciated!

Oh, God, does anyone have any insight on this?

I went through an identical break, and honestly, I couldn't walk for months—I was basically shuffling around with crutches and everything... my ankle stayed swollen for months on end, too, especially if I kept my leg hanging down for any length of time, you know? And even now, it still swells occasionally, though I suspect that’s just due to the weather changes... mostly, I have this nagging feeling that things will never truly go back to how they were before. Even now, over a year later, my ankle still looks nothing like my "normal" one; it's sort of deformed. But since they already removed the screws and plates, I don't really have much reason to head back to the hospital or anything like that. Still, I can't help but wonder why it looks this way, or why, for instance, they didn't even take X-rays of me immediately after the surgery. I mean, I don't know, that's just how our American healthcare system works—they do their bit and then they simply stop caring about you. I'm still stuck wondering if I'm actually allowed to run, jump, or do things like that; I'm always terrified that something isn't quite right. As for mobility, it feels limited too—for example, I can't squat properly, and climbing stairs has been a struggle because the joint just isn't as flexible as it should be. Now, I did go to physical therapy at the hospital, but because I had issues with the surgical wound healing after they removed that first screw, I wasn't able to do the aquatic therapy, which I heard is supposedly how it's done. I just stuck to doing exercises in the gym, some ankle movements and such. I can say that helped, eventually, because I started seeing some progress, and they told me to keep practicing at home, too... hmm... and since then, well, it's not like I was incredibly persistent, so perhaps I'm partly to blame myself for not exercising consistently, but I'm going to start again because I feel like my joint is getting stiffer by the day. 😢 So, that's about it... if you have more questions, just ask. 🙂

Hey, I have one more question. Sometimes my entire foot turns this bluish color and feels freezing, but once it hits warm water, the color returns to normal and it starts to feel a bit warmer. Is that a normal thing to happen, and have you ever experienced anything like that? Like my mom says, her foot looks so cold it’s like it might just fall off.

Hmm... I don't know about that, because that certainly wasn't my experience... for me, the tones seemed much deeper, almost darker... more of a rich, crimson hue, far warmer than what you're describing here...😕

Well, something happened yesterday that might have been a bit of a setback. My mom accidentally put some weight on her operated leg to keep from falling. It’s been two months and seven days since the surgery. Initially, she felt quite a bit of pain, though it subsided after about ten minutes. There isn't any swelling or unusual deformity compared to how things looked before she leaned on it. The only thing is, she’s feeling a mild ache today that wasn't there prior to the incident. Her ankle mobility remains unchanged—everything functions just as it did before. Our main concern now is this lingering discomfort; we're worried about whether anything could have been damaged after all this time. PLEASE, if anyone can offer some insight, we would truly appreciate it! Thanks in advance to everyone!

Amy Rodriguez16 said:Well, something happened yesterday that might have been a bit of a setback. My mom accidentally put some weight on her operated leg to keep from falling. It’s been two months and seven days since the surgery. Initially, she felt quite a bit of pain, though it subsided after about ten minutes. There isn't any swelling or unusual deformity compared to how things looked before she leaned on it. The only thing is, she’s feeling a mild ache today that wasn't there prior to the incident. Her ankle mobility remains unchanged—everything functions just as it did before. Our main concern now is this lingering discomfort; we're worried about whether anything could have been damaged after all this time. PLEASE, if anyone can offer some insight, we would truly appreciate it! Thanks in advance to everyone!

Ugh, man... did you guys check in with the doctor about it?😕