How Long For a Sprain to Heal?

7 years I think

Oh I see a sprain, I first read this as a Spain. nevermind

he he he...

you are always up to something woman!

It's been a loong time since I had a sprained ankle and it took two months before I was fully recovered.

see this ..... site

but make sure it is a sprain, yeah? you don't want to find out weeks later something was broken and it didn't heal properly.

I had xrays and the doc came in and said...

"no fracture...unless it's a fracture that just hasn't shown up yet."

Depending on how badly it's sprained, it could be days, weeks, or months (sorry). Bad sprains are very slow to heal. Is it your ankle or elsewhere in your foot?

The 7 year itch?

Then treat it as a sprain. It's only been a week so, if you feel up to it, you can test your ankle with some light stretching exercises (to keep muscles/tendons limber) but don't go overboard. Any pull or strain and you should stop, gently does it. It might be quite a few more weeks or even a couple of months before you are 100%. I'd also steer clear of high heels (if you wear them) for a while.

It's my arch and the top and outside of my foot. So more my foot than my ankle.

See a Doc.

A friend had a similar injury and she was hobbling for months. That doesn't mean yours will be the same but give it all the time it needs - don't push it!

I once had a very bad sprain that took several months before I could walk properly. Of course, if I had used crutches or other means to stay off it I might have healed faster. It was actually a couple of years before I could run comfortably on it. The doctor said that I would have been better off if I had broken it.

Hopefully, yours is not so severe.

I once had a bad sprain. At the time the doc said that a sprain can often be worse than an actual break. He put me in a walking cast for a few weeks.

You really want to make sure that the sprain is supported, and that it is not unduly stressed while it is healing.

I am trying not to walk on it. I had an air cast for a week. Now I am down to an ace bandgage but am thinking maybe i need the stupid air cast again.

I don't want to go back to to doctor if this is the norm. But if it's not healing right, I don't want to NOT go.

Hmmm..

http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=71210&highlight=sprain+ankle

http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1618421&highlight=sprain+ankle#1618421

I seem to remember another thread about a sprained ankle by you, Bella, because I remember wondering about your peripheral vision, and you said you were just carrying too much down the stairs..

I'm just wondering if when your foot heals, that there might be some exercises to strengthen your ankle.

My ankles have been sprained several times. This is by far the worst.

I had surgery on this foot about 10 years ago on the tendon in my arch...that tends to injure a lot.

I've always had bad feet. I think there are exercises to help strengthen them and I just need to get doing.

You'll coordinate that with your doctor, though, won't you?

I am also thinking shoes matter. For example, some running shoes are built for stability. There's a good thread on running shoes here, started by Sozobe. Runner's World magazine has a website that analyses the different shoes available. And, presumably, some ordinary shoes are better for stability that others.

On how long a sprain can affect your foot, I had a bad sprain that I dealt with for something like eight months.

If you can afford it, go see a professional and ask them how to manage it. Better to make sure it heals now than to have reduced function for the rest of your life.

It's important to maintain range of motion and proper alignment while these things heal. If your foot spends a lot of time in one position (especially the wrong position), some of the ligaments may shorten up and you'll lose full range of motion. This happened to me after a stress fracture in my ankle about 9 years ago: I didn't do anything to maintain the range of motion, and I still have trouble running on the thing, just because there's one articulation that doesn't move smoothly.

As I understand it, maintaining range of motion is more important than bearing weight in these instances. A GP or an orthopedist or a physical therapist or a sports chiropractor (and others, I'm sure) should be able to give you an idea what you can do to make sure it heals properly.