What are some natural means of reducing inflammation?!
Question: I recently hurt my shoulder in a tennis match after hitting a serve. The doctor said to load up on Advil but the improvement I get from the Advil is disproportionate to the drowsiness I experience and the bad temperament that results. My shoulder only hurts when I'm on the court so it seems inappropriate to be taking the Advil off the court too (as the doctor said I should). I appreciate any suggestions for natural solutions!
Answers: I recently hurt my shoulder in a tennis match after hitting a serve. The doctor said to load up on Advil but the improvement I get from the Advil is disproportionate to the drowsiness I experience and the bad temperament that results. My shoulder only hurts when I'm on the court so it seems inappropriate to be taking the Advil off the court too (as the doctor said I should). I appreciate any suggestions for natural solutions!
Omega 3 fatty acids (fish oil), borage oil (gamma linolenic acid), magnesium, turmeric (curcumin), ginger the digestive enzyme bromelain (found in the stem of pineapple)... you can also try glucosamine and chondroitin.
If you are looking for another drug option, my mom had great relief from Aleve more than Advil. I don't take any of that, but she liked how it worked for her.
You don't say how long ago you hurt yourself. If it was fairly recently, the first thing you should do is stop playing & re-aggravating the injury (temporarily). After that, you can apply ice/cold packs to reduce inflammation. Do not apply longer that about 10 minutes at a time, or you risk causing more damage. You can also alternate hot/cold (5 minutes or so each, alternate several times)--hot to warm the area and bring in fresh blood to accelerate healing, and cold to take down inflammation.
You could also try therapeutic massage, physical therapy, acupuncture, or various herbal liniments (Chinese Dit Da Jao is my favorite).
If this has been a chronic problem, you should definitely seek one of the above therapies to heal the area.
Good luck.
Go and peel off some bark from a willow tree, and grind it up and infuse it in warm water to extract the salicylates. If you are short of willow trees take some salicylates from the chemist, as they are the same thing. Sometimes marketed as asprin.
Eat lots of veggies, especially organically grown green veggies, which are anti-inflammatory........
Resting the muscles and soaking in hot baths should be useful. Emu oil rubbed on the sore area will relieve inflammation. I juice carrots, ginger and jalape?o peppers, should do wonders for sore muscles since it relieves me of arthritic pain.