Many of our patients are instructed to ice at home when feeling tightness, soreness or pain to help reduce inflammation in that specific area. So for this weeks blog we have decided to instruct our readers on the same subject. Keep reading to learn the proper way to ice while at home and what to do if you do not have the proper ice pack handy!
While icing at home it is important to use a Blue Gel Pack (conveniently sold at our office should you need to purchase one) not frozen vegetables as the water content is insufficient to keep the pack cold for thirty minutes.
When icing your body will go through 5 different phases which are; COLD-BURN-ACHE-PAIN-NUMBNESS. You want to get to the numb phase of the process in order to achieve the therapeutic benefit.
Ice for thirty minutes and than remove the ice pack to let your body warm back up to room temperature and re-apply the ice as needed.
If you should feel any tenderness or soreness after an adjustment, that can be normal. When a part of your spine is manipulated, the muscles surrounding that area inflame as a natural defense to protect themselves. Applying ice will constrict blood to that area and reduce the inflammation and as a result reduce the tenderness or soreness you are experiencing.
Should you be in immediate need of an ice pack and are not able to buy one you can make your own by taking a dish towel and soaking it in water, ring it out and place it in a zip-lock bag and place it in the freezer.
