How to survive the slips and falls of winter

How to survive the slips and falls of winter

Not a week has gone by this winter without someone who has slipped and fallen. It has been cold and icy, and even I have fallen victim, being sore as long as a month later after I found myself on the ground when my feet met some unseen ice.

Most of us have gotten up and walked away, brushing ourselves off thinking we were uninjured. After a few days of soreness, perhaps most of the pain and soreness did seem to go away. The problem is, a few weeks later, when you are feeling stiff and blame it on everything from shoveling, playing with the kids or overdoing it in the gym, something may not seem right.

Waiting longer creates even more stiffness, perhaps back pain, neck pain we attribute to stress, basically because we did not understand what really happened to us when we slipped.

You do not have to break a limb to have been injured. Maybe, our hip hit the ground, our body twisted harshly and abruptly and our muscles which were unable to react are now strained, sore and stiff. That usually goes away in a few days; right? What may have also occurred is straining and spraining of the joints of the hip, the pelvis, and even the rib cage. Eventually, these misplaced joints, combined with the tightened myofascia which surrounds it from the effect of healing may actually make any dysfunction you are feeling worse. A few weeks later, you may feel strange sensations in the ankles, knees, and neck since your body is no longer walking and moving normally, as it did prior to your fall.

If this sounds like your experience, it is likely time to visit the chiropractor. If you do this soon after the fall, chances are you will recover quickly. If you wait a few weeks, it will likely take a few visits and if you wait months, the body will likely need even more work. The chiropractic visit will work on the tightened myofascia, the joints that were traumatized since they may need to be adjusted so they work normally again so you can get back to doing things the way you were able to before the fall.

It is especially important to get your body looked at because the next snowfall will likely require some physical work such as shoveling, and nothing leaves you more prone to an injury than poorly functioning body mechanics. You may not have prevented the initial fall, but you can reduce the possibility of a worsening problem.