Any tips for a badly damaged calf?

Hey Everyone. About 1.5 weeks ago, I got calf crushed. Completely snapped my ankle out, so I initially wasn't aware that the calf was also damaged cuz I was too concerned about the ankle. A couple days later, the calf seemed to get much worse and now I can barely walk. Been icing it...hurts a lot. It became really swollen when the pain started to get worse. The swelling seems to be going down a bit, but not the pain. I can't really put too much weight on it. Any tips for a speedy recovery?

Also, since I roll almost everyday, my body is not used to just sitting and lying around. Any tips on how not to get too depressed and fat. :)

if the swelling has gone down then i would recomend trying to apply some heat. that can help relax the muscle and may lead to a quicker recovery. try soaking it in a hot bath. its worked for me in the past.

Note, if you heat the muscle, it more than likely will reswell. Swelling causes pain. If it still hurts after the swelling goes down, it's either rather serious damage to the area...or you just have MORE swelling. Remember, heating is great to relax a tense muscle, but if swelling is the major issue, you never want to heat it. I'd suggest icing it even more. If the pain isn't gone soon, you need to go to a professional to have it looked at.
That being said, when activity is out of the question, it all falls on diet. Eat healthy, go outside when you can (sunshine elevates the mood, or at least it does mine), and then eat more healthy stuff. Tons of grains and veggies with lots of water will make you feel better than if you ingest foods that slow you down, especially shit heavy in sugar. And of course, do stuff you love doing: If you love movies, watch some, if you love video games, play some: Do the stuff you couldn't normally do because you had to work out during that time. That will keep you entertained at least.
Hope SOME of that helps.

Put some tussin on it :)

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Originally Posted by Eddie Bravo

Put some tussin on it :)

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yep ,tussin cured my deslexia

If it's been hurting that long,go to the doctor. An MRI may be needed. I had(what I thought was) a "calf" injury at an intensive training camp in chicago. I figured I'd payed a lot and wouldn't let a "pull" stop me. My calf kept getting bigger and (after about 4 days) blue,yellow,and black/purplish. I went to the doctor and I had a complete Achilles tear on that side. I spent about 6=8 monthes out of work/training. Had I gone while it was still a partial tear I would have rehabbed quicker. You may have a worse injury than you think,and you may be making it worse by being on your feet. My left leg is still (5 years later) no where near what it was. I can't raise up on my toes on that side. I walk with a limp. Please get it checked out,forums are no place for medical advice!

Thanks guys. Stachovak, you are scaring me. But at the same time, you're probably right.

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Originally Posted by Louis Ho

Thanks guys. Stachovak, you are scaring me. But at the same time, you're probably right.

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If it turns out to be a haematoma, I got put on to some excellent cream to break them down faster recently. I will find the tube and send you the name if thats what it turns out to be.

I thought I was finally injury free after two years, and then today I picked at a little black dot on the scar from my last surgery and out popped the end of a piece of blue nylon string! Its definitely well attached to something in there, probably the surgeons car keys.

It never rains, but it pours Louis:(

I'd get an xray for sure at the very least. Any time you pop an ankle there is a very strong possibility of breaking the fibula; especially the proximal end near the ankle. I see a lot of trauma patients in my job and moderate to severe ankle injuries are more often than not accompanied by an injury to the fibula as well. So sorry to hear that buddy. Regardless of the diagnosis that sucks. "Heel" up quickly!

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Originally Posted by Tim Elliott

If it turns out to be a haematoma, I got put on to some excellent cream to break them down faster recently. I will find the tube and send you the name if thats what it turns out to be.

I thought I was finally injury free after two years, and then today I picked at a little black dot on the scar from my last surgery and out popped the end of a piece of blue nylon string! Its definitely well attached to something in there, probably the surgeons car keys.

It never rains, but it pours Louis:(

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WTF!!! Someone's ass should be in a sling for that!

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Originally Posted by Tim Elliott

I thought I was finally injury free after two years, and then today I picked at a little black dot on the scar from my last surgery and out popped the end of a piece of blue nylon string! Its definitely well attached to something in there, probably the surgeons car keys.

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Alien implants, they're every where.

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Originally Posted by AJ Camacho

Alien implants, they're every where.

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no shit!

Ryan, should I be stretching it even though the entire area is still quite tender?

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Originally Posted by Eddie Bravo

Put some tussin on it :)

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wd-EBG3a7jU

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Originally Posted by Eddie Bravo

Put some tussin on it :)

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ha ha, put some tussin on it, that shit is funny, Chris Rock MD

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Originally Posted by Tim Elliott

If it turns out to be a haematoma, I got put on to some excellent cream to break them down faster recently. I will find the tube and send you the name if thats what it turns out to be.

I thought I was finally injury free after two years, and then today I picked at a little black dot on the scar from my last surgery and out popped the end of a piece of blue nylon string! Its definitely well attached to something in there, probably the surgeons car keys.

It never rains, but it pours Louis:(

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damn this shit is like Walter Reid, string theory , bed pans, jiujitsu ain't worth all this shit

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Originally Posted by Louis Ho

Hey Everyone. About 1.5 weeks ago, I got calf crushed. Completely snapped my ankle out, so I initially wasn't aware that the calf was also damaged cuz I was too concerned about the ankle. A couple days later, the calf seemed to get much worse and now I can barely walk. Been icing it...hurts a lot. It became really swollen when the pain started to get worse. The swelling seems to be going down a bit, but not the pain. I can't really put too much weight on it. Any tips for a speedy recovery?

Also, since I roll almost everyday, my body is not used to just sitting and lying around. Any tips on how not to get too depressed and fat. :)

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Have you been to a doctor? If you explain your range of motion to me, I'm sure I can help you at least diagnose your injury. I'm more concerned about your ankle than your calf, please explain its range of motion to me. Is it your lower, middle or upper calf? Inner or outer? Can you move your ankle to both sides and up and down without severe pain? Any pain in your hamstring or lower back? Where exactly is the swelling, your ankle or calf or both?

Also, don't put weight on it in case you have a fracture in your ankle.

Oh and it might also be a "crush" injury. How tight did he have that calf crush slapped on? I mean, if I understand you correctly, then it dislocated your ankle? Sounds like it was pretty tight. There might be some tissue damage. If that's the case, then you need to see a doctor to have an mri. Usually it's not serious, but it can be, and if it is then it's fixable with surgery or physical therapy or both. For now, ICE IT!!! All day, as much as you possibly can, ice it and elevate it.

Find Benny Hinn the faith healer and he will fix you up.

Pete Daly, thanks for your concern. So, here is the situation. The ankle damage apperars to be on the lateral/exterior side of the ankle. The mobility is actually not too bad. The pain in the ankle only occurs if I flex (ballerina style) my foot until the injured ligaments begin to stretch. I can flex my ankle both ways, but it does hurt my calf when I flex.

The calf hurts a lot more than the ankle. The swelling and pain is more on the medial/inner side. I went to an atheltic therapist last week and it seems that i did have some okay strength amd mobility in both my ankle and calf. So, probably no major tearing of the muscle. The thing that worried the athletic therapist was that the calf and ankle were still very swollen and felt very cold to the touch (poor circulation) a good 1.5 weeks after the injury. What bugs me is the pain in the calf. Very very tender. The therapist told me to stretch it, but I'm not sure if I should stretch it so soon.

Something simmilar happened to me when I didn't tap for a calf crunch cause I thought its not that sore, untill my knee popped... but hey so we learn. Just after that I got sick and so now I've been out for about 3 weeks. The rest annoyed me to no end but at least it forced me to let my calf heal. I only took some anti inflamitory stuff and its o.k now, I recently started training again and everything is fine, just very tender to any form of calf crunch but I'm sure that will pass.
Good luck

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Originally Posted by Louis Ho

Pete Daly, thanks for your concern. So, here is the situation. The ankle damage apperars to be on the lateral/exterior side of the ankle. The mobility is actually not too bad. The pain in the ankle only occurs if I flex (ballerina style) my foot until the injured ligaments begin to stretch. I can flex my ankle both ways, but it does hurt my calf when I flex.

The calf hurts a lot more than the ankle. The swelling and pain is more on the medial/inner side. I went to an atheltic therapist last week and it seems that i did have some okay strength amd mobility in both my ankle and calf. So, probably no major tearing of the muscle. The thing that worried the athletic therapist was that the calf and ankle were still very swollen and felt very cold to the touch (poor circulation) a good 1.5 weeks after the injury. What bugs me is the pain in the calf. Very very tender. The therapist told me to stretch it, but I'm not sure if I should stretch it so soon.

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Nerve damage to the calf and probably ligament damage to the ankle. There's nothing you can do about the ligament damage, because, if it doesn't hurt all that bad, then it's probably not a tear, but a sprain. Treat it with ice and elevation. As for the calf, it too will heal with time, but it's going to feel funny when you stretch it, kind of like it's asleep. You also may feel some burning pain, which is normal if you have any tissue damage added to the nerve damage. Nevertheless, stretching it is the best way to increase circulation to that area, because you shouldn't put weight on that leg if you don't have to. If you have a treadmill, get familiar with it.

So it's ice/elevation very very often (keep the leg above the heart and play some call of duty while you're at it, what the hell right?), keep off it as much as possible, stretch often, and use a treadmill. You can take ibuprofen to help with the swelling and pain, up to 8 a day (more can cause intestinal damage if overused); two every four hours. Whenever the pain significantly subsides, go for like a mile JOG (not run) and see how you feel after a few hours. If you start to get sore, that's normal and you can go back to rolling etc. but if you start to swell up, then go back to treatment. Good luck on a speedy recovery.

Oh by treadmill I meant exorcise bike, i'm an idiot. NO TREADMILLS lol.

Thanks Pete. This helps for sure. Btw, are you a doc, therapist? Thanks again.

Thanks Ryan. :)

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Originally Posted by Louis Ho

Thanks Pete. This helps for sure. Btw, are you a doc, therapist? Thanks again.

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I'm a registered nurse at the Mayo Clinic emergency room (yes I know it has clinic in the name, but we do have an exceptional emergency room).

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Originally Posted by Louis Ho

Thanks Pete. This helps for sure. Btw, are you a doc, therapist? Thanks again.

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I work here http://www.mayoclinic.org/saintmaryshospital/

Cool, Pete. Thanks again. :)