AD | Collaborative post
Throughout our lives we will experience so many different kinds of injuries. This could be anything from a small cut to a broken arm and how we look after ourselves can have a massive impact on how well, and how quickly we heal. Self-care is so important if you’re recovering from an injury so today I’m sharing 5 tips to help you to look after yourself!
Take it easy
We all have busy lives and if you’re anything like me you’ll have a to do list a mile long. After an injury it can be hard to slow down and relax. We can feel the pressure to do our every day jobs such as cooking and cleaning but really, what we need to do after an injury is to take it easy.
If the injury is a big one then you could possibly be suffering from shock still, depending on how soon after it is. Powering through and ‘getting on with life’ can help to make things seem normal but it’s important to listen to what your body needs. Try to only do what’s absolutely necessary and try to have a slower pace of life for a while.
Try physiotherapy
While some injuries can heal quickly and easily, there are some that are not as easy. A broken bone for instance, no matter where in the body, can take a really long time to heal. Breaks such as legs, arms or maybe elbows can affect your day to day life and it can take some time to get back to normal.
Although your doctor will probably advise you to do exercises at home to help you regain strength sometimes this isn’t enough. You might feel that you need to do more or you might feel like you need additional help when it comes to actually doing the exercises. Private physiotherapy could be what you need and as well as rehabilitation, this could be great for things like back and neck pain and carpal tunnel syndrome, as well as a lot more.
Ask for additional help
When you’ve had an injury you might not be able to do everything yourself and even if you can, it might be sensible to not do as much for a while. If you can, ask family and friends to help in any way that they can. This could be helping with cooking and stocking up your freezer with a batching cooking session, maybe you’re finding it hard to get the vacuum around or maybe you need a hand getting a wash.
Although it can be hard to ask for help sometimes it’s also so important to put yourself first and reach out to the people around you.
Spend time with others
Although you might not feel like it, especially if your injury is a big one, it’s important to be around other people.
If you can, get out with friends and do something fun. This could be anything from a short stroll, lunch or maybe just a coffee somewhere local. If you are homebound for a while, invite people over and have a takeaway or a film evening. It will really lift your spirits and improve your mood.
Hopefully you are able to look after yourself and have a speedy recovery.