My father likes to fix things and one day took it upon himself to redo a whole flight of stairs in the house I grew up in. They look really nice but I swear he made them steeper than before.

I didn’t notice at first glance, but when visiting for Thanksgiving a couple years ago I found out the hard way how steep that flight of stairs actually was. I slid, stumbled and nearly tumbled all the way down, landing sideways on my ankle. It hurt. Horribly. And I thought I heard a sickening crunch come from somewhere. That cemented it for me. Something bad happened. I cursed and cried and rolled around on the floor for a little while in absolute pain until my mother came to collect me.

A Thanksgiving is not happy with a sprained ankle.

How is a sprain different than a break?

A sprain is a condition where a ligament is stretched and then torn. When you sprain your ankle no bones are broken, but the experience is still quite painful and can cause some wicked bruising and swelling. An ankle sprain can take up to 3 weeks to heal completely.

How to treat a sprained ankle

If you have been diagnosed with a sprained ankle and wish to recover swiftly, it’s best to follow the RICE procedure to the fullest and best of your ability.

Rest. A lot. Especially within the first couple of days. When you rest the injury you lessen the chance of tearing ligaments in your ankle even more, which can then lengthen your recovery time.

Ice your ankle to bring down the swelling and ease the pain. If you don’t have an ice pack available, throw some ice in a zipper bag and wrap it in a towel.

Compression also reduces swelling. Plus it supports your ankle, keeping it stable while it heals. You can wrap your ankle with a bandage, or if you prefer you can purchase an ankle brace at a drugstore. I like them better than a regular bandage since they are easier to take on and off.

Elevate your ankle by propping it up on a pillow while you’re in bed or lying on the couch. If you work in an office and sit all day, elevate your ankle on another chair. Steal it from a co-worker if you have to!

Home remedies for sprains

Soak a sprained ankle in a bath of Epsom salts to ease pain and reduce swelling.

Still suffering from pain a few days after the injury? Try applying something like Icy Hot to the afflicted area.

You can also take small doses of ibuprofen every 4 hours to reduce the swelling and the pain.

Start walking on it after a few days, but only if the initial pain as faded! Sprains recover quicker when you begin applying a little bit of pressure at a time back onto the sight of the injury. This pressure helps to strengthen the ligaments in your ankle, instead of leaving them weak from no use.

–Magdalena

Do you have any cures for a sprained ankle? Comment and tell us about them!

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