how long for an ankle sprain to heal?

[YonexDude]

i sprained my ankle in february, and i laid off of it and it eventually got better enough so that i could run and play when my ankle was taped. i am no longer taping it, and now i use an ankle brace when i play tennis. But a slight pain is still going on in my ankle and it simply won't go away. It doesn't hurt enough to bug me a lot, but the fact remains that my ankle still hurts and it cracks a lot and it's been long enough that i dont think this pain will ever go away.

i really want the ankle i sprained to be in as good shape as my good ankle. I've already tried simply keeping off my feet for a while, but it doesn't do anything for the pain. when i start playing tennis again it just comes back. should i go through some sort of physical therapy?

 

[steveq81]

Have you seen a doctor or sports medicine specialist? Might be more to your sprain than you thought, or maybe something didn't heal right.

I did a number on my right ankle a few summers back. Nasty sprain in late June, and was not able to pick up a racquet again until early September. On crutches for about 10 days and then hobbled like a gimp for another 10 days. No fun.

 

[ionutzakis]

..about 2-3 years

 

[ceejay]

How old are you? You'll obviously need more time to heal when you get older.

I'm only 22, and the last time I sprained my ankle, I couldn't walk for 5 days, then started walking again and then could run comfortably after around three weeks. That was probably the worst sprain I've ever had... and I've had a lot. I used to get them every week when I was around 15 and playing football every day.

I agree with steveq81... if its still there after months, you probably want to see a doctor.

 

[YonexDude]

How old are you? You'll obviously need more time to heal when you get older.

I'm only 22, and the last time I sprained my ankle, I couldn't walk for 5 days, then started walking again and then could run comfortably after around three weeks. That was probably the worst sprain I've ever had... and I've had a lot. I used to get them every week when I was around 15 and playing football every day.

I agree with steveq81... if its still there after months, you probably want to see a doctor.

I'm 19. i saw the sports trainer at my school and i've finished all the physical therapy and exercises that i was supposed to do with them, but it still hurts.

the thing is that it wasn't a very bad sprain. i could still walk and everything with minimal pain, but running and changing directions is when it would kill me. now i can walk and run with zero pain, but the changing of directions while playing tennis and when i try to stretch it out is when the pain bugs me. its nothing terrible though, more or a nagging pain

 

[Serve 'em hard]

what's the theory behind wearing a brace or ace bandage for an ankle sprain or other foot/leg injuries? How's it supposed to help?

 

[RadicalPro]

its not. just ice it right after your sprain it, then after 24 hours do hot compressions. and it should go away within 2-3 weeks. But you will be bothered by it for some time. I stepped on a tennis ball, the bone on my foot was dislodged i just iced it, rested it, and played after 1 week, pain was there... but i just ignore it and it will go away. Doct told me to rest it for 2 month, they even wanted to do physical therapy.

1 thing i found out here, is that American doctors dont know squat, sorry to say. I have knee pain and 10 doctors said there was nothing wrong with it. So i went to a russian guy and he just looked at it, moved it around and said that it was just overuse, physical therapy, laser. and it was all good in 1 month.

 

[jasoncho92]

When i was 8 i sprained my ankle running on the beach on top of the odd shaped rocks. My ankle turned purple but the next day i could walk normally. So it depends on whether or not it was a severe sprain or not

 

[fuzz nation]

Soft tissue injuries are grumpy and can nag you for several months with come-and-go pain. I see no problem with doing some ice on the ankle after you play and if you still have enough pains to concern you in another month or two, you probably ought to get it checked. Moderate pain is the body's way of saying "stop".

If you're not worried about still being injured, but wondering how long the backround aches might last, the sprains I've had in the past gave me occasional flare-ups after four to six months of being "mended". I also had ridiculously slow progress with bruised ribs and a torn quad; they just heal on their own clock. Keep an eye on it and good luck with the recovery.