We all have experienced muscle pain at one time or another in our life. Scientifically, this term is known as myalgia. It is very common to experience this while doing daily routine activities. Sometimes, we do over-exercise and suffer from sore muscles the next morning; sometimes we lift heavy boxes in the wrong way and get our muscles twisted; often we experience whole body ache when we suffer from flu or viral infection. All these are common forms of muscle pain that everyone goes through quite often. Normally, muscle pain gets relieved if proper rest is given to the body for a couple of days, however, sometimes it becomes more acute and needs medical attention to avoid any further damage and severe pain. This is where proper muscle pain treatment is needed.
Causes of Muscle Pain:
Mostly, muscle pain is minor and temporary. It is likely to remain for a few days and then goes away on its own. However, in some cases, it might last longer and needs medical attention. Here are a few causes that can cause this problem, so that you can plan the right muscle pain treatment procedure accordingly.
- Stress and tension cause muscles in the specific area to get stiff, causing pain in that area. For instance, if you are stressed out, then muscles in your neck region will become tight and stiff and cause pain.
- It may result from overuse of muscles. Sometimes people tend to overuse a set of muscles either by doing a repetitive activity or intense activity. For instance, you might experience sore shoulders if you do intense backyard or lawn work.
- Muscle pain also happens due to minor internal injuries. For instance, if you lift up heavy boxes in a careless manner, then it might injure your internal muscle tissues, causing you to experience muscle cramps or spasms.
- One common cause of experiencing muscle pain is improper posture while doing exercise at the gym. Sometimes, in excitement, people tend to lift heavy weights or overdo crunches or pushups, as a result of which they end up experiencing muscle pain for the next so many days.
Other serious causes of muscle pain is:
- If you have any illness or infection such as flu or Lyme disease.
- If you suffer from chronic medical a condition such as fibromyalgia, myositis, and lupus.
- If you are on certain medications such as statins or ACE inhibitors, of which muscle pain is a common side effect.
- If you suffer from hypo or hyperthyroidism or if you have low potassium in the body
Muscle Pain Treatment:
Muscle pain treatment depends upon the type and cause of muscle pain one is suffering from. If it is less acute and often resulting from stress, tension or improper physical activity, then it will go away by doing certain remedies at home only. However, if it is more acute and severe related to chronic medical conditions, then you need to see a doctor at the earliest. Here are a few tips you must try at first.
- Give rest to the affected muscle pain area.
- Apply ice pack on the affected area for 20 minutes a few times a day for 2-3 days. If required, use a heating pad after this.
- Wrap an elastic bandage around the area to compress it in order to cut swelling and pain.
- While lying down, keep the affected area raised above your heart level that helps to cut swelling.
- Take over-the-counter medications to relieve pain, such as ibuprofen.
- Do yoga and meditation to ease out tension and stress from your body.
- Gently stretch your muscles to relax them.
- Keep yourself hydrated to avoid muscle cramps.
Here are certain signs and symptoms that require specialized muscle pain treatment, such as:
- If the pain doesn’t go away even after doing home remedies for a few days.
- If severe pain arises without any clear reason.
- If you experience muscle pain with a rash or after a tick bite.
- If you experience redness and swelling along with muscle pain.
- If you face muscle pain after certain medications.
- If you experience pain at a higher temperatures.
- If you are unable to move the affected area
All these symptoms are not minor, hence require proper muscle pain treatment from a qualified medical practitioner at the earliest. There are certain specialists who treat muscle pain depending upon its cause:
- Orthopedic specialists treat pain arising from musculoskeletal conditions.
- Rheumatologists treat pain caused due to autoimmune or other systemic disorders.
- Physiotherapists help to manage the pain by exercise and therapeutic techniques.
- Physiatrists who are well known as rehabilitation doctors, who help you recover after a surgery or accident
Your body gives you signals whenever it is not in a healthy state. So, pay attention to it and try doing home remedies for a few days. But if the pain still persists, then fix an appointment with a specialist for proper muscle pain treatment.
