Isolated Calf Muscle Pain - How Long does it take a Strain to Heal?

Question

In February I began to have pain in my calf muscle and I had just started taking birth control and I thought it was a blood clot - well I had an ultrasound done and that was not the case - it came back clear. I am off of the birth control - I was on it for less than 30 days. The pain has continued on and off - I wear heels at work and had to run up and down steps (14) at least ten times a day and then I would go to the gym and work my legs (definately overworked it). Since then have had three weeks of no running up and down the stairs and have stopped working out. I I went back to my doctor and he felt my leg announced there was no blood clot (since I needed reassurance) and had an MRI done about two weeks ago and there was no torn muscle, but he said I strained it.

I just returned from the beach - five days of walking on the sand and all over Wilmington, NC and driving ten hours. In the last four days I would say I have had little to no sleep (gotta love the chronic insomia), have been packing to move, helping mom left and move things for a garage sale and went out in heels on Saturday (which I regretted in the first hour). The pain seems to have isolated its self to the corner of my muscle, where the muscles curves, a very dull ache. It is aching again and and then I get sharp twinges down the muscle and the back of my knee is now starting to ache. Has anyone else had a strain longer than four months - I figure it cannot heal because I keep overusing it. Any suggestions or comments? My doctor suggested that I might get some physical therapy done.

Answer 1

I agree with your doctor you need to have physical therapy. You're going to have to take a break for a few days to let the muscles rest and recover. If you continually abuse the muscles they will not heal.

This is the first place your body targets when you are dehydrated. Drink lots of water! I recommend purified water and mineral water mixed 50/50. The mineral water is going to put back into the muscles what they are losing on a daily basis.

I suggest that adults and children drink 40 ounces of water per 100 pounds of body weight every day. Realize that exercise, ambient temperature, and state of health affect the water needs of your body. One tip: it is healthier to drink a sports drink or water than fruit juice, soda, coffee, or milk.

In the evening take a hot bath with 2c. of dissolved Epsom salts and soak for 30 minutes. Afterwards , if you have something shaped like a cylinder and made out of hard material (think of a large rolling pin you would use for pizza dough or something) place it under your leg and push down and roll it back and forth...this should massage the spasms out of your leg. It will hurt while you're doing it, but more so the type of pain that actually feels good, in the long run.