OUCH! I don’t know if it was from the run Saturday or the cleaning frenzy Sunday, but my shoulders and neck have been incredibly sore for the past two days. Like, pain, stiffness, and cramps to the point of nausea. I’ve been taking hot baths and using a heating pad, which have been helping, but it’s driving me crazy. Any home remedies for sore muscles?
brigita
May 6, 2003 — 2:37 pm
i’d try taking some anti-inflammatories (Advil being my personal favorite) if your stomach can handle it and keep moving around a little bit. i’d also put the Snook to work on those knots. 😉
BJ
May 6, 2003 — 6:35 pm
Voltarin is an anti-inflammatory that is available in tablet or gel form from the chemist.I’ve used Orudis Gel too but that might be only available on script. Don’t put up with the pain,
take pain killers but not asprin based if you’re using anti-inflammatories.
Kris
May 6, 2003 — 7:27 pm
Thanks ladies. I went with ibuprofen and the dead cat last night. (BJ sent me this stuffed cat beanbag thing that you put in the microwave. It ROCKS.) And Rodd gave me a good massage. My friend Kevin recommended the Voltarin too, so I might see if I can pick some of that up.
Kris
May 6, 2003 — 7:37 pm
Oh, and damn but your post made me homesick for some Advil, B! That’s my all-time favorite painkiller. I think it’s the sweet candy coating that does it. 🙂
brigita
May 6, 2003 — 10:22 pm
that’s exactly why i love it.
so what’s the law on shipping drugs through the mail? 😉
Frances
May 7, 2003 — 1:34 am
You can also put raw rice in a sock or part of an old pillow case and sew up the end. Then microwave it and woweee it feels good. You can use this over and over and over. Massage therapy is good as well as icy hot.
Tricia
May 7, 2003 — 1:57 am
I get very tense around my neck and upper back / shoulders from stress and life (driving cars and keyboards and bikes keeps me hunched forward many hours of the day), and it was very apparent in my last massage. The massage therapist recommended stretching that area (I’ll keep looking for an illustration of what I’m talking about) and remembering to pull your shoulders back and letting them drop.
Tiger balm is good, too, if you can get it, and smells yummy.
Alastair
May 7, 2003 — 5:52 am
I’m not quite sure what it is you’re feeling exactly, but should it come to pass that you have regular (skeletal) back pain, then a good longer term aid (drugs are very shorterm, or should be) is… olive oil. No raised eyebrows please.
When I used to run middle distances often (7 miles, thrice weekly) on pavements, the compaction that the constant pounding directed at my back caused some pain, one particular bout of which was quite bad, and did not go for weeks, even after I stopped to let it heal.
I then read in Men’s Health that some people advocate taking either fish or olive oils to alleviate joint and tendon ailments. I started on a simple regime; good quality extra virgin olive oil (since cod liver oil is too expensive at that volume, and so disgusting as to drive away even the people that love you), one tablespoon before breakfast, one before brushing my teeth prior to bed – i.e. two a day, and I mean tablespoons, not dessert spoons, which many confuse here in the UK.
The pain subsided within eight or nine days of that, and increasing my general intake of so-called “good” lipids (evening primrose, fish, and good olive oils) has killed off many of the joint aches I used to associate with running (I am running again, so it’s not for any lack of activity!). Just my two pence.
Kris
May 7, 2003 — 8:20 am
Thanks everyone. I definitely will be bringing some Advil back with me in July, B, but thanks for the offer. I think I figured out what the cause was last night. I was feeling better, so I went to the gym and ran a mile and a half. That loosened me up, but not to the point of pain. Then I went to the grocery store, packed my purchases in my backpack, and hoisted it on my back. YOWCH! The straps were pulling down exactly on the worst pressure points. I made a similar trip after my five mile run Saturday and I think the weight just pulled or stressed something. It’s definitely better today though. I’m going to try to be more careful in the future.
I’ve actually been taking Evening Primrose Oil for the last few months, Alastair. My weirdo doctor recommended it when I had that bout of strep throat. I didn’t realize that it was helping with the running cramps! Very nice. Combined with the fact that everything the Snook cooks starts with a generous application of olive oil, I’m probably okay with the lipids. 🙂
(Incidentally, evening primrose is also supposed to be good for period cramps, ladies. I haven’t even had a *twinge* since I’ve been taking it. Of course, the depo helps with that too, but I still used to get phantom pains. But not anymore!)
Auntie Payne
May 7, 2003 — 9:02 am
I’ve heard an ancient story that Yak dung from the TingTungRa slopes within the Himalaya mountain range will cure back aches and pains.
It has something to do with the diet of mystical Twyndelberg petals being digested in the yak stomachs.
Alastair
May 7, 2003 — 11:46 pm
Auntie, you’re mistaken; Twyndelberg’s Gorse only grow in the cape peninsula, South Africa. The yak dung, of course, is true, and can be applied as a poultice to [your] face whereupon its therapeutic powers are absorbed into the karma and directed toward the spinal column.
Kris
May 8, 2003 — 12:03 am
See, every now and then the Brits invade my site and veer us into their own weird, surreal brand of “humor”. It’s like that League of Gentlemen show that used to freak me out. I’ve tried to understand it, and it’s just a cultural gene that I lack. Bravo to you guys though… I don’t know how you do it. 🙂
Alastair
May 8, 2003 — 2:14 am
Wait, is that good or bad?
F-e-r-r-e-t
May 8, 2003 — 3:39 am
It’s because you miss the U in “humour” 🙂