I am not going to suggest you drink it so feel free to read on….

In a comedy of events, I twisted my ankle very badly about 2 weeks ago.

So the original RICE treatment has changed for a twisted ankle. The acronym stands for Rest – Ice – Compress – Elevate.

The treatment since for a sprained ankle has changed.

In a new study that was done on professional tennis players, the protocols were changed to 2 groups. Group 1 immediately walking and group 2 immediately with a smile. Imagine this smiling whilst actually wanted to curse !!

The study showed that Group 2 had a much more desired effect.

So we’re was I. In a comedy of events a skipping rope was pulled under my feet and as I tried to rebalance myself self I did with is on the Bosu ball. Now if you don’t know what a Bosu ball is it is a half ball. So stepping and then stepping twice on this ball. I knew oh boy this is bad. I immediately adopted the smile and walk approach.  I got ready for practice. During the day at practice, my ankle actually felt fine. We took a drive later they day. After 1 hours of arriving home, I could not even put any weight on my foot. It was throbbing. I could not even move my foot in any direction. I just had stem cell therapy done for my elbow so was not allowed any pain Meds.

So I did the castor oil pack trick. I liberally applied castor oil on my whole foot and ankle. Wrapped this in cling wrap and applied 2 hot beanie bags on the ankle. I had to maneuver them carefully as even the slightest weight was increasing the pain.

I laid there for an hour. After the hour I was able to slowly move my ankle. Much better.

So as you might know I am incorporating a new acupuncture technique in my practice for the last 8 months. This technique’s main focus is on pain relief. So I inserted 3 points in my hand for my ankle and started to twist them. This new technique used mostly points that are not even located where the pain is.

Most people find that the pain is reduced within a few seconds.

As I twisted them I started moving my ankle. I continued doing this for about 15 minutes. Aah! So much better.

I slept with a herbal soothe plaster during the night. (Chinese medicated plaster that speeds up healing by increasing blood flow).

I nearly canceled the next day where I could not even consider walking from 1 treatment room to my consult room. The next morning I woke up expecting my ankle to be painful and it was daring I say nearly perfect.

Yes, I know there are no pictures. I was too much in pain !!

So for me, there are a few lessons in this story.

1. See where the skipping rope is before attempting to walk 🙂
2. A simple ingredient like castor oil can be so beneficial.
3. This “new” acupuncture technique rocks!
4. Also, smile it not just confuses other people but apparently your brain as well.