When our patients first visit us at North 49, they often don’t understand the difference between hurt vs harm. Many believe that all pain is bad, which isn’t always true. This misconception usually hinders their recovery process, especially when dealing with soft tissue injuries. Let’s delve into the difference between hurt vs harm and how to navigate pain effectively during recovery.
Understanding Soft Tissue Injuries and Pain
Soft tissue injuries affect muscles, tendons, ligaments, joint capsules, cartilage, and the discs between vertebrae in your neck and back. We’re focusing on basic sprains and strains, not complete tears or ruptures that typically require surgery, nor fractures or nerve issues, which are entirely different topics.
When you sustain a soft tissue injury, the first 4-6 days are crucial. During this period, tissue damage often leads to swelling, increased tissue temperature, redness, and limited mobility which are all signs of harm. The acutely injured tissue is fragile, so it’s essential to avoid activities that cause pain to prevent further harm and delay in healing. If there is pain with activity during these initial days, steer clear of that activity.
The Healing Process and Pain
After the first 4-6 days, the injured tissue becomes less fragile and can gradually handle more load. To heal properly, it needs to be progressively loaded with movement and exercises, which will cause some pain. This pain is a sign of hurt, not harm, as long as there’s no increased swelling, redness, tissue temperature, or progressive loss of mobility. This type of pain is necessary for strengthening and improving the mobility of the injured tissue and is one of the reasons why you might temporarily have pain after a physio session.
Hurt vs. Harm: Recognizing the Signs
Here’s a helpful analogy: think about how your legs might feel sore when you jump out of bed after a long walk the day before. There’s no swelling or redness, just soreness because your muscles weren’t used to that much activity. This pain is okay, indicating that your body was not used to that physical demand. If we simply repeat that activity over time the tissues will get used of it and no longer cause pain.
However, if during your recovery you experience swelling, redness, increased temperature, or a progressive loss of motion in the injured area, that’s a sign of harm. It means you’ve put too much load on the tissues, potentially restarting the healing process. In this case, you need to protect the area and avoid painful activities for another 4-6 days.
Seeking Professional Guidance
Ultimately, with any injury, professional advice is crucial. At North 49, we’re here to guide you through your recovery, ensuring you recover as quickly and safely as possible while preventing re-injury. If you have sustained a soft tissue injury feel free to give us a call at 306-343-7776 or book an Initial Assessment through our website scheduling platform.
We hope this sheds light on the difference between hurt and harm. Understanding the difference is key to a successful recovery.