Work injuries such as back pain, muscle strains, ligament sprains, tendinitis, and carpal tunnel syndrome, etc., cause a lot of pain and discomfort. Such injuries prevent an employee from giving 100% to their work, which not only affects their productivity but also has an immense impact on the overall growth and development of the company in question.
In other words, work injuries are not only dangerous for the workers, but they also affect employers in several ways. Whether you talk about reduced productivity, missed work days, or inability to find a reliable contender to replace a severely injured employee, all these factors affect the growth of a company.
According to a report, “There were approximately 2.9 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses reported by private industry employers in 2016, which occurred at a rate of 2.9 cases per 100 full-time equivalents (FTE) workers, the U.S.“
So, when an employee receives an injury, it’s essential for the employer to support them in their recovery by giving them the kind of compensation they deserve.
Sometimes undocumented workers do not receive any compensation when they injure themselves at the workplace, which affects them in several ways.
Employees should always take proactive steps to heal their injury. The moment they injure themselves severely, they should seek medical attention without further ado, and ask for compensations.
Delaying the treatment will only worsen the injury; therefore, it’s better to take quick action.
Here is what you should do for a quick recovery from an injury.
See a Physical Therapist
Seeking physical therapy immediately after you receive a work injury will not only reduce pain and discomfort, but it will also reduce your recovery period by promoting the healing process.
Physical therapy, which involves the use of therapeutic exercises, manual therapy techniques such as soft tissue mobilization, joint mobilization, and muscle energy techniques; Kinesio taping, dry needling, and trigger point release, etc., helps in strengthening your body’s ability to recover from an injury. All these physical therapy techniques help in warming up your body and play an indispensable role in keeping it active.
Physical therapy techniques like manual therapy, dry needling, and Kinesio taping help in improving circulation, which helps in supplying nutrition to the injured area, and speeds up the healing process.
Your therapist will design a care plan for you based on how severely you have injured yourself. They will identify the exact structure of your body that you have damaged, and will then create a care plan to heal it effectively.
In other words, your therapist will focus on addressing the primary source of your problem rather than giving a temporary solution for your pain.
According to RDL Therapeutic Outpatient Therapy in Fayetteville, NC, “The Physical therapist utilizes the most advanced treatment methods to quickly relieve your pain and improve mobility, promoting faster healing without the use of more invasive procedures like surgery.“
In case the techniques that they are using are unable to show any concrete result, then you should report the matter to them immediately. Your therapist will then include some other physical therapy techniques to address your injury.
What’s great about seeing a physical therapist for work injuries is that they devote enough time to understand your problem, which plays a vital role in arriving at a reliable diagnosis.
Give Your Body The Rest it Deserves
If your work injury is not that severe, then it’s better to heal it by taking rest. All you have to do is stop strenuous physical activities for a couple of days. For example, if your work demands you to lift heavy boxes or stay physically active, then it’s better to take a couple of days off from work to provide rest to your body.
Don’t indulge in physical activities that put undue stress on the injured part. For example, if you have received a knee injury, it’s better to avoid taking stairs for a couple of days. Similarly, if you have injured your back, then it’s better to avoid bending forward and backward for a few days.
Start Exercising After a Couple of Days
It’s true that you have to take rest, but make sure that after a couple of days, you start exercising to enhance your blood circulation and to keep your body a bit active. Improved blood circulation will accelerate the healing process, and will also reduce the pain.
However, make sure that you do not indulge in high-intensity workouts immediately as that can worsen your injury. It’s always better to consult your doctor or physical therapist before you start high-intensity exercises again.
Consume a Balanced Diet
A balanced diet is highly crucial to keep your energy levels up to fight with the injury. So, include more fresh fruits such as apples, bananas, oranges, guavas, berries, and avocados in your diet. You should also enhance the intake of veggies such as spinach, kale, collards, asparagus, beans, broccoli, and brussels sprouts, etc. Apart from that, you should also include fish, meat, and eggs in your diet.
Stay Hydrated
Up your water intake to keep your body hydrated. It will help in removing the toxins from your body and speed up the healing process. Apart from that, keeping your body hydrated also helps in managing weight, prevents immune system problems, relieves headaches, and keeps you energetic.
Apart from that, you should embrace a positive attitude to deal with the frustration that comes with a work injury.