A serious illness or injury can spring onto even the healthiest of people and knock them off their feet for some time. However, getting back up is the hard bit. If you’ve been hit by a serious illness or injury, you may be wondering if there is any way you could speed up your recovery process. Whilst it’s imperative to seek medical advice before making any changes to your life, there are indeed some natural ways to help your body recover faster. Take a look at these tips on how you can find your feet again after a serious illness or injury.
Find out if you’re entitled to compensation to aid with medical care
“Compensation is something, typically money, awarded to someone in recognition of loss, suffering, or injury.”. Think. Was your illness or injury something that just happens, or was it because of someone else’s mistake? Compensation could help fund treatment to help get you back on your feet faster! If you think there’s a chance you could be entitled to compensation due to someone else’s carelessness, then you should hire exceptional personal injury lawyers to help you fight your case. You may be wondering how it will affect the person at fault, but your health and well-being are more important.
Eat well
When you’ve been unwell or injured, it’s easy to fall into bad habits with your diet. You may have fallen off track recently by snacking rather than actually eating. Here are some tips to help get you back on track:
Eat more protein
Proteins have cell repairing properties that will aid your body’s recovery. It’s recommended that you consume at least twenty percent of your daily calories as protein. However, depending on your height and weight, and your average activity levels, you may need slightly more or less. Studies suggest that plant based proteins like beans and nuts have advantages over animal proteins because in addition to providing cell repairing properties, they also offer fiber into your diet too. Having a mixture of animal and plant based proteins will help your body recover faster.
Learn what foods will help aid your ailment
Different foods provide separate advantages that could aid your body’s recovery. Reading up on which foods will promote healing with your particular ailment will put you at an advantage! For example, vitamin A promotes the healing skin and bones.
Pack your meals full of fruit and vegetables
We don’t need to lecture you on why fruit and vegetables are essential for the diet. Packing your meals full of them at every chance will speed up your recovery, and possibly make your overall fitness better than before! If you find it hard to eat your greens, why not look for new and exciting ways to cook them? There are loads of YouTube cooking channels you could turn to for inspiration.
Consider taking supplements
If your dietary preferences are hindering you from getting the vitamins you need into your diet, then perhaps you could consider taking supplements to aid your recovery. It’s important to check with your Doctor before taking supplements, especially if you’re currently on medication, as they could interfere with each other.
Slowly get yourself moving
It’s understandable that if you’ve been off your feet for some time, that your fitness levels have dropped considerably. Your muscles will have deteriorated over time due to them no longer being used, and your joints will feel stiff and slow. Getting yourself moving now (if it’s safe to do so) will help speed your recovery! After a serious illness or injury, you may need weeks or even months to recover. Here are some exercise tips to help get you back onto your feet:
- Move little and often. Even if that means walking into another room before resting up again.
- Only do what you can manage. Being over strenuous too soon could make your illness or injury worse.
- If your pain is injury related, remember to seek medical advice on how to exercise. Back pain, for example, will require you to do particular stretches to warm up the muscles and joints before you start your day.
- Begin exercising sooner rather than later. The longer you leave it to begin your exercise regime, the harder it’ll be in the long run.
- Find someone to help you workout, especially if your ailment is injury related. Your friend can help support the injured part of your body to avoid damaging yourself any further.
- If your pain comes from an injury, consider working out at the swimming pool. The water can help support your joints and muscles while you build your strength back up. Remember that the water can be deceiving, so don’t over do it with your exercise regime.
Seek some help for your mental health
While you may be feeling physically better, you may be suffering with your mental health. It’s not uncommon for someone that has experienced a serious illness or injury to suffer from PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). Symptoms include:
- Inability to sleep
- Loss of concentration
- Short tempered
- Feeling numb to everything
- Feeling jumpy
- Flashbacks
- Avoiding going anywhere or speaking to anyone
It’s completely normal to experience something like PTSD after you’ve recovered from a serious illness or injury, and if you think you might be suffering, here are some tips to help you:
Speak to your Doctor
PTSD can turn into a serious mental health problem if left untreated, so if you suspect you may be suffering from it, speak to your Doctor as soon as you can. They’ll be able to offer treatments of all sorts such as medication to help you relax, therapy to talk through your issues, and even general advice on taking care of yourself while living with PTSD.
Confide in a friend
Going through something traumatic alone is difficult, and if you’ve been recovering alone too, you may benefit from confiding your experience and feelings with a friend or family member. The truth is, they don’t know what you’ve been experiencing if you don’t tell them, meaning they can’t offer any help! Don’t go through this alone!
Look at the positives
Easier said than done, we know! However, the bright side is that you’re alive, you’re on the road to recovery, and things could have turned out worse. Simple positive thoughts will help maintain a positive attitude and keep your morale high.
If you’re not suffering with PTSD, but feeling a little down in the dumps anyway, you should definitely take some time to heal mentally too. Read a good book, eliminate stresses from your life, run a hot bubble bath and allow your worries to melt away. Put yourself first, and be selfish if you need to! Your mental health is just as important as your physical health.
Sleep as much as possible
Another easier said than done moment, right?! Sleeping aids the body’s ability to recover, so getting plenty of sleep will help you get back on your feet sooner rather than later! Struggling to fall or stay asleep? Take a look at these tips to get a more restful night of sleep:
- Ban devices for at least an hour before bedtime. The LED lights can make it difficult for the body to fall asleep.
- Avoid drinking caffeine or alcohol before bed. These can hinder your ability to fall and stay asleep.
- If you’re kept awake with worry, writing down your problems can often help you feel like a weight has been lifted. If you’re worried about forgetting something the next day, writing it down will help satisfy your mind that you’ll remember it the next morning. Consider keeping a journal and see if that helps your sleeping routine.
- Avoid sleeping pills if possible. While they will indeed make you fall asleep, it’s not a natural sleep and you may wake up feeling worse for it. Getting your body into a natural sleeping routine is much better in the long run.
- Eat your evening meal at least 3 hours before going to bed. This will give your body the chance to digest your food properly, ensuring you’re not uncomfortable when it comes to bed time.
- Consider hypnosis to help you fall asleep. This is a fantastic method if you’re experiencing anxiety at night, as it works as a distraction to your problems too! Look for sleep hypnosis on the App Store or Play Store and you’re bound to find one that works for you!
A serious illness or injury can really take its toll on your mental health as well as your physical health. While frustrating, “bouncing back” from something serious just isn’t going to happen. These tips will help your body recover as fast as possible, but it’s important to remember not to rush yourself either. It may be weeks or months before you’re back to your old self, so enjoy the ride, do what’s best for you mentally and physically, and you’ll soon begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
