Playing w/ a sprained ankle

The treatment for a sprained ankle is RICE: rest, ice, compression bandaging, and elevation above the level of the heart.

At the least, you should rest and ice the ankle. It is most unwise to play on a recently sprained ankle. The first three days (approximately) after the injury are especially important, because this is the period of initial inflammatory response.

You should also take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen.

Please see sense and take care of your body, before you give yourself a permanent injury.

 

You may be able to get away with it now, but eventually, the strength of your ankle will deteriorate. Listen to Gollum-- rest, ice, compression and elevation. Won't kill you to stop playing for a bit of time

 

It is not uncool to lay off badminton (or any sports) when you're injured.

It'll be terribly uncool to be unable to do badminton (or any sports) because you thought you're indestructible.

 

i sprained my ankle earlier this year. perhaps more than 18 weeks ago. i rested for about 2-3 weeks and started badminton again. btw, i did not sprain whilst playing badminton. back to the point, over the course of 15 weeks or so playing badminton, i did have some "relapses" (not sprain but some really scary stuff).
there was pain when i did some shots (not constantly, its more like a one time thing) eg playing a net kill and had pain in my ankle. after that i never felt that again.
oh ya, and throughout that 15 weeks, i wore an ankle support while playing.

recently i played soccer but forgot to wear an ankle support. no pain whatsoever. was a bit worried though. am still going to continue wearing an ankle support while playing badminton for quite some time.

 

In addition to RICE, I'd like to add another treatment: Traction!

Here's the setup:
http://www.performax4u.com/uploads/pdf/Ankle_Traction_Set_up.pdf

.... TRICE?

 

I'd like to share something similar but not exactly similar

For me it was AFTER the long period of rest, when i resumed my sessions. For the next couple of months, i did not really jump much as I still have some 'trauma' to jumping. I expected this transition to screw my timing but it didn't. In fact this 'back to basics' phase seemed to help me refine some of my strokes.

But i still wonder whether i was just subconsciously consoling myself, or maybe just my own illusion it's been a year now.....and i can jump pretty ok but my left ankle is evidently weaker. Though there isn't anymore pain, my left leg still feels more strain than my right after training.

and yea.....my advice is rest well

 

The extent of rest needs to be managed carefully.

In the first three days, complete rest (no weight bearing) is ideal.

Afterwards, return to light activity (not badminton) as soon as possible. Start with very gentle, brief walking, and gradually build up. Following a sprain, joints need to be kept mobile to reduce the formation of scar tissue.

Listen to your body. If an activity causes you lots of pain, it's probably bad for you. You can expect mild pain throughout recovery, however.

Later on (perhaps after a few weeks), you can gradually return to badminton, but you must be careful and avoid being competitive. Don't try to move too fast. You should probably wear a brace during badminton.

It's a balance: too much activity, and you risk spraining the ankle again, adding injury to injury; too little, and you risk scar tissue setting like concrete around your joint.