The ligaments heal on their own. A slight sprain is healed after 1 week, and 90 percent of all sprains heal and are pain-free with normal walking after a month. However, the ankle may swell up after sports for several months after the injury.
The first 48 hours
For the first 48 hours after the injury has occurred, you can follow the RICE principle:
Rest: Calm and relief
Ice: Cooling does not promote healing, but you can cool the damage if it is comfortable. Ice your ankle for no more than 20 minutes every 3-4 hours. You can cool the area with a cold pack or for example a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a towel. You must only cool your foot for the first 12-24 hours, otherwise it may delay healing.
Compression: use support bandages during the day for as long as you want, preferably longer than the first 48 hours. The support bandage must not be so tight that the toes become cold or sleepy.
Elevation: Place your foot at heart level when you have the opportunity.
You are welcome to support your foot and do small rocking exercises up and down the ankle joint as much as you can. You can borrow crutches in the Emergency Department to relieve the foot in the first few days.
Rehabilitation
Although the ligaments heal on their own, it is important to rehabilitate the foot after the injury. This is done to prevent new injuries and to ensure good mobility in the ankle joint in the future.
You need to start using your foot after the first 48 hours has past, as using your foot promotes healing. You must do active exercises; however the exercises must only cause slight pain.
Exercise 1: Flip the foot up and down
Exercise 2: Make small circular movements with the ankle
When you can do exercise 1 and 2 without problems, you can start training with your full weight: Stand on the injured foot, for exciple when brushing your teeth, walk on stairs, running on the spot and stand on a seesaw board.
When your ankle is pain free, you can start playing sports again. It is a good idea to apply support bandages or use sports tape at first, until you are sure of your ankle again.
Speed up the recovery process with shockwave
Shockwave therapy refers to treatment with acoustic pressure waves “sound waves” that are repeated at a high frequency in a specific area. Shockwave treatment is performed in a clinic and is non-invasive, which means the skin is not penetrated with needles.
Shockwave therapy is the most advanced treatment for ankle sprains. It has been approved by the FDA, and many people experience beneficial effect after just 3 treatments, and people with more mild ankle sprains may feel immediate pain relief.
As a soccer player, I have personally had a few ankle sprains myself and last summer I got to try Shockwave therapy, and I just have to say that it works. 80 percent of the fluid that had accumulated inside my ankle disappeared after the first treatment, and I could walk without too much of a limp too. I had a total of 3 treatments over 2 weeks, and after these 3 treatments, I was able to return to elite soccer straight away.