Feeling worse after applying ice treatment?

[ridge_forrester]

Hi all,

Trying some rehab work at the moment for my shoulder, and did some ice therapy the day after.

15-20 minutes ice twice per day for the two days after my last workout.

Since icing, I actually feel noticeably more sore and less flexible in the iced area. Obviously I'll stop, but does anyone know if I've done any possible damage, made anything worse, or what this means?

I've iced injuries before without this happening.

[Melis689]

Not sure about damage but is it swollen? If it's not swollen ice won't do much. You need heat instead. Or at least a mixture of both.

[ridge_forrester]

Thanks for the quick reply.

I just noticed there's some pink discolouration of the area that I iced, and it feels sore to the touch (like a bruise). Not sure if that's a symptom of excessive ice, or something worse?

Edit: After doing some research, I'm suspecting it might be ice pack burn. I guess having a t-shirt wasn't enough protection under the ice pack..

[Melis689]

Thanks for the quick reply.

I just noticed there's some pink discolouration of the area that I iced, and it feels sore to the touch (like a bruise). Not sure if that's a symptom of excessive ice, or something worse?

Edit: After doing some research, I'm suspecting it might be ice pack burn. I guess having a t-shirt wasn't enough protection under the ice pack..

Sounds like an ice burn or something in that case. Nothing to worry about

[sowilson]

How long did you have the ice on? Was this actual ice (as in frozen water in a bag) or a chemical pack (either one you break and mix chemical or on you put in the freezer). If it was a chemical pack of some kind you can get frostbite, with real ice (water) it's very hard to get an ice burn.

[ridge_forrester]

How long did you have the ice on? Was this actual ice (as in frozen water in a bag) or a chemical pack (either one you break and mix chemical or on you put in the freezer). If it was a chemical pack of some kind you can get frostbite, with real ice (water) it's very hard to get an ice burn.

Chemical ice pack I just had a t-shirt on, which I guess wasn't enough.

Time of application was about 15-20 mins, twice a day for 2 days.

Recovery: 3 days since ice first applied and the discolouration is fading. Area is also less sensitive to touch now. Glad there were no blisters (yet?) or deeper damage. Did some light weight bench, overhead and incline press tonight for a set of 30 reps each to get blood flowing again

Pain: Only minimal pain in the iced area. Kinda cool that the original injury is less noticeable now. I guess that's some consolation lol