What should I do if my tailbone hurts after falling?

In daily life, many people fall and hurt their coccyx without paying attention. Generally speaking, as long as you slow down a little, the symptoms of coccyx pain will basically disappear. You should also pay attention to riding a bicycle less and sitting on a stool less, so as not to irritate the injured area. Although most patients can improve after appropriate treatment. However, since the coccyx is not properly supported, it is easy to relapse during treatment if there is an improper sitting posture or pelvic tilt. It may even turn into long-term chronic pain. So let’s find out what to do if you have tailbone pain after falling.

If the sprained area is particularly painful, it is suspected to be a bone fracture. If pressing only causes slight pain, then cartilage damage can be considered. Cartilage damage and new fractures will cause local swelling, pain, etc. Damaged soft tissues (ligaments, cartilage, tendons) are difficult to repair themselves and are generally difficult to detect under X-rays. If the X-ray examination shows that the bone is damaged, the first thing to do is to actively use medication to treat the symptoms and allow the broken bone to grow and heal quickly. If the X-ray confirms that the bone is not damaged, then the pain is caused by cartilage damage. It is recommended to use traditional Chinese medicine for treatment, because Chinese medicine can use drugs to help the damaged tissue grow quickly, so that you can recover quickly. If you can get professional Chinese medicine treatment for bone trauma, early fractures can generally be basically recovered in about 30 to 40 days. Soft tissue injuries may take longer. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the earlier the treatment is, the better. The longer the treatment is delayed, the more troublesome it will be. Before being cured, it is recommended to avoid eating carp, rooster, pickled bamboo shoots, beef and ginger. This is based on experience. Use western medicine with caution, especially those containing hormones, and avoid moving the joints too much to avoid aggravating the injury.

1. Treatment methods

1. Home Care

Coccyx injuries are often very painful, so the goal of home treatment is to reduce pain and prevent further irritation of the coccyx area. Avoid sitting for long periods of time in daily life, especially do not sit on hard objects, and alternately sit on both sides of the buttocks from time to time. At the same time, lean forward without resting all your weight on your tailbone.

For the first two days after the injury, you can apply cold compresses to the coccyx four times a day for 15 to 20 minutes each time. You can buy a seat cushion with a hole in the middle (shaped like a swimming ring) to reduce the direct pressure generated when the tailbone contacts the flat surface. Drink plenty of water and eat foods high in fiber to prevent constipation.

2. Medication

You can take some painkillers to relieve pain and improve mobility. Special reminder: If you have kidney disease, a history of gastrointestinal bleeding, or are taking blood thinners at the same time, please consult a doctor before taking the medication.

3. Follow-up treatment

Conservative treatment is mainly to relieve pain and prevent constipation. If the condition is serious, go to the hospital for treatment. Depending on the severity of the injury and the progress of treatment, your doctor will remind you whether you need regular checkups.

2. Recovery from coccyx pain depends on factors

1. Causes: falls, other trauma, tumors or infections;

2. Severity of traumatic injury: contusion, fracture, or dislocation;

3. Others: such as compliance, individual recovery and healing ability, etc. With proper treatment, most traumatic coccyx injuries improve within a few weeks. Prevention is the key to disease. Most coccyx injuries are caused by accidents (such as falling while skating or riding a bicycle). We should strengthen prevention in our daily life to reduce the occurrence of accidents. When participating in contact sports that may result in coccyx injury, appropriate protective equipment should be worn.