There are basically two paths you can take to try and rehab a sprained ankle. One is the boring, traditional way that you'll see on most professional sites - See a doctor. Doctors are expensive, a drive away, and will generally tell you things you don't want to hear. The other way, which is a lot more interesting is the 'do it yourself' attitude. After all, it's just a sprained ankle right?

Well, the truth is that a sprained ankle can actually be more serious than a broken one, and depending on the seriousness of your sprain, you may need some professional help. However, for most injuries of this nature, you can probably rehab your sprained ankle by yourself - with the right tools and knowledge of course. To rehab a sprained ankle at home there are a few key points you need to follow.

• Take it slowly
• Do it every day
• Challenge yourself

No one likes to hear it, but taking it slowly is important because of the risk of re injury. Sprained ankles can be painful, but the pain of six months to a year down the road when it still feels tight is much more so. If you injured yourself playing sports and you're looking to get back in the game right away, this is the formula I've personally followed and recommended to clients. Wait until you feel better, then wait two more weeks. Very often sports enthusiasts, especially men, take the 'play it off' kind of attitude and hope it will just right itself naturally. Sometimes that may be true but if you're planning to rehab a sprained ankle without consulting a doctor, a waiting a bit more will pay off in the end.

If you're not a sporty person, then perhaps you sprained you ankle playing with your kids, walking down steps, or you were drunk and didn't see that bush in your path. In this case, you'll probably get lazy down the road and think to yourself, "Well, that's good enough for now. I'll see what happens in a couple weeks." While you may be able to walk on the ankle with little pain, it's still going to develop scar tissue, which is brittle and can cause future injure. To fully rehab a sprained ankle you need to get rid of as much scar tissue as possible, as soon as possible. Exercising the ankle every day will help you do that.

It's also important to test yourself, and strive for full ankle recovery. I know, it kind of goes against the 'take is slow' them I touched on earlier, but there's a delicate balance to maintain. Challenging yourself will prevent the breakdown of scar tissue and help speed up your recovery time. Part of the program to rehab a sprained ankle is to know the difference between good pain and bad pain.

If you want to rehab a sprained ankle at home you may need some help. Get some tips, tricks, and links to professional ankle rehab services from HemAnkleRehab.info