PEACE & LOVE
By Dr. Joshua Kiely, DC
With the Holiday’s around the corner, I thought this would be a fitting blog to post!
We’re discussing a relatively new acronym that helps us manage soft-tissue injuries such as muscle strains and joint sprains. Most people are familiar with RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) for injuries, but in the past few years we have been seeing a trend toward a more nuanced approach to injuries that encompasses many different factors that can improve healing.
Injury management is always changing as our research improves, but lately the acronym PEACE & LOVE has been making the rounds in healthcare and chiropractic care.
Why PEACE & LOVE?
PEACE & LOVE is becoming more popular because it lays out a game plan for quick recovery from most soft-tissue injuries. I especially like it as a chiropractor because it helps me educate patients on how they can manage their injuries at home as well as in the clinic.
I would like to note that over the course of my 6-years treeplanting I made friends with many modern hippies, but that would be a blog of its own.
PEACE & LOVE is also effective because it lays out a progression for injury management. Whereas RICE was seen to be effective for the first day or two, PEACE & LOVE provides steps for what to do as the healing is continuing and function is improving.
What does it mean?
Protect
Elevate
Avoid Anti-Inflammatories
Compress
Educate
&
Load
Optimism
Vascularization
Exercise
The PEACE portion is referring mostly to management in the most acute and painful stages of an injury while the LOVE portion is how to progress management toward full function and complete resolution of pain.
A chiropractor, physiotherapist or sports doc may help patients make decisions using the framework of PEACE & LOVE to get them back to full activity as quickly as possible.
A deep dive on what PEACE & LOVE means
While PEACE & LOVE is catchy, a few of the terms may need a bit more explanation to understand how they can be applied.
Protect, elevate, and avoid anti-inflammatories are all very similar to previous RICE protocols and fairly self-explanatory.
Details of how long to protect and elevate depend on the injury and a discussion with your healthcare provider.
Educate refers to avoiding unnecessary interventions such as tons of manual therapy, surgeries or injections when our bodies may naturally recover just as quickly without them. It is important that patients be educated about the benefit of additional interventions, the nature of their specific injury, and reasons why they may or may not need additional interventions for a full recovery.
Load is the gradual and thoughtful increase of demand on the injured area. For example, a runner who has tore a hamstring will probably not progress directly from limping to sprinting, but may create a plan with their chiropractor or physio to work their way up from limping to walking to jogging to more intense efforts.
Optimism is an important mindset in injury recovery. We are seeing more evidence that our attitude and mindset can affect our recoveries. If we are optimistic about our recovery and confident we will get better, then chances are we'll be right!
Of course, keeping a good attitude about a painful injury is easier said than done, but we know that people tend to do very well with their recovery from sprains and strains. Most people are able to return to their favourite sports and activities within weeks or months!
Vascularization refers to getting blood into the muscle through comfortable cardiovascular activity. This may take the form of walking, cycling, swimming, or any other activity that can be performed at a moderate intensity without creating pain.
Exercise is the last part of PEACE & LOVE. Once the injury is improving and function is returning, one of the best things we can do is strengthen muscles and develop good joint mobility.
Exercise and resistance training reduces risk of injury, improves bone density, and is essential for healthy ageing. On top of the health benefits, resistance training and mobility work can be effective tools for improving performance in sport and life.
Conclusion
Next time you pull a muscle or tweak a joint, remember the simple acronym of PEACE & LOVE and you’ll have a solid plan for optimal recovery. PEACE & LOVE offers an evidence-based framework for patients and healthcare providers when managing the recovery of most strains and sprains.
I know from my own experiences with various sprains and strains in the gym that PEACE & LOVE is a useful tool for quickly getting back to heavy lifting and moving comfortably in day-to-day life.
If you would like the help of a health professional to get you started on your own recovery, let the SpineOttawa team know.
