Stop, Rest, and Tell: Your Plan for Pain

When you're active, it's normal to feel your muscles working. But it's important to know the difference between two feelings: soreness and pain.Soreness: This is a dull, achy feeling you might get a day or two after a tough workout or trying a new activity. It's a sign your muscles are getting stronger!Pain: This is a sharp, stabbing, or strong feeling that happens suddenly. Pain is your body's alarm bell, telling you to stop before you get hurt more seriously.When you feel pain, you need a plan. We call it the 'Stop, Rest, and Tell' plan.Stop: Stop what you are doing right away.Rest: Give your body a break from the activity.Tell: Tell a trusted adult (like a parent, coach, or teacher) what hurts.

Sam is playing soccer and dribbling the ball down the field. He takes a big kick and suddenly feels a sharp pain in his ankle.Stop: Even though he wants to score, Sam immediately stops running. He doesn't try to kick the ball again.Rest: He slowly limps to the sideline and sits on the bench to let his ankle rest. He doesn't try to 'walk it off' or jump back in the game.Tell: He gets his coach's attention and says, 'Coach, my ankle really hurts. It was a sharp pain when I kicked.' The coach comes over to help and calls Sam's dad.Because Sam followed the plan, he got the help he needed to heal properly and get back to playing safely.

Gina is practicing her routine on the balance beam. Every time she does a handstand, she feels a strong, sharp pain in her wrist.Stop: Gina knows this isn't normal soreness. She carefully finishes her move and gets off the beam.Rest: She sits down and decides not to do any more moves that put pressure on her wrists for the rest of practice.Tell: She goes to her gymnastics instructor and says, 'My wrist has a sharp pain when I put weight on it.' The instructor helps her put ice on it and explains what happened to Gina's mom at pickup.Gina listened to her body's alarm bell and avoided a more serious injury.