Muscle Aches & Body Pain

Body aches and muscle pains fall into two categories:

• Acute (short-term) — Doctors usually consider pain acute if it lasts no more than a month and is not caused by serious underlying medical problems
• Chronic (long-term) — If pain persists for more than 6 months, it is classified as chronic.

Sprains and strains are actually what cause the muscle to ache or your body to feel pain, but they’re actually injuries to different tissues in your body:

• Sprains happen to the ligaments (which connect bone to bone). If you’ve ever twisted your knee or ankle, it’s likely that you’ve torn or stretched the ligaments. With a sprain comes:
  • Pain — felt immediately
  • Possible swelling
  • Limited to no use of the sprained area due to pain
• Strains (also known as “pulled muscles”) are injuries to your muscles. They can happen when you stretch a muscle too far or too fast. That causes a tear in your muscle or in the tissues that support them. With a strain comes:
  • Pain
  • Stiffness
  • Limited use of the strained muscle due to pain

The muscle aches and body pain you feel usually arises from a muscle spasm. A muscle spasm is actually your body’s way of protecting an injured body part by limiting its movement.

Generally, if you experience an injury of some type and can’t stand up straight, bend or move without pain, you’re experiencing a muscle spasm. These spasms can last for 48 to 72 hours and can be followed by days or weeks of less severe pain. More serious injuries can sometimes take months to feel better.