Our Top 5 COVID 19 Health Tips
Quarantine Leg Elevation
This is a good tip for anyone who might be having mild symptoms, which they suspect might be COVID 19, and have chosen to self-isolate as a precaution. It’s also good for anyone who is just stuck at home all day. For at least 30-minutes every evening, elevate your legs so that your feet are above your heart. You can do this a couple of different ways:
- Lie down flat on your back, propping up your feet on pillows/blankets. Do not cross your legs. Your legs should be straight, with your feet above your heart.
- With your buttocks against the wall, lie down flat on your back and prop your legs against the wall.
Why should you do this? Our veins work very hard against gravity to circulate blood back up to the heart. This strains the valves, which can stop working properly. When this happens, blood can pool in the veins, causing them to bulge and become painful. Lack of proper circulation also contributes to blood clots, which form in leg veins. These clots may break free, travel to the lungs, and cause a life threatening pulmonary embolism. When you elevate your legs, you give your veins and valves a break as gravity assists with blood flow.
At-Home Fitness Tips & Healthy Weight Management
Being stuck at home when you’re used to going to the gym, jogging, or even cycling downtown can be stressful. However, it’s important to find a way to maintain your exercise routine at home or find places outside where you can safely exercise while practicing social distancing during COVID 19.
Try to follow your regular routine in some way during this time. But if you’re struggling or you have never really had a routine, here are some exercise tips to help you maintain a healthy weight and ensure proper circulation:
- Don’t let your binge watching go to waste. Instead of burning through your quarantine snacks and lounging all day, exercise while you watch television. You can stretch, jog in place, do squats, and other moves which do not require special equipment.
- Be sure to flex your calf muscles. By pumping and working your calf muscles, your veins and valves don’t have to work as hard to circulate blood back up to your heart. You can do this while sitting, lying down, or standing. If your legs cramp up while performing this exercise, eat a banana or other potassium-rich snack and make sure you’re hydrated!
- Try that workout DVD you bought and never used. We all have them. Pop it into your DVD player and give it a try.
- The internet is full of fitness programs and free guided fitness routines. Find one that works for you and try it. Keep your muscles firing and your blood moving!
- Take a walk or ride a bike around your neighborhood or nearby park. Just remember to practice social distancing, maintaining six feet between you and others.
Why should you do this? It’s always important to exercise. If you already exercise regularly, this is not the time to let your routine slide. If you haven’t exercised much in the past, let this pandemic be your wake up call. If you’re overweight, for example, you are considered high risk if you catch COVID 19. But you are also at high risk for other conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, and blood clots. Finally, a sedentary lifestyle can slow your circulation, allowing for varicose veins and blood clots to form. Take care of your body so that it can take care of you.
Wear Your Compression
Even if your only pair of compression stockings aren’t fashionable, you’re at home anyway! People will not see you! If you find that you’re sitting around a lot more than usual, despite your best efforts, wear compression stockings. If you’re sick in bed especially, wear compression stockings.
Also, there’s no reason to not feel good about how you look while wearing compression. Contact us about our selection of fashionable compression stockings so that you can look great while taking care of your health. Also ask us about our loyalty program Compression Coalition and earn free compression with your purchases.
Why should you do this? Compression stockings do the work even when you do not. Graduated compression stockings help stimulate the muscles which, in turn, promote healthy circulation. This is important when you have to sit or stand all day for work; are confined to bed due to an illness, surgery, or injury; or have turned into a quarantined couch potato (don’t turn into a quarantined couch potato, please).
Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!
Hydration helps all of our bodily systems function better. Every organ requires water to keep our bodies strong and resilient. Whether you feel sick or not, drinking plenty of hydrating fluids, such as water or electrolyte replenishing beverages, is always a good idea!
Book A TeleHealth Consultation With Our Vein Specialists During COVID 19
If you have been meaning to come see us, but you haven’t had the time before, now is the perfect time to get started with Vein Specialists of the South. Our providers are currently seeing patients remotely using telehealth ‘Video Vein Visits’. Simply fill out the online form to request a consultation at Vein Specialists of the South and one of our Patient Service team will contact you to get started.
Who should request a telehealth consultation? If you have one of more of the following symptoms, you should get in touch with our vein specialists.
- Bulging, visible varicose veins
- Unexplained leg pain, cramps, heaviness, and/or fatigue
- Leg swelling
- Skin changes in the distal leg area
If you are considered high risk, you should also reach out to us for a telehealth consultation (especially if you have any of the above symptoms). These high risk factors include:
- Obesity or being overweight
- Family history of venous disease and/or blood clots
- Pregnancy, especially if you have had more than one child
- Medications which increase the risk of blood clots, such as hormonal birth control
- Live a sedentary lifestyle
- Sit or stand all day for work
Why should you do this? If you have vein disease, it only gets worse if you do nothing. With a Video Vein Visit you can get started. These visits are not covered by insurance and they qualify, as part of the plan to get insurance approval for additional vein care. If you follow our care instructions given at the time of your online visit you can decrease your time for treatments.
If the above sounds like you, now is the perfect time to get started using our telehealth conferencing. It’s not like you have anything better to do while you’re stuck at home, right? Contact us and take control of your health. We will help you achieve Better Veins for Life®, even remotely!
Stay safe. Stay healthy. Stay home. We will get through this together.
