How to treat bruises with your FSA

Preventing bruises with an FSA

Whether you've accidentally bumped into the kitchen table or got hit in a sensitive spot while playing a sport, we all occasionally get bruises. Bruises result from damaged blood cells connecting near the surface of the skin, leaving the black and blue mark that we often see.

Bruises are most commonly caused in athletes and weight lifters that exercise vigorously and tear blood vessels. Unexplained bruises can appear due to bleeding disorders, or more commonly, bumps into objects that you might not recall. Bruises also occur more often as you age because the skin becomes thinner over time.

While bruises can be painful if touched, the skin is not broken so there is no risk of infection. You should still try to treat the bruise right after the injury though, while the bruise is still reddish.

If the bruise is on your leg or foot, keep your leg elevated as much as you can during the first 24 hours after injury. A cold compress such as an ice pack is effective for reducing swelling and speeding up the healing.

You can purchase an ice pack through FSAstore.com with funds from your Flexible Spending Account. After about 48 hours, you should heat the bruise with a warm compress for 10 minutes or so two to three times a day. This increases blood flow to the bruised area so that the skin can reabsorb the blood more quickly.

Hot/Cold Therapy: Treating Bruises with your FSA

FSAstore.com has a wide array of hot and cold packs, some products can be used for both treatments.

Check out TheraPearl for the treatment of different types of pain for kids and adults!

If you need to take medication for pain relief, make sure to avoid Aspirin or Ibuprofen as they are both NSAIDs. This means they slow the blood from clotting, potentially prolonging the bleeding. The best option would be to take Acetaminophens, which are FSA eligible by prescription.

To prevent bruises in the future, make sure to wear protective gear (like shin guards) while playing contact sports. Keep furniture and obstructive objects like electrical cords away from common walking paths in your home. Tidying and mopping up regularly around the house is another way to prevent accidental bruises from happening.

Eye Care: Treating Bruises with your FSA

If you get a bruise on your eye, as long as you can move your eye in all direction and have no alterations to your vision, it should not be a serious injury. If the bruise occurs just above your eye, you can expect it to travel to below your eye, causing a black eye.

Get an TheraPearl Eye Mask with your Flexible Spending Account to soothe pain in the eye area.