Symptoms of upper thigh pain and how to deal with it
If you find yourself particularly immobilized because of your thigh pain, you’re not alone. Your legs are essential in any physical movement, and what may feel like a mild pain can prove to be a long-lasting and debilitating condition. Of course, this isn’t the case with most people. The most common causes for upper thigh pain you will discover are simply overexertion—either through work out or just a lot of walking—or they’re a sign of some trauma or injury.

Either way, it’s less likely to be a problematic and worrisome issue. However, problematic or not, as with any physical pain, the sooner you get rid of it, the better off you are. You might have some questions regarding upper thigh pain and how it can be resolved, so here’s a simple guide.

What are some of the symptoms?
You might not always experience all the symptoms, but it’s important to know all of them to report the ones that you do encounter:

• Swelling or inflammation in the area
• Stiffness or lack of mobility
• Difficulty in maintaining posture and walking
• Grinding or clicking sounds when you walk or move your legs
• Spasms

How can you make sense of the symptoms?

• Is your pain a slow, dull, and long drawn out ache, or is it more of a stabbing pain that rises sharply? These are two different kinds of pain, meaning that they will manifest besides the obvious symptoms.
• Understanding the symptoms of upper thigh pain makes it easier for you to go and report the same to your doctor.

How can you know whether you are a potential patient?
Understanding the likelihood of a disease or disorder affecting or inflicting you particularly is known as gauging risk factors. Of course, since all of us walk, all of us are at risk of some upper thigh pain every now and then. However, there are some risk factors that increase the likelihood of a certain group of people to experience upper thigh pain. The following are some risk factors:

• Currently in or recovering from a recent pregnancy
• Diabetes
• Repetitive exercises focusing on or straining the upper thigh region (particularly running)
• Obesity (higher than a weight range healthy for your body)

Can upper thigh pain be treated at home?
Most pain arising from regular day to day exertion is usually treated at home, and this is also what most doctors themselves recommend. This is because if it’s a temporary pain, your body most likely heals it in a few days at most, and no medication is required as such. These solutions are not medical advice, and any recommendation from your doctor precedes these tips. Here are some ways you can address your upper thigh pain at home:

• Starting low-impact stretching exercises alternatively, avoiding those that strain the upper thigh area
• Cold -treating the area with ice treatment
• Heat-treating the area using hot water treatment
• Starting a weight management program, targeting your diet more than exercise
• Reducing activity by including rest periods through your day or week
• Over-the-counter (OTC) medication such as paracetamol or ibuprofen

When should you approach a doctor?

• As we’re all so used to day-to-day pain every now and then, it’s easy to overlook when a problem gets serious. If you’ve already tried home treatment, made significant changes to your exercise and posture, and that upper thigh pain is still present, it’s time to pay a visit to your doctor.
• Usually, a week with the pain is the maximum you should go up to. If you’ve started making changes and implementing home treatment, another 3 to 5 days is all you need to wait for.
• When you visit your doctor, go with a list and a proper understanding of all your symptoms. Mention any tablets or OTC medication you may have taken to relieve the pain, and also keep a list of all the home treatments you’ve tried and for how long. This is all to assist the doctor in their diagnosis. If it is a skeletal pain, for instance, an x-ray will help, whereas a muscular pain will need to be gauged through other means.
• This diagnosis will help the doctor decide on a treatment and will help you target the pain directly.