I fractured 5 ribs. I have this problem where I don't notice something is painful until I can't move or something else dramatic. They didn't bother to xray me because greenstick fractures on ribs are generally really hard to see. Here's what happened: My whole core hurt. I was constantly at a 4 out of 10 pain-wise, but unfortunately that's a level of pain I often don't notice. I didn't go to the doctor until one day when I was trying to figure out what was causing my pain by palpating my muscles firmly. Well, I pressed very hard directly on a fracture. I found 5 spots just like that scattered across my torso. I had been complaining of discomfort around my ribs for about a month, so that's how much of an idiot I am. The doctor told me no binding for 3 months, no sports bras or anything unless absolutely necessary for at least 2 weeks. No heavy lifting for a month. She gave me a script for Naprosyn (500 mg), which I took twice a day for the swelling (which I also didn't notice until it was gone...oops). She also gave me a few vicodin, which I took mostly during the first 3 days during the day. The rest I used at night so that I could sleep. My right side was worse. I ended up sleeping by kind of hugging a pillow on that side. It helped me not roll over and kept my arm from putting pressure on my ribs. If they don't see anything but you're hurting, you probably have bruises or fractures. I also get cramps in my intercostal muscles (the ones between my ribs) sometimes, particularly around the fractures, so you might also have that. Aleve is the over-the-counter format of naprosyn. That drug is great for swelling and is also used as a muscle relaxer, which it does okay.
