The Pain Relief Patches That Helped Sergeant Andrew Misell’s Career

For Sergeant Andrew Misell, who joined the British Army 12 years ago, being reliant on bodily strength in such a physically demanding career meant the difference between career impediment and progression. As you can see in his tendonitis pain story from To Better Days, even common military training injuries need to be taken care of before career advancement can take place. In other words, finding a treatment that really works could make or break your career in the military.

Sergeant Andrew Misell’s Story

Andrew grew up quite fast – literally. At a young age, he developed Osgood–Schlatter disease, which meant he experienced abrupt growth spurts that forced him to take a seat from his favourite sports, like football and cross-country, due to the development of a painful bump below his knee. 

There was no slowing him down though. Any young, passionate athlete would do what they could to stay on the field and maintain physical fitness – even if it meant pushing through pain to improve running speed.

Unfortunately for Andrew, this was only the beginning of his trouble with knee pain. When he applied to join the army at age 20, he was receiving treatment for a minor tear in the tendon in his right knee. He was still able to join the army, but even small injuries like that can mean a career setback in the military.

Military Man

After 12 years of service in the army, Andrew had become very familiar with the strain that military training puts on the body. 

“In the summer we’d be walking around in 40+ degrees’ heat, carrying water, weapons, ammunition, radios, body armour etc. that easily weighs 50kg. I’m 100kg myself, so you end up carrying half your body weight. Then, of course, there’s the fighting in the middle. You really rely on the strength of your body,” Andrew reflected. 

Staying in shape is so important in the army that career advancement is only possible if the candidate is physically able to carry out each duty involved with the advanced role. Essentially, Andrew would need to be in tip-top shape if he was to move forward in his career. 

After Andrew did a course to get promoted from Corporal to Sergeant, which involved a lot of heavy lifting, he started to notice significant inflammation in his left knee.

Getting Diagnosed with Patellar Tendonitis

Andrew was diagnosed with patellar tendonitis, finally giving explanation the inflammatory niggle he was feeling in his knee. It was certainly a cause for panic; an injured tendon would not help him to become a sergeant. 

A common way to treat tendonitis is to apply ice to the injured area. After physical therapy to strengthen the muscles surrounding the knee, and the application of ice packs to soothe the soft tissue, Andrew did find some relief from his pain – though that twinging tendon injury wasn’t waning like he’d hoped it would.

Then he found something that worked better than any treatment he’d tried before.

Finding Patellar Tendonitis Pain Relief

When Andrew discovered a trial for To Better Days Active Patches and gave them a go, he almost couldn’t believe the pain relief he felt. 

“In terms of the products I’ve tried to help with my knee pain, this is the best I’ve used. Before, I tried knee supports, heat pads, etc., but To Better Days patches are so easy to wear and so effective at pain relief that I wouldn’t trade them for anything else,” he said. 

He applied an easy-to-wear Active Patch to the affected area, and found the comforting relief he needed overnight. During Andrew’s trial with To Better Days, his knee felt better by leaps and bounds, and continued to help his knee problem even after the trial had ended – so much so that he now considers himself 90% recovered.

To Better Days Active Patches not only made the difference in Andrew’s knee pain, but in his career too. By shifting his treatment from ice packs to Active Patches, Andrew was able to stay in top-notch condition and continue his career in the army as Sergeant.