I'm sure those of you who have spent some time on the slopes, for the first time ever or first for a while, know the feeling you get the day after. When every muscle you didn't even know you had aches and makes normal activities very awkward. This is called DOMS, delayed onset muscle soreness, a very aptly named condition where you get muscle soreness while the muscle repairs itself from whatever damage you did to it the day before. This doesn't occur as you get conditioned to the activity, that is why you are usually only sore the first few time up the mountain for the season.
The best way to deal with DOMS is to do the activity again.. have a bath, massage or use some arnica cream. Even if you do nothing you will feel better in a few days. If you don't, then you know it is something more serious and you should have it looked at.
Sometimes falls don't seem to be a huge deal at the time but then the next day you feel it more than you thought. This occurs as inflammation has had time to build up around the injury and it is these inflammatory chemicals that stimulate your pain receptors and let you know that you're injured. These type of injuries won't fully go away by themselves, even if the pain does, you ned to manage them with rest, ice and appropriate treatment.
Other falls you may know at the time are a big deal, especially if you hit your head or tailbone. Falling on either end of your spine can cause whiplash forces similar to those you get in a car accident, especially if you fall at high speeds or on hard ice. You can get strain/sprain to your neck or even a concussion. These types of injures need treatment so that you don't have headaches or long term neck or back pain. And of course, the better you feel the sooner you can get up the slopes again.
