Physical therapy is the science that combines physiology with exercises, and then applying these principles to the body when an injury is sustained. The aim is to educate patients about managing their pain, accelerating tissue healing, and restoring muscular flexibility, joint mobility and spine motion. While most people think that this therapy is for muscle injuries, it can treat a wide variety of medical problems.
Arthritis is a condition that affects almost 46 million adults and 300,000 children in the USA alone. But it is not a single condition, the term arthritis can be seen as a term that covers a group of over 100 different medical conditions. This kind of therapy can help in relieving the pain of arthritis by using three different types of exercises. These being range-of-motion, strengthening and endurance. Together these exercises will help to maintain the normal movement of the joints, increase muscle flexibility and strength, help keep the tissues of the bone and cartilage strong and healthy, and also improve the patients endurance and cardiovascular fitness.
The range-of-motion exercises are really very important to sufferers of arthritis. This is because any movement will cause them pain, so as not to suffer from that pain they try not to move very much. However, keeping a joint in the same position for too long may cause permanent loss of mobility and restrict the ability to perform normal daily activities. Range-of-motion exercises help with this problem by increasing and preserving joint mobility and flexibility.
We all suffer from stress at some level or another. Stress becomes very destructive when it causes physical pain and emotional distress. Clinical studies show that the human body becomes more vulnerable to disease during times of stress. Any activity that either causes your muscles to relax or that uses a large amount of physical energy will cause you to feel less stressed. Techniques used by physical therapists are ideal for relaxation.
For example, aquatic therapy is wonderful for building physical strength and for relaxation. Even if you can’t swim, running in a pool, treading water, swinging your arms and floating all encourage muscle relaxation. Patients will notice that they are in a better mood, and they sleep better, and they may even lose weight.
Headaches, particularly migraine headaches, can come on fast and leave you feeling completely debilitated. Therapy can treat the cause of chronic headaches and reduce their frequency and intensity. In a therapy program, the therapist will target certain muscle groups associated with headaches.
Using this form of therapy for rehabilitation increases strength, endurance, circulation and flexibility. All of these are wonderful for promoting good health, so it’s reasonable to assume that it can address the symptoms of a variety of illnesses. If you’d like to try therapy, then ask your doctor for a referral, or speak to a therapist about the services offered.
However, be sure that you are physically capable of performing therapeutic exercises, or any other technique that the therapist requires. Together, you may be able to design a therapy program that is right for you. It will benefit your overall health.