A new year has begun, and with it is the opportunity to take a fresh look at what you have, how you can improve habits, and pursue new goals or revisit the ones you’ve not quite fully achieved. Many New Year’s resolutions center on health and wellness. However, while considering the everyday changes you can make to improve your health, why not focus on who on your healthcare team you can count on to help you reach your wellness goals?
Physical therapists are licensed medical professionals who are musculoskeletal experts. That means they understand movement mechanics and use their immense skills to reach the root cause of pain and dysfunction.
Five Ways Physical Therapy Elevates Your Health
Like many, you probably already have established medical care providers, such as your primary care physician and dentist. These providers and the care they deliver are essential, but there’s another medical professional who would be a valuable addition to your team. Here are five of the ways they can help you and your loved ones when you choose physical therapy.
Partners In A Lifetime Of Health
Add your physical therapist to your healthcare team! Physical therapy is often perceived as medical care you only receive after an accident, injury, or surgery, but there are so many other ways we can help. And, when you have a physical therapist you know and trust, they can help you achieve optimal health and wellness throughout your entire life.
Injury Prevention
Who has the time to deal with an injury? Physical therapists can identify imbalances or risk factors in your body that could cause damage or hinder performance. Once identified, they’ll work with you to address these issues to improve your physical performance and give you the tools to avoid injuries that can take you away from your favorite activities.
Fit for Recreation and Competitive Sports
Your PT uses your medical history and previous injuries to create a customized treatment plan. As experts in the musculoskeletal system, they’ll also emphasize the more technical side of exercise, stressing proper body mechanics to reduce the risk of injury and help your body perform at its best. Working together, you’ll be poised to reach new levels while having the tools to avoid burnout and overuse injuries.
Prepping and Recovering From Surgery
Research has shown physical therapy’s positive impact on patients prior to surgery (referred to as prehab or prehabilitation). Working together with your surgeon, physical therapists can develop programs tailored to you and the specific surgical procedure you have planned to improve strength, range of motion, flexibility, and balance. These efforts can reduce the need for inpatient rehabilitation after your surgery and speed up recovery time. Furthermore, by using innovative, non-invasive techniques to reduce pain, physical therapy can often prevent the need for surgery or at least delay it to a time in your calendar that best suits your needs.
Managing Pain Before It Becomes Chronic
Physical therapists use hands-on care that is proven to address the root cause of pain. Once the source of your dysfunction is identified, your physical therapist will create a customized treatment plan to target the underlying cause of the issue and reduce pain. With your goals in mind, they will help chart a course of care to get you back to the people and activities you value most.
Choose Health When You Start with Physical Therapy
Add your physical therapist to your healthcare team to complement the great work done by your other care providers. When you schedule your annual check-up with your PCP, consider thinking about other ways to invest in your health. Physical therapy is an investment, keeping you healthy, happy, and moving forward.
Call any MVPT Physical Therapy location to schedule or complete the form below to request an appointment.
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