When do most people think of physical therapy? Everyone knows we help people recover from surgery or injuries, but there is so many more ways that we can help. In fact, no matter the age or stage of life you’re in, partnering with a physical therapist can help all members of your family proactively improve health and prevent injury.
Your Partner to Make the Most of Life
Youth
From infants to teens, this period is a crucial time in a child’s life with rapid growth and vital development. Working with both child and their family or caregiver, physical therapists utilize their expertise to improve movement, motor development, and strength.
Pediatric physical therapy will look different for every patient and can take many forms, including:
- Working with other care providers to help guide services in school and at home
- Identifying adaptive equipment or activities for day-to-day success
- Guiding transitions between early childhood, school, into adult life
- Providing insight and information on a child’s healthcare needs to families and caregivers
Depending upon the nature of the treatment, providing care to children may be very similar to the services adults receive, including helping joint pain, muscle sprains, and pre- & post-surgical care.
Adulthood
Talk about changes- gone are the days of focusing on yourself as you might be expanding your family or taking on caring for older loved ones. It’s not a secret that adulthood often comes with changes to our activity levels, which can result in aches and pains that didn’t exist when you were younger. It happens, but you should not ignore your own healthcare needs. Here are a few of the many proactive reasons to partner with a physical therapist to keep you moving and feeling your best so you can enjoy your family and loved ones.
Prevent Chronic Pain
Pain can become chronic when we ignore it. Your brain may trick you into thinking your body is hurt all the time, so addressing the pain when it first occurs is vital! With proven services and innovative techniques, your physical therapist will give you all the tools and education you need to progress through physical therapy and keep your positive momentum going after discharge from care. You’ll also now have a trusted source to count on if a new pain occurs in the future.
Surgery Might Be Avoidable
Addressing pain before it becomes chronic might actually help you avoid surgery. Surgeries come with real risks, additional healthcare costs, and lost time from work due to recovery time. In one study, those that received physical therapy instead of surgery found that their symptoms subsided more than those who received surgery first. In addition, participants that received surgery as a first line of treatment reported lasting symptoms from the surgery and were more likely to need additional surgery.
Still Need Surgery? Prepare Before and Recover Faster with PT
If surgical intervention is necessary, physical therapy is a fantastic resource to prepare beforehand, a service known as pre-habilitation. Studies have shown that patients who perform a range of motion, strength, aerobic, balance, and flexibility training before surgery are less likely to require inpatient rehabilitation and often have faster recovery times.
The Senior Years
During this phase of life, a common concern for the older members of your family is the risk of falling, but falls are not an inevitable part of aging! Balance and stability are key to preventing falls and injuries. Partnering with a physical therapist before a fall occurs is crucial. Why? Physical therapists can use established benchmarks to determine their patient’s risk of falls. Along with any additional findings from the evaluation, they will then prescribe exercises and activities that are personalized to each patient, with the goal to increase balance and reduce the risk of falls. Physical therapists can give you the proper training and education to increase safety and help you maintain independence.
MVPT Is Your Partner for Life
If you could take steps to prevent injuries for yourself or your loved ones before they happen, why wouldn’t you? Whatever the reason is for care, at MVPT Physical Therapy, your treatment is a partnership. We’ll work with you through every stage of life to make sure your body is ready for whatever comes next!
Call any MVPT Physical Therapy location to schedule or complete the form below to request an appointment.
Resources:
- https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/fall-prevention-exercises
- https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/balance-training-seems-to-prevent-falls-injuries-in-seniors-201310316825
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6635278/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35421834/
- https://www.ajmc.com/view/payers-embrace-the-value-of-physical-therapy-to-reduce-costs
