If you’ve been dealing with chronic pain, you know just how insufferable it can be. Of those that are affected by chronic pain, 59% of them report that it has a serious impact on their enjoyment of life. For those dealing with chronic pain, especially the 80% of adults that experience lower back pain at one point or another, it feels as if there is no way to get rid of it. However, physical therapy is an option that can help reduce chronic pain by focusing on the specific areas of inflammation and irritation.
For those seeking back pain treatment options, physical therapy can provide the means to correct issues with the spine. By meeting with a specialist on a continual basis, you can undertake a number of specialty chosen exercises that will focus on the areas of pain. Wherever the pain might be in your back, the main goal is to work towards training a patient to achieving and maintaining a “neutral spine” position — a position in which the three curves of the spine are present and in good alignment with one another.
When seeking arthritis pain treatment, physical therapy is a sound way to ensure that arthritic joints receive treatment. Arthritic pain particularly arises when joints are immobile, as stiffness and pain will only get worse without any motion. By meeting with a physical therapist, they will help train you to undertake certain exercises with arthritic joints, thus to reduce joint stiffness, all the while bypassing further damage to the joint itself.
Similar to arthritic pain, if you are recovering from knee replacement surgery, undergoing physical therapy will help with both a speedy recover, as well as removing the stiffness that might develop within the new joint. With a variety of exercises, they will help you restrengthen your leg and the muscles around your knee, aiding you in walking again, and returning you to normal activity levels in little time.
Beyond the means of pain rehabilitation, physical therapy can also be used when returning to physical exercise. There are currently 54% of American adults trying to reduce their weight. All the while, 50% of American adults state that they have been unsuccessful at losing weight, saying their lack of “self-discipline” is to blame. By undergoing physical therapy, you can undergo the equivalent of doctor supervised weight loss, training under conditions that are reintroducing you to working out, while creating a workout plan for the future. Similarly, if you have undergone any weight loss procedures — gastric balloon, lap band surgery, etc. — you can visit a physical therapist to restrengthen your abdomen some time after surgery, as well as training yourself to acclimate into a healthy lifestyle.
If you’re seeking physical therapy, most orthopedic centers will have a physical therapist on-hand. If they do not, they will more than likely have recommendations for physical therapy available in the area, allowing you to seek the treatment you need in no time.
