If you're thinking about physical therapy, chances are good you're experiencing some pain and have serious questions you want answered. While your specific case will have some specific answers, here are three things you can just about always expect when you sign up for physical therapy.
- Exercises. PT always involves some sort of physical exercise. For some people the idea of moving through pain is daunting, but don't worry. Your physical therapist will scale the exercises to your ability level while keeping your pain in mind as well. Try not to be too concerned, even if exercise isn't usually a part of your schedule try to remember that your physical therapist is highly trained to offer you physical exercises. Or, maybe you are a gym rat! In that case, you'll be happy to know that your physical therapist will get you back to sport with some tips to help you prevent future injuries.
- Manual therapy. Often when you're dealing with pain or recovering from surgery your body responds by becoming stiff around the source of your pain and injury. This might seem like a good way to prevent further injury, but the best thing to do to heal is to keep your body moving! A physical therapist will help you get back in gear again with some gentle manual therapy. It's a gentle and supportive way to get range of motion back in your joints and muscles again.
- Knowledge! Your physical therapist will give you exercises, but along with that you'll come away with knowledge on how to prevent injury in the future. Not only that, but your therapist will give you tips around your daily movement patterns. Tweaking a thing here or there might make all the difference in the world!