The days when physical therapy was limited to a few prescribed exercises and stretches are over. While physical therapy Connecticut still includes those things, they are often supplemented by other techniques to form a comprehensive recovery plan. Here are a few of the methods that may be used: Water Therapy Weak or damaged muscles often have a hard time holding up a person's body weight. Trying to add standard exercise to this effort tends to fail because all of the person's current strength is spent just attempting to do basic movements. Water therapy counters this problem by taking much of the weight off a person's muscles.
Getting into the water instantly makes a person effectively lighter – much lighter. Someone with only 10 percent body fat will effectively weigh just 7 percent of his usual total body weight. If a person has 45 percent body fat, he will effectively weigh nothing! Needless to say, this makes it so that a water therapy patient can do exercises that would otherwise be totally impossible. Electrical Stimulation Strange as it may seem, zapping sore muscles and joints with controlled amounts of electricity can work wonders for reducing pain. Once the pain is diminished or gone, it's easy to move on and start stretching or strength-training exercises. Many people gain relief from this method where other methods have failed.
Prescribed Exercises Even though other methods may be used in conjunction with exercise, most physical therapy systems still rely on specifically-tailored exercises to do most of the work. This is because muscles, tendons, and ligaments need to be strong in order to do their jobs right. Without exercise, the affected body part will get weak. Muscles, ligaments, and tendons can also become stiff or atrophy if they aren't used enough. This use must also be done in the proper way in order to avoid causing more problems. For this reason, physical therapy New Haven will almost always include some form of carefully-designed exercises.
Prescribed Stretching Sometimes, pain and limited mobility arise from stiffness rather than weakness. In these cases, prescribed stretches are in order. By gently stretching, muscles and connective tissues are lengthened over time. Finally, the patient returns to full mobility. Stretching can also help with painful problems like sciatica and plantar fasciitis. There is no one program that works for everyone. For this reason, it's important to consult with a qualified therapist before beginning any new physical remediation regimen.
