Surgery Coming Up? Physical Therapy Can Help Both Before AND After!

Understanding the Benefits of Physical Therapy - Both Before and After Surgical Procedures

It's a wise idea to work with a physical therapist both before and after surgery.

Working with a physical therapist prior to your operation -- sometimes referred to as "prehab" - can help you to prepare emotionally and physically for the surgery.

According to the American Physical Therapy Association, physical therapy can help not only with an overall wellness but also prevention.

When the operation is done, physical therapy can help to ensure a speedy and full recovery.

If you have an upcoming surgery planned, contact us to learn more about how physical therapy can help you with both preparation and recovery.

What does physical therapy look like before a surgical procedure?

Surgery is a frightening necessity for many people. They need to have the operation to improve their health in some fashion, but the idea of being placed under anesthetic and operated on is still fairly scary.

Working with a physical therapist beforehand can help alleviate these fears. In addition, you will have a good plan in place for your recovery after the surgery.

Working with a physical therapist before surgery can help you get ready for adjustments you will have to make in the immediate aftermath.

For example, your therapist can get you ready for riding in a car, moving around your home, your eventual return to work, and a post-operative exercise plan that won't harm your recovery. Your therapist can also recommend assistive devices that you may need after surgery, such as a cane or walker.

Part of the prehab work with a physical therapist may involve recommendations for setting up a "recovery zone" in your home.

For example, if your bedroom is on the second floor of your home, you might want to set up a bedroom or resting area on the first floor, to avoid having to use the stairs frequently after surgery.

Kitchen items that you might need to reach should be placed on lower shelves ahead of time, within easy reach. Physical therapy will be important for your recovery, but so will therapeutic rest. Have an area of your home prepared where you can comfortably sit, rest, and relax.

Exercise will also be a part of your physical therapy plan before surgery. Strength training, stretching for flexibility, and aerobic exercise to improve oxygen flow will all help you to recover more quickly after your operation.

Becoming fairly fit prior to surgery can even prevent the need for inpatient rehabilitation with a physical therapist.

What does physical therapy look like after a surgical procedure?

Your work with a physical therapist can begin soon after your surgery -- perhaps on the same day.

Depending on the type of operation that you have undergone, your therapist can teach you the proper ways for getting in and out of bed, using mobility assistance devices, getting dressed, and using the restroom.

From there, physical therapy will involve helping you with recovery and getting back to a normal life. A physical therapy exercise plan will be tailored toward gradually rebuilding your strength, without the risk of tearing any sutures or reinjuring yourself.

Remember that a physical therapist has many tools and techniques at their disposal, and they are trained specifically in the best methods to help you recover from an injury or surgery.

For example, you probably won't be heading into a gym for heavy weightlifting sessions after surgery, followed by a 10-mile run on a treadmill.

You are much more likely to go through water-based training sessions in a pool, to reduce strain on muscles recovering from surgery.

You may also learn assisted exercises in which your therapist or a helper at home can aid you in moving your limbs to contract muscles -- without straining or reinjuring anything.

What else should I know about pre-surgical and post-surgical rehabilitation plans?

You may be familiar with rehabilitation after surgery, or post-surgical rehab. It makes sense – your body loses a lot of strength when undergoing a surgical procedure, and rehabilitation treatments are needed in order to help you regain your function.

Post-surgical rehabilitation tends to focus on targeted exercises and stretches that are aimed at helping relieve your pain, improve your strength, and redeem your optimum function in the affected area(s) of your body.

It may also incorporate additional methods or modalities as needed, such as manual therapy, ice and heat therapies, ultrasound, electrical stimulation, and more. Essentially, it helps you make a full recovery from your surgery.

Pre-surgical rehabilitation is a bit different. It focuses on stretches and exercises prior to surgery in order to prepare your body for the procedure ahead.

In fact, according to the National Institutes of Health, participating in exercise therapies prior to surgery can exceptionally improve your post-operative outcomes and reduce your recovery time.

It is no secret that surgery takes a toll on the body, so preparing yourself beforehand with strengthening stretches and exercises can greatly benefit your results.

It can also help you prepare mentally, by giving you a better peace of mind going into surgery, knowing you did everything to make the procedure as easy on you as possible.

How can I get started?

If you have a planned surgery coming up and would like to know more about how physical therapy can help with your preparations and recovery, contact our office and schedule an appointment today.

Relieve Your Achy Joints with These 3 Tips!

Physical Therapy Can Help You Live Your Life Comfortably

If you are living with chronic pain in your joints, you are not alone. In fact, 20% of the United States population experiences chronic pain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

At our physical therapy clinic, we work with people every day who are dealing with the physical and mental effects of chronic pain caused by conditions like arthritis and fibromyalgia.

So, if your joints are achy and stiff, we invite you to consider working with a physical therapist in the New Year.

The top 3 benefits of physical therapy for joint pain relief

You don't deserve to spend every day in pain, and with physical therapy you may not have to!

Here are three reasons to work with a physical therapist for your achy joints:

1. A natural, holistic treatment method

Did you know that the CDC and other professional organizations officially recognize physical therapy as a safe alternative to pain-relieving medications like opioids?

Physical therapy has been proven research studies to be effective for alleviating chronic joint pain and may even help you cut down on your medication (with your doctor's supervision, of course).

For example, non-invasive modalities like electrical stimulation, diathermy, or ultrasound used by physical therapists can alleviate spasms and naturally block pain signals.

This kind of short-term pain relief is valuable because it helps you participate in rehabilitation exercises and get better sleep, which we know is important for overall health and stress relief. But physical therapy can also help you achieve longer-term pain relief.

2. Physical therapy can provide you long-term relief

Beyond alleviating your joint pain and stiffness, a physical therapist also uses a variety of individually tailored techniques and services that can address the root causes of your joint issues.

In the long-term, this can help you avoid or minimize daily pain, slow disease progression, and even prevent your joint problem from getting worse.

Examples include:

  • Neuromuscular education techniques to improve your balance and reduce the risk of falls, which may otherwise exacerbate your pain
  • Prescription and fitting of custom orthoses, braces, and other devices to support, compensate for, and/or alleviate pressure on your affected joints
  • Therapeutic exercises and stretches to correct strength or mobility imbalances, promote tissue healing, and improve overall joint function and stability
  • Manual techniques like joint mobilizations and massage to improve joint alignment, reduce swelling and stiffness, and break up painful adhesions

3. A physical therapist is there every step of the way

When you work with a physical therapist, he or she becomes a partner in your healing and health.

By teaching you exercises, mindfulness techniques, lifestyle modifications, breathing techniques, and safer ways to function in your daily life, your therapist can empower you to prevent recurring issues and optimize your overall health.

With less pain, greater strength, and improved function, you gain more independence and support your caregivers, too.

Could the cause of your joint pain be arthritis?

Did you know that arthritis is the leading cause of disability across the United States? According to the Arthritis Foundation, approximately 50 million people live with arthritis.

While it is possible for arthritis to develop in any joint, it most commonly affects the neck, back, hands, hips and knees.

There are two main types of arthritis that are the most common culprits when it comes to joint pain: osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Here is a closer look at these types of arthritis:

  • Rheumatoid Arthritis: This is an autoimmune disorder in which the body's healing systems attack the joints. This causes inflammation of the joints, which can be extremely painful. Rheumatoid arthritis usually begins in the hands, wrists or feet, but it can spread to the hips, knees or shoulders -- getting progressively worse -- if you aren't proactive in combating it. If you have been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, your doctor will likely prescribe pharmaceutical treatments to stave off the symptoms. However, physical therapy can be a tremendous help as well.
  • Osteoarthritis: This is the most common type of arthritis by far. It typically develops later in life and can be caused by poor body mechanics, overuse of the joint or an injury. The cartilage in joints serves as a natural barrier that lubricates and distributes force during physical activity. When that cartilage breaks down and no longer provides a cushion between adjoining bones, the result is osteoarthritis. The hands, hips, knees and spine are the most common body parts impacted by osteoarthritis.

Certain ailments like gout, bursitis, lupus or tendinitis can also contribute to joint pain.

The source of your joint pain may cause the specific course of physical therapy that is recommended for you to vary.

Relieve your joint pains today!

Is it time to see what physical therapy can do for your chronic pain?

Contact our physical therapy clinic today to schedule an appointment and get on the road to a life freer from pain.

Do You Stretch Enough? Add it to Your Routine Today!

Discover the Benefits of Adding Stretching to Your Life!

Have you ever noticed just how good a nice stretch feels after a nap, when you first wake up in the morning, or after vigorous physical activity?

That good feeling just scratches the surface of the many healthy benefits you can get from regular stretching.

Healthy adults should be making a point of getting at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity every week.

If you already know that you need to be more active, you may be preparing a regular exercise regimen of your own. That’s a great start, but don’t forget to finish correctly.

A few minutes of gentle “cool-down” exercises such as stretches can make the difference in how well your body responds to your new routine.

Our physical therapists commonly recommend specific types of stretching exercises to complement other physical therapy modalities.

The top 3 reasons why you should be stretching

Here are three reasons why you shouldn’t skimp on a stretch:

Reason #1: Avoiding post-workout injuries

Imagine putting in the time and effort to exercise, either on your own or as part of a physical therapy program – only to strain a muscle right after the exercise session is over.

This is the sort of thing that can happen if you don’t follow through with those stretches after your workout.

As you exercise, your muscles get into the habit of pulling tightly against tendon attachments.

After you stop exercising, those tissues are still tense and tight, lending themselves to strains, sprains, and the development of chronic inflammatory pain.

Stretches coax the tissues to relax and resume their former length, restoring their suppleness and making them less prone to post-workout damage.

Reason #2: Getting rid of toxins

Are you familiar with that gnawing ache that develops in your muscles as you exercise? That reaction is caused by the presence of lactic acid.

Lactic acid is a natural byproduct of muscular exertion, along with the accumulation of another metabolic waste product called hydroxyproline.

You don’t want these toxic substances hanging around in your muscles – but that’s exactly what they’ll do until you show them the door with some post-exercise stretches.

The longer these substances pool in your tissues, the more soreness you’ll experience in the 24 to 48 hours following your workout.

You might gain a few minutes on your hectic schedule, but you’ll pay the price in terms of pain – and you might even have to delay or reduce your next workout as a result.

Reason #3: Keeping a consistent healthy heart rate

One of the great benefits of moderate exercise is its ability to elevate your heart rate for sustained periods.

This controlled stress helps to strengthen the heart muscle, boost your circulation, and deliver extra oxygen to your muscles.

Once that workout is over, however, it’s time to return to homeostasis (your body’s natural resting state).

You don’t want to walk away from your physical therapy sessions or home exercise routine with a pounding heart, abnormal blood pressure and a dizzy head.

Post-exercise stretches are called “cool-downs” for a reason. They gradually, gently bring your vital signs back down to their normal ranges, preventing too-rapid blood pooling and the lightheadedness that might cause a serious fall or other accident.

Your physical therapist will always guide you through cool-down stretches after vigorous exercise to ensure that you get maximum benefits from your workout without these unwanted post-workout side effects.

So, why else should I be stretching?

​Many common aches and pains stem from tight muscles and poor movement.

The key to good health is to keep your body flexible. This helps your circulatory, respiratory, lymphatic, and musculoskeletal systems.

When your tissues are flexible, normal blood and lymphatic fluids circulate the body easier, oxygenating your tissues properly.

This helps you feel energized, relieves pain, and allows you to perform daily tasks without feeling tired.

Additionally, stretching is necessary for dedicated athletes, weekend warriors, or anyone looking to improve their physical performance. After a workout you may not feel the need to stretch if your muscles aren’t aching or sore.

However, there are several potential effects of not taking the time to stretch correctly after exercise.

You might experience stiffness if you’re not stretching adequately. Muscles and tendons that aren’t stretched properly after exercise may be more susceptible to injury.

Ready to begin a stretching routine?

If you’re getting more exercise to combat a physical issue such as chronic pain, you might even do yourself more harm than good without the proper guidance.

Neglecting post-workout stretching is a common mistake when you’re not used to exercising.

Our physical therapists can provide that guidance – so contact our physical therapy center today!

Put Aches and Pains Behind You – With a Diet Change!

A Nutritional Diet Can Provide You with Pain Relief!

Certain foods with a specific diet have been known to alleviate inflammation, where some foods can aggravate it.

In fact, according to Harvard Health Publishing, “A lot of chronic pain is the result of chronic inflammation, and the evidence is quite strong that your diet can contribute to increased systemic inflammation."

If you work with a physical therapist to help manage a chronic pain condition, you will probably receive some nutritional advice as part of the process.

Physical therapists are not nutritionists, but providing nutritional advice to patients is well within the scope of a physical therapist's duties.

For some chronic conditions, dietary changes can make the biggest difference in reducing or eliminating pain. If you'd like more information on how nutrition and physical therapy go hand-in-hand, give our office a call.

Pain relief and lifestyle changes

By maintaining a nutritious dietary plan with the help of a physical therapist, you should quickly begin to notice a decrease in your pain and inflammation symptoms.

In addition to this, you can also help manage your pain and inflammation through:

  • Daily exercise: Exercise will keep the muscles warm, which can alleviate pain or stiffness, and stop the inflammation from becoming worse.
  • Stress management: If you’re feeling mentally stressed, your body can become physically stressed - causing more inflammation and a longer recovery rate. Taking time to relax can actually allow you to heal quicker!
  • Weight loss: If you have some unwanted weight, getting down to your ideal body weight will help with your pain and inflammation.

How can nutrition help manage the pain of my condition?

There are a number of common conditions in America that are directly related to diet and nutrition.

Here are some conditions in which nutritional advice will likely be a part of the patient's physical therapy regimen:

  • Osteoarthritis: Obese patients are more likely to develop arthritis, especially in the knee. Once a person has been diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the knee, managing their weight becomes the most important key to managing the arthritis and pain.
  • Obesity: Pain related to obesity can become a vicious cycle. Being overweight causes a patient pain, so they become more sedentary. Becoming more sedentary causes them to gain more weight, which leads to more pain.
  • Inflammation: American diets tend to have a lot of vegetable oils and other inflammatory foods in them. This can make the pain from inflammation even worse. In many cases, a physical therapist will prescribe a diet with more antioxidants and anti-inflammatory foods to help manage pain.
  • Autoimmune Disorders: The combined total of various autoimmune disorder patients (such as Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis) now outnumber cancer patients in America by a wide margin. Autoimmune disorders are frequently linked directly to deficiencies in a patient's diet.
  • Diabetes: Diabetes and pre-diabetes pave the way for more serious conditions such as heart disease, kidney disease and blindness. More than 90 percent of patients with diabetes also experience neuropathic pain. Diet and nutrition will play a key role in managing these conditions.

Physical therapy and nutritional advice

Using proper nutrition can prevent many types of disease and illness. The good news is that correcting your diet can also help to reverse the symptoms and pain of many conditions.

Your physical therapist will not only help you to restore muscle and joint pain through exercise, but also through nutritional advice.

During your first appointment with a physical therapist, addressing your dietary status and needs may be a key part of the process.

In some cases, patients can also be referred to a dietitian. You may be prescribed an entirely new diet to help reduce chronic aches and pains, lose weight, and improve your overall health.

Here are two possible diets that a physical therapist might recommend for patients:

  • Mediterranean Diet: The Mediterranean diet has been linked to the strikingly low rates of heart disease in certain Mediterranean countries. This diet features a lot of fish with Omega-3 fatty acids. It's also high in plant-based fats such as olive oils and nuts.
  • DASH Diet: DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. It's a diet that is low in saturated fats and cholesterol, and which has a heavy emphasis on more fruits and vegetables. The DASH Diet can reduce hypertension and lower the risk of heart disease, while also helping patients to manage their weight.

Having a physical therapist work with you to manage your pain through exercise and diet can turn your life around.

Physical therapists help hundreds of thousands of patients each year to improve their health and reduce aches and pains.

Ready to make nutritional changes?

If you're ready to schedule your first appointment with a licensed physical therapist, call our office at Washington Physical Therapy & Rehab today!

Ready to Say Goodbye to Opioids? Find Effective Relief Through PT!

Did You Know that Physical Therapy Can Help You Achieve Even Better Results than Opioids?

Another day, another trip to the pharmacy. This is the treadmill that many chronic pain sufferers find themselves walking, month after month and year after year.

Prescription pain medications can only do so much to keep your suffering at bay -- and in the case of opioids, you may find yourself purchasing larger amounts more frequently just to keep up with your ever-increasing tolerance to these powerful drugs.

If you're tired of exhausting your patience, wellness and wallet, maybe it's time you talked to your doctor about switching to physical therapy as your primary pain management strategy.

Physical therapy can help you govern your pain without drugs, giving you a chance to break away from your reliance on opioids.

How physical therapy can help you find effective and long-lasting relief

Instead of emptying your pockets on frequent drug refills that don't even address the source of your discomfort, ask your doctor whether physical therapy might help you wean yourself off of opioids or other medications. (You may need medical supervision to reduce heavy opioid use safely.)

An experienced physical therapist can examine the reasons for your pain and then devise a targeted, personalized pain management plan. Here are just a few of the ways physical therapy can replace all those bottles of pills:

  • Chronic nerve pain can be controlled with a technique called transcutaneous electrical muscle stimulation (TENS), which uses electrical impulses to intercept pain messages. Cold laser therapy can ease neuropathy symptoms and promote nerve healing.
  • Chronic muscle spasms respond well to cold laser therapy, massage therapy, and heat/cold therapy.
  • Chronic headache/migraine pain can be reduced through a combination of massage, cervical spinal adjustment, and lifestyle or dietary changes to help you avoid known headache or migraine triggers.
  • Severe neck or back pain can be managed through a combination of strength training, stretching exercises, and chiropractic adjustment.
  • If you suffer from crippling arthritis pain, physical therapy exercises and massage therapy can help you control joint pain and stiffness.

The many perils of opioids

There's no disputing the fact that pain medication is a profitable industry. In addition to the enormous sums spent by consumers on over-the-counter pain relievers, the worldwide market for opioid drugs has been estimated at $25.4 billion -- and it's expected to keep growing.

Opioids prevent pain signals from reaching the brain, enabling them to combat even the most severe pain. Unfortunately, the price of frequent opioid use far exceeds the money you pay for these drugs. The more you use opioids, the more likely your body is to develop a tolerance against them.

As a result, you need to keep taking more frequent and/or more potent doses to achieve the same degree of pain relief. This is a fast, potentially deadly path to addiction.

Don't assume that you're getting a good deal from non-addictive pain relievers, by the way. Milder drugs such as ibuprofen, aspirin, and acetaminophen may not get you "hooked," but their painkilling effects are short-lived, forcing you to keep dosing yourself every few hours.

These medicines can also cause health problems with frequent or heavy use, with risks ranging from stomach bleeding to liver failure.

Find pain relief with physical therapy today

Physical therapy can help you get a handle on your pain so that you don't need opioids anymore. Of course, you should only discontinue high doses of opioids under professional medical supervision (to prevent a potentially dangerous withdrawal).

In the meantime, however, our physical therapist can work with you on treating the biomechanical problems that caused your pain in the first place.

Here are just a few of the physical therapy modalities that can help you conquer your pain:

  • Exercises can increase your pain-free range of motion, strengthen the muscles that support your body, and increase blood flow to reduce inflammation.
  • Massage therapy can control painful muscle spasms, help the tissues expel inflammatory substances, and direct more blood and oxygen to an injury.
  • Laser therapy can ease pain caused by injuries, arthritis, muscular strain, tendinitis, or neuropathy.
  • Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) uses electrical energy to block pain signals to nerves.

Say goodbye to opioids, once and for all!

If you're going to invest time, effort and money into feeling better, do it in a way that actually helps your body for safer long-term solutions.

If your doctor agrees that physical therapy can help you ditch the drugs, contact our physical therapist to schedule an initial appointment and work out a pain management program!

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Discover the Benefits of both Pre and Post-Surgical Rehabilitation!

Did You Know That You Could Benefit From Both Our Pre AND Post-Surgical Physical Therapy Services?

Pre and post surgical rehab is often recommended for those having orthopedic surgery. These types of surgeries could include foot, ankle, knee, hip, wrist, hand, shoulder, neck, and spine surgeries.

Rehab can, however, be beneficial for just about any type of surgical procedure. A physical therapist can put together both a pre and post-surgical rehabilitation plan for an individual preparing for surgery.

In fact, according to the American Physical Therapy Association, there are proven benefits to both pre-surgical rehabilitation AND post-surgical rehabilitation.

The following are several important benefits of having pre and post-surgical rehab.

The benefits of physical therapy for surgical recovery

A trained physical therapist can advise you regarding the best prehab and post-surgical plan for your specific needs. As soon as you know when your surgery is scheduled you’ll want to make an appointment with a physical therapist.

A therapist will likely do a complete physical assessment before creating a unique prehab and rehab program.

Physical therapy treatment can help you achieve as much strength, stamina, flexibility, and improved range of motion as possible both before and after your surgery. A physical therapist may use a variety of manual therapies or teach you exercises you can do at home.

A therapist might also use heat, ice, or electrical stimulation. You’ll want to get started as soon as possible to make sure you’re prepared for surgery and can make a quick and full recovery.

What’s the purpose of pre-surgical rehabilitation?

Many people fear the harsh recoveries that follow surgical procedures. This is especially true for anyone who has had a total joint replacement. Faced with the knowledge of time spent in a rehabilitation hospital, many people delay joint replacement surgery out of fear for the long, difficult recovery ahead.

Fortunately, pre-hab can help significantly reduce recovery time. Did you know that by partaking in preventative rehabilitation, you can reduce your odds of needing inpatient rehabilitation by 73 percent? If you are stronger before surgery, you will meet your physical milestones much quicker after surgery, decreasing your recovery time by days or even weeks.

For example, patients who undergo total knee replacement surgery are typically expected to walk 500-1,000 feet 24 hours after their procedure.

This may sound like a difficult task; however, those who participate in pre-hab before their surgery are much more likely to meet this demand than those who do not. Pre-hab provides patients with the stretches, strengthening exercises, and pain-relieving techniques they need for a smooth and speedy recovery.

Rehabilitation after surgery

It’s important to start a post-surgical rehabilitation plan as soon as your doctor states that you’re ready.

The following are a few of the benefits of post-surgical rehab.

  • Regain Lost Strength– The more quickly you regain strength and stamina, the more quickly you’ll get back to your daily routine. A physical therapy program can be designed to target the specific areas in your body that need strengthened after surgery.
  • Reduce Pain and Swelling– The right type of post-surgical treatment can help reduce the amount of pain and swelling you experience after your surgery. Icing and ultrasound are both techniques a physical therapist may use to reduce localized swelling and pain. According to PT in Motion News, patients that received the same day, post-operative physical therapy needed fewer opioids after knee surgery.
  • Improve Circulation– Improved circulation not only facilitates faster healing but reduces the chance of a blood clot forming. Something as simple as massage can improve circulation. Many types of basic exercises and simple movements prescribed by a physical therapist can promote increased blood circulation.

Rehabilitation before surgery

This is often called prehabilitation, and it helps an individual prepare physically and mentally for a surgical procedure.

There are several benefits of going to rehab before your surgery.

  • Less Anxiety– Patients that have undergone some sort of prehab are often less prone to anxiety or stress prior to the surgery. Starting a process of physical activity that improves strength, endurance, and flexibility can improve overall confidence that the procedure will be successful.
  • Fewer Complications– The weaker and more frail an individual is, the more likely it is that the person will experience complications such as infection after a surgical procedure. Prehab can increase strength and immunity prior to surgery.
  • Faster Recovery– Learning the exercises you’ll need to do before surgery trains your muscles in advance. This will make post-surgical rehab easier and more effective. PT in Motion News states that even a few sessions of physical therapy prior to surgery can reduce post operative care for some patients.

Recover faster today!

Are you looking for a speedy recovery after your surgery? Of course you are!

Contact us today to get started on both a pre and post-surgical rehabilitation plan to optimize your results!

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Chronic Joint Pain Doesn’t Have to Control Your Life – Find Relief with Physical Therapy

Did You Know An Estimated 54.4 Million U.S. Adults Are Diagnosed With Arthritis?

54.4 million adults living in the United States are diagnosed with arthritis - that equates to about 1 in 4 Americans. Of those, about 27% report experiencing severe joint pain.

If you are one of these adults living day to day with severe joint pain, we can help. Contact Washington Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation today to learn more about how physical therapy can help relieve and manage your chronic joint pain.

Why physical therapy is better than surgery for chronic joint pain relief

According to Harvard Health Publishing,

“Trying physical therapy before opting for surgery may be the better choice. You may be able to spare yourself the expense, pain, and recovery time of surgery, says physical therapist Karen Weber, clinical supervisor at Harvard-affiliated Spaulding Rehabilitation Outpatient Centers in Braintree and Quincy, Mass.

There is growing evidence supporting that idea. In the past few years, studies have indicated that physical therapy is just as effective as surgery for relieving pain and restoring function for people with arthritis in their knees or backs.”

Why physical therapy is ideal for arthritis pain

Physical therapy focuses on improving mobility for those with arthritis. It also restores the use of affected joints, reduces pain and strengthens muscles to support the joints. A physical therapist will create an individualized treatment plan to improve flexibility, coordination and strength for maximum physical function.

Specifically, a physical therapist will use exercise and manual therapy to treat arthritis. Strengthening exercises and weight-bearing exercises are implemented to improve joint lubrication. This helps reduce the pain associated with arthritis.

A physical therapist will develop a treatment plan that targets all areas of the body affecting the pain. For example, if you suffer from knee pain, the exercise regimen will include proper knee mechanics and the lower back, ankle and hip. Physical therapists also use various manual therapy techniques like joint and soft tissue mobilization to treat the symptoms of arthritis.

Joint mobilization entails the moving of a joint through working with a natural level of resistance. This technique helps stretch and strengthen the tissue surrounding bone and reduces pain and increases range of motion.

Other passive modalities that a physical therapist may use to treat pain from arthritis include ultrasound, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), cryotherapy or heat. TENS utilizes electrodes to trick the pain from feeling pain.

Ultrasound utilizes heat to help the deep tissues of joints. It helps reduce inflammation and pain. Cryotherapy reduces inflammation and swelling. All around, physical therapy is a holistic treatment for arthritis.

So, what are the different types of arthritis?

There are many types of arthritis, but osteoarthritis is the most common type. The cushioning surface on the bones wears away, and bone rubs against bone.

The joints can lose strength, and joint pain is often chronic. With inflammatory arthritis, the immune system goes awry. It attacks the joints with inflammation. This can cause joint erosion and joint pain.

Infectious arthritis occurs when a virus or bacteria enters the joint. Even though antibiotics may end the infection, arthritis can become chronic. Metabolic arthritis is due to too much uric acid in the body. It can build up and cause chronic joint pain.

Passive and active therapies

Once our physical therapist has isolated the underlying cause of your chronic joint pain, we can prescribe techniques to help you start feeling - and moving - more like your old self.

Physical therapy for joint pain may start with passive exercises, in which we move the afflicted joint for you to increase its pain-free range of motion.

Exercises that reduce the amount of weight on the joints can also be extremely helpful. For instance, we may recommend swimming or water walking as a means of exercising the hips and knees without also forcing them to bear your full weight.

Other types of exercises can also help you overcome your joint pain while improving joint function. Strengthening exercises help by reinforcing the muscles and connective tissues that serve the joint. Corrective exercises and neuromuscular re-education can help you maintain a straighter, more symmetrical posture.

Last but not least, physical therapy offers a variety of helpful modalities beyond exercise. We may treat your joint pain with heat, ice, and manual therapies such as massage, just to name a few.

Schedule a consultation with one of our physical therapists today

If you’re suffering from arthritis, it’s wise to consider physical therapy.

Not only is it non-invasive, you may be able to throw away those pain meds. The goal of physical therapy is to help you live an active, pain-free life.

Contact us today to get started!

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A 9-5 Job Doesn’t Mean You Can’t Be Active!

Did You Know There Are a Bunch of Things You Can Do to Stay Active During the Workday?

Would you be embarrassed if you got caught doing jumping jacks in your office? We hope not—and we think many successful companies would likely applaud the effort!

It's becoming more well known that staying physically active throughout the workday isn't just better for your health.

It can also boost productivity, job satisfaction, and psychological well-being, too. Even if you work at a desk, there are plenty of simple things you can do to get moving more often.

Check out these five tips from our physical therapy team—tips we actually use ourselves!

How can physical therapy help me stay active?

There's a good reason why the phrase "sitting is the new smoking" was coined. Excessive sedentary behavior and sitting for too long (e.g., 7 or more hours per day) has been scientifically linked to an increased risk to potentially life-altering conditions like heart disease, obesity, and chronic back pain.

This is why we'd love for you to come meet with a physical therapist at our clinic. We can help you stay more active at work by:

  • Recommend specialized tools, like kinesio tape and customized orthotics, to improve your posture and enhance our other healing modalities
  • Help you optimize your ergonomic environment
  • Address underlying health conditions, like degenerative disc disease or sciatica, which can make both moving and sitting difficult
  • Teaching you specific exercises and stretches that are individually tailored to your body's needs

5 ways you can stay active at work!

  1. Take walks during your lunch break. Sit down and enjoy your meal, but when you're done eating use the remaining time to go for a walk around the building or even climb a few flights of stairs. We know it's tempting to just work through lunch. But if you take even just five minutes to get up and move mid-day, you'll be staving off health risks associated with excessive sitting and you may very well find yourself with way more energy.
  2. Make moves on the move. Instead of sending an email or text to your colleague down the hall, why not walk down and deliver the message in person? You can also take business calls while walking outside.
  3. Modify your desk setup. Is there a way for you to install an adjustable sit to stand desk in your office? You may not even have to replace the whole desk—these days it's easy to find high quality and affordable portable options online or in retail stores. You can also consult with a physical therapist to ensure the ergonomic set-up is ideal, so you can minimize any strain on your neck, back, shoulders, hands, and hips during the time you do spend sitting.
  4. Schedule "movement breaks." Getting into the flow at work is a great feeling—but you don't want to look up from your desk and see that one, two, three or more hours have gone by since you've gotten up from your desk! So, set a timer on your watch or phone to go off once per hour (or at least be more mindful of the clock) and use these breaks to stand up, go for a short walk, or do some simple stretches and exercises.
  5. Hydrate. Drinking more water throughout the day can improve mental clarity and support healthy joints and connective tissues. Plus, if you keep a glass or stainless steel bottle of water on hand, you'll find yourself having to get up more often simply to refill the bottle or relieve yourself.

Why staying active is so important

Maintaining a high level of physical activity can possibly lengthen your life as well as improve the overall quality.

According to PT in Motion News, 80 percent of Americans aren't meeting physical activity guidelines set forth by the US Department of Health and Human Services. Finding the time or the motivation to exercise is difficult for many people.

The truth, however, is that getting active can vastly improve your health, your comfort, mobility, and overall quality of life. That’s why it’s so important to stay active, even when you have a desk job.

Get started today

Want more assistance in staying active during the workday? We can help!

A physical therapist can evaluate your current physical condition and assess your fitness level.

No matter what your current level of physical activity may be, physical therapy can help you increase your fitness level, reduce your chance of injury, and eliminate pain from sore muscles.

A physical therapist can also teach you the proper techniques for warming up before your chosen activity and the best post-workout stretches for an effective cool down.

Contact us today to learn more or request a consultation.

Sources:

Are Headaches Causing You Frequent Pain? Find Relief with Physical Therapy

Did You Know Physical Therapy Could Help With Headache Relief?

The term "sick headache" might have been coined to describe exactly how you feel today -- and every day. A one-off headache encounter can be distressing enough, but frequent or constant headache pain can completely disable you.

Many of these headaches have underlying musculoskeletal or biochemical causes - which means that they can be corrected through the right forms of treatment. In many cases, physical therapy turns out to be just what the doctor ordered for chronic headaches and Washington Physical Therapy and Rehab can help solve your pains.

Are you experiencing these symptoms?

Stress-related headaches can vary widely in severity, although they're rarely as debilitating as migraines.

They tend to a generalized ache over a broad region of the head, as opposed to attacking a specific area such as the eye (a trademark of another type of headache called a cluster headache).

The tension that brings them on may stem from emotional stress (if that emotional stress creates chronic neck tightness), but it may also be caused by:

  • Weak neck muscles that become fatigued easily
  • "Text neck," a strain disorder that occurs if you're always drooping your head forward to look at your smartphone
  • Repetitive motion or overuse from work or sports activities
  • Secondary pain problems such as arthritis in the cervical spine

Stress-related headaches that bother you for more than 15 days out of the month for 3 months or more are considered a chronic pain condition.

Physical therapy and headache relief

Our physical therapist can help you get to the bottom of your headache problem.

If your headache is cervinogenic in nature, we may need to work on your neck. For instance:

  • Our physical therapist can help you identify other migraine triggers and suggest strategies for avoiding them in your everyday life.
  • If your migraines are the result of a recent concussion, a carefully-administered course of physical therapy can actually help you recuperate from that concussion more quickly.
  • Corrective exercises and postural/ergonomic changes can help you steer clear of "text neck" and other occupational headache triggers.
  • Laser therapy and massage therapy can both relax tight neck tissues and speed recovery to injured muscles.
  • Chiropractic adjustment can correct skeletal misalignment issues that place your neck muscles under unnatural strain. These adjustments can also help to reduce cluster headache attacks.
  • Exercises that strengthen and loosen your neck muscles can help to ease the stresses that set off your headaches.

What’s causing my persistent headaches?

What is a headache, beyond the simple definition of a pain in the head? There are actually several categories of headaches, each with its own distinct causes and symptoms.

For most sufferers, chronic headaches mean tension headaches. A tension headache can be triggered or aggravated by emotional tension, but the actual mechanism involves physical tension in the muscles of the neck.

Tight or strained neck muscles can go into spasm. When spasms overtake certain tiny muscles near the base of the skull, the resulting tugging action irritates a membrane called the dura mater. The dura mater then responds by flooding your head with a vaguely pounding or aching sensation.

Weak or underdeveloped neck muscles may be naturally vulnerable to tightness and spasms. Accident injuries (including whiplash) can push the skull off-center in relation to the neck, subjecting the neck muscles to abnormal stresses. (A headache that specifically involves the upper cervical spine is termed a cervinogenic headache.)

Even routine postural problems can cause neck strain and tension headaches. For instance, if you stare down at your smartphone for hours each day, you can develop a painful problem known as "text neck" which also promotes headaches.

Other kinds of headaches, while less common, can prove even more debilitating. Cluster headaches are a prime example. These intense headaches strike one side of your face in clusters of attacks. These headaches have been associated with cervical spinal abnormalities.

Migraines are even more notorious for causing nausea, light/sound sensitivity, faintness and vision problems on top of brutal headaches. Migraines sometimes occur as a complication of concussions; they are also triggered by exposure to specific stimuli such as lights, sounds, or foods.

Schedule a consultation with a physical therapist today

You're not doomed to go through life plagued by frequent headaches. If you're ready to free yourself from this burden, give physical therapy a try.

Contact our physical therapist today to learn more about our headache treatment options!

Are You Living With Chronic Low Back Pain? Find Relief Today

Did You Know Physical Therapy is an Effective Treatment for Low Back Pain?

Got low back pain? Then get a physical therapy referral!

Physical therapy is a leading profession involved in the diagnosis and treatment of low back pain.

In fact, low back pain is one of the most common reasons people come to work with a physical therapist.

Researchers in our field have even developed concise and comprehensive practice guidelines to help therapists manage this condition in their patients.

Keep reading to learn how physical therapy treatments with Washington Physical Therapy & Rehab can help you find meaningful relief from your lower back pain!

Do you have back pain?

Did you know that approximately 80 percent of Americans have experienced (or will experience) back pain? That's an unfortunate statistic, especially if you're already one of those sufferers.

Chronic back pain can prevent you from performing the countless daily tasks you need or want to perform.

Even when you're not engaged in activity, your back pain may be keeping you miserable 24/7. But don't assume that drugs can provide more than temporary relief, or that surgery won't create more problems than it solves.

Instead, go with the healthy, natural way to kiss your back pain goodbye -- through physical therapy.

Some facts about back pain

“Back pain” is an all-encompassing term used to describe a vast number of conditions that cause pain in the upper or lower back. Sports-related injuries, poor posture, and car accidents are just a few of the many ways that someone can develop back pain.

The most common cause of back pain is from sustaining an injury. This can happen in one of two ways - from an instant, sudden trauma, or from a repetitive-use injury that develops gradually over time.

Because back pain is so commonplace in the United States, there is a lot of information we have on the topic. Below are some facts about back pain:

  • Back pain is the number one disability for those under age 45.
  • In the United States alone, there are an expected 31 million people with lower back pain at any given time.
  • Back pain runs second, only after the common cold, as the top reason for visiting a healthcare provider in the United States.
  • Experts place the likelihood of any person to experience some type of back problem in their lifetime at about 80%. That’s four out of every five people!
  • 30-40 percent of all workplace absences are due to back pain.
  • Approximately one quarter of U.S. adults reported having low back pain lasting at least one whole day in the past three months, and 7.6% reported at least one episode of severe acute low back pain within a one-year period.
  • More than two-thirds of back strains are caused by lifting and other exertions, such as pulling and pushing.
  • Most cases of back pain are mechanical—meaning they are NOT caused by serious conditions, such as infection, fracture, or cancer.

1. All physical therapy treatments are safe for all ages.

The risk for low back pain tends to increase with age, but people of all ages can struggle with this broad condition.

Fortunately, physical therapy services that are proven effective for low back pain—including corrective exercises and spinal manipulation—are safe and appropriate for folks from all walks of life.

If a specific service is contraindicated for you, your physical therapist can deliver plenty of other treatments to support your healing.

2. Physical therapy treatment plans are safe, non-invasive, and personalized for your needs.

Based on the current clinical practice guidelines created by the American Physical Therapy Association's Orthopaedic Section, a person presenting with low back pain can be classified into one of several distinct treatment categories, based on a thorough examination.

This type of systematic categorization is cost-effective and beneficial, since it helps patients receive services specifically designed for their needs.

Thanks to their extensive training, a physical therapist can skillfully tease out hidden issues contributing to your back pain condition, such as nerve impingement, movement incoordination, poor core muscle activation, and range of motion limitations.

These are issues that are often overlooked or under-addressed by other professionals—and explains why interventions that just provide symptom relief are often not effective in the long-term.

In other words, if underlying issues like instability or incoordination aren't addressed, your issue is likely to recur!

By addressing the underlying causes of your back pain and then systematically managing these issues with personalized treatment based on research, a physical therapist can alleviate your symptoms and reduce your likelihood of chronic suffering.

3. Physical therapy can help decrease your risk of sustaining a back-related injury or condition.

Low back pain is so common that most people will have it at least once in a lifetime.

It's not always clear what triggers back pain in the first place, and most experts agree that there are usually multiple issues at play, including activity level, occupation, age, family and medical history, and the presence of other health conditions like smoking, obesity, and diabetes.

A physical therapist can work with you to help you identify and modify your preventable risk factors. For example, sitting too much is correlated with lower back pain.

By helping you control your pain and improve your physical function and ergonomic environments, a physical therapist makes it easier for you to increase your physical activity level and minimize the amount of time you spend sitting.

Consult with a physical therapist today

Physical therapists are experts at identifying how low back pain limits a person's participation in daily activities, and how these limitations can be resolved or compensated for.

After all, your progress outside the clinic matters even more than your progress inside the clinic! Our physical therapy team at Washington PT & Rehab always looks for the bigger picture of your condition and will help you modify your daily tasks in a way that will make you feel successful, safe, and confident.

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