Most Americans have to face physical therapy at least once in their life. Whether it’s from a stress-related injury or something traumatic like a car crash, physical therapy can help us move past the hurt and towards the next step in our lives.
Unfortunately, many people don’t realize how important this type of therapy is! These are the top reasons why physical therapy matters and why you should consider it if it’s available to you!
1. Helps Retrain the Muscles
Whether you’re trying to regain the ability to write, or you want to be able to do cartwheels again, it’s going to take some time to train your muscles to move that way again. Physical therapy is there to help work these parts of your body until you don’t have to worry about the pain anymore. But, instead, through repetition and stretching, many patients can regain almost all of the movement and control they had before they needed physical therapy.
2. Gives You Time to Heal
There’s nothing as bad for a wound as trying to rush yourself through the healing process. Physical therapy gives you a solid reason to slow down while also ensuring that you don’t have to worry about when anything will happen to you. Following the schedule they set for you gives you a framework to follow and guide you.
3. The Feeling of Teamwork
Teamwork is a great motivator for many people! Working with others towards a common goal is a fantastic way to encourage some people to heal and keep stretching and practicing. Knowing that others are cheering you on, and working with you on your progress, can be enough to push people forward and propel them into healing.
The best part of the teamwork from physical therapy is if you make a misstep or fall back, they’re still going to cheer you on and work with you to keep going. This can be wonderful and healing all on its own.
4. Sets Tangible Goals
When many think about goals for healing, they think there’s only one. Fortunately, it can be broken down further into more bite-sized pieces.
For example, starting with seeking out Dupont physical therapy, you can set goals on how far you can stretch or what movement you can regain. These smaller successes can allow you to see your progress instead of feeling like it’s a two-step process that’s taking far too long.
No healing happens the same as any other, so it’s a good idea to be patient with yourself and work on your goals.
5. Ensure You Don’t Hurt Yourself Further.
Although you may assume you know how far you can push your body, all rules go out the window after an injury. If you push yourself too hard after an injury and don’t give yourself time to heal: you could harm yourself further. You wouldn’t try to run on a broken ankle. So why try to rush any other kind of injury? Physical therapy gives you the tools to avoid further damage while increasing your ability to heal and move past the pain.