Physiotherapy is capable of assisting our Orleans clients in addressing their physical injuries and conditions that may be affecting their balance, motion and mobility. Our physical therapists are able to offer a range of treatments for our patients to help them recover and return to their normal levels of ability. Here, we explain more.
When a person loses their mobility, balance or range of motion, this is more than a simple inconvenience, this can be absolutely life-altering. Some people may find themselves opting out of activities that they love, giving up hobbies that enrich their lives or becoming more sedentary because of their discomfort and the fear that with a reduction in their mobility, they will injure themselves further.
Some people actually do injure themselves further by undertaking activities that are beyond their capacity or that put excessive strain on parts of their body that they may not even realize have been seriously injured in the first place.
It's in this area where our Orleans physical therapists come in. The team at our Orleans facility are capable of offering up a host of treatments, therapies and modalities to patients suffering from a deteriorated sense of balance, inhibited mobility and a reduced range of motions, whether this comes from acute injuries or from chronic conditions.
How can physiotherapy help me recover my range of motion?
As will all physiotherapy treatments, the program our physical therapists will develop to help restore your range of motion will depend on your specific case. Some causes of a reduced range of motion can include chronic pain, muscle spasms, acute physical injuries, invasive surgeries, bad posture and more.
The treatments at our physical therapists provide to our patients help to improve their range of motion. These can include both active treatments (treatments provided through prescribed exercises that will be taught to you and overseen by a professional), and passive ones (treatments conducted on a patient by a professional such as massage).
The key when it comes to the loss of range of motion in your body will be the prescription of active physiotherapy exercises targeting the part of your body that is experiencing a reduced range of motion, whether that be your mid-back from sitting at your desk all day, to your hips or legs after surgery. The exercises recommended for these issues will often include stretches designed to help your muscles, ligaments and tendons to become used to stretching and being engaged to their full elasticity.
How can physical therapy help me to recover my mobility?
The ways physiotherapy can help to restore a client's mobility, like with their range of motion, will depend on the specific kind of injury or condition that is inhibiting their mobility. It will also depend on the degree to which a client's mobility is impacted.
For example, we can offer therapies and treatment plans for patients whose functional mobility has been impacted by physical trauma, a condition, or a disease. Functional mobility is a persons ability to go about their regular day-to-day life, like walking around a store or even moving in bed. Treatments that are designed to help a patient to recover a certain percentage of their functional mobility will look very different from treatments tailored to the needs of someone who has lost a significant amount of mobility in their neck.
As with reduction to your range of motion, physiotherapy can help patients to recover their mobility through a blend of treatments conducted on you such as hot and cold therapy as well as a series of prescribed stretches and exercises with the aid of your physiotherapist as required. Together, these will be able to help you return to your normal levels of mobility.
How can physiotherapy help me restore my sense of balance?
Our ability to balance relies on 3 separate systems and senses: our vestibular system (a fluid-filled organ in our inner ear), our vision and our proprioception. The team of physical therapists at our Orleans physiotherapy center are able to offer treatments that will be able to gradually help these internal systems to begin to properly function again. As with the above two kinds of treatment plans, the exact treatments that will be prescribed to a client will depend on their unique case and the cause of their sense of balance.
However, because you are trying to give your brain and systems as much "practice" as possible with keeping your balance in safe environments, one of the most common ways of helping to restore your sense of balance and then maintain it involves specialized exercises designed to engage your sense of balance without putting you at risk of a fall.
As with any physiotherapy treatment, our Orleans physical therapists will start you out small and slow with prescribed balance and coordination exercises. With prescribed exercises and professional guidance, we will be able to help you regain your balance and your confidence in participating in the activities you love.