Physical therapy, often referred to as physiotherapy or just PT, is a type of a profession which deals with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement. Physiotherapy manages to do this through prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of illnesses and health problems.
Thus, simply, physical therapy deals with all the aspects of one's well-being, including physical, emotional, social and psychological health.
Importance of Physical Therapy
During the process of physical therapy, the patient is in constant contact with the therapist. Additionally, this form of therapy may encompass the family of the patient, as well as his/her friends, caregivers and other therapists.
The therapist usually has his/her own assistant. The age, sex and other factors of the therapist are not specifically determined. Rather, the physiotherapist is a person who is a health expert, managing to diagnose the patients of all ages, and expose them to the adequate therapy which will lead to their recovery
So, basically, physical therapy is important since it educates the patients on the principles of applying proper stretching and strengthening of the body, learning how to promote tissue healing this way. Also, this form of therapy teaches people how to maintain proper body posture, helping them preserve the health of their backbone.
Last but not the least, physical therapy promotes healing and recovery through reducing and removing inflammations if these are present, using methods like ice, heat, ultrasound, traction or electricity and teaching the patients about proper posture and ergonomics. Also, in case of any muscular, joint or spine problems, physiotherapists teach the patient adequate exercises and methods of alleviating pain by focusing on physically engaging the affected body parts. Furthermore, once the patient manages to return to his/her normal lifestyle activities, physical therapy helps him/her become aware of the daily physical routines which can help him/her maintain his/her proper health.
Patients who undergo physical therapy learn all the skills they need to have once their pain and discomfort reappear. Thus, in such troublesome situations, they know how to deal with the pain and make it go away through proper body positioning and stretching. All in all, this knowledge makes it possible for patients to reduce their recovery time significantly, dealing with their physical problems over the course of hours or days, rather than months or even years.
Problem with Stiff Body
In the world of today, about 90% of the population experience spine problems at least at a single point of their lives. Moreover, neck and back pain, or pain in some other areas are all known occurrences, making people's lives significantly harder, getting worse and worse as long as the causes of these problems are ignored.
According to different researches, about 95% of herniated disc problems affecting people would not require surgery, if these were diagnosed and treated timely.
Thus, body stiffness is a problem which bothers us all. The lucky few may go on with their lives, but the vast majority of sufferers can help themselves through educating themselves about the importance of physical therapy and some of the main postulates of it.
First of all, if you desire never to suffer from stiffness, you need to take your bodily posture seriously, avoiding slouching or spending too much time in unnatural positions. Moreover, when you experience discomfort or pain in your muscles, joints, bones or spine, you are advised to change the body position. Every onset of pain and discomfort is the sign of our body, warning us about the possible dangerous consequences of the things we are doing. Therefore, if your body begs you to stop sitting improperly while watching the TV, reading, using the computer or performing some other actions, listen to it and make yourself feel more comfortable instead of tolerating the pain and unpleasantness.
We often forget how sitting straight makes us feel, being trapped in the slouching, bent positions most of our lives. However, our spine benefits from us sitting straight. Also, while sitting, we should arch our back in the opposite direction every once in a while, enjoying the feeling of being refreshed.
As far as some other exercises which can help you deal with the pain present at work, or even preventing it, are shoulder rolls backwards and shoulder blade squeezing. You should perform these 10 times each a couple of times a day. Chin-ins are recommended too, along with stretching of the neck and the head and turning the head over the shoulders. Again, these should also be done 10 repetitions each. Finally, when we stand up from our long-time sitting position, we should perform a stretch too, bending our back.
To conclude, physical therapy is an excellent method for helping us deal with the pain and the discomfort we might be experiencing in our joint, bones, spine or muscles. In fact, addressing this pain timely can prevent many forms of injuries or health complications. Thus, you are advised to bear your proper posture in mind at all times, performing stretches and some light exercises a couple of times each day.
If the pain you are experiencing fails to subside, you are advised to seek medical assistance, contacting a professional physiotherapist.
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