If
you are reading this, you probably have already encountered a reason to
see a Physical Therapist. For those of you that have never had to, the
question you might ask yourself is, when is the right time to see a
Physical Therapist?
It
wouldn't surprise you that many initiate PT because of an injury,
painful condition or neurological disorder. On the other hand, it might
be surprising to know that physical therapy can be essential to
resolving other conditions like vertigo, TMJ dysfunction, headaches or
bowel and bladder dysfunction.
Accidents
do happen and physical issues arise, seemingly from nowhere, and when
they do, care is certainly needed. A visit to a physical therapist can
open up a world of possibilities when we step away from the disease
model and embrace a prevention approach to PT.
Too
often, resources are used to recover and not prevent! What if those
same visits for treatment of acute back pain were used to learn how easy
it is to practice good posture (if you know that's not one of your
strong points) or to find out specifically, what muscle imbalances you
might be developing and what to do about them.
What
if those nagging aches or pains that have slowly changed your lifestyle
were addressed BEFORE they reached "injury level" and you discovered
what you needed to do for physical longevity, BEFORE, you started making
those lifestyle changes?
Many
of us have an annual medical exam to follow the progress of our overall
health. We are all used to practicing good dental hygiene because our
dentists have done a good job of teaching us how to take care of our
teeth and see them once or twice a year for....Yes That's
Right...PREVENTION!
Those
32 bones in our mouth tend to be well taken care of, but what about the
other 108 bones you use to sleep, sit, stand, walk, climb stairs and do
everything else? Now wouldn't it be novel to have a physical therapist
consultation from time to time, to find out specific ways to keep your
body supporting all those activities throughout all the stages of your
life?
So
to start to answer the question we started with, the right time to see a
physical therapist can come for many reasons, but the message here is
that knowing specifically how to improve or maintain your body and
feeling the results of doing so can contribute significantly to your
quality of life.
Sara Lewis, PT
Duffy and Bracken Physical Therapy
