Individuals who suffer from back pain or
who have experienced a back injury may find that their doctor prescribes
physical therapy as a first line of defense. There are numerous benefits to
using physical therapy to manage back pain, including the following:
Reduce Pain
In many cases, physical therapy
can help limit the amount of pain that you experience after a back injury. The
physical therapist can help work with you to strengthen the area that has been
injured, stretch the soft tissues, and increase the range of motion. These
actions may help decrease the pain that you experience, without the need for
heavy pain medications. While physical therapy may not completely eliminate
back pain, it can be quite helpful in lowering the amount of pain that you
experience.
Increase Function
After an injury, you may find that parts of your back does not function as they originally did. If you’re experiencing stiffness or loss of flexibility, physical therapy may help you to increase overall function and enjoy a full range of motion. Working with a physical therapist is a good way to return function to your back muscles, tissues, and joints, so that you’re able to move as smoothly as possible and limit the pain that you experience. Speak to your therapist about the areas that you experience pain and about which movements tend to cause discomfort, so that they can help you increase function as much as possible.
Provide Education
Your physical therapist may also be able
to educate you about the way that your back works and the way your body
functions. This education can help you to move more comfortably, prevent injury moving
forward, and employ better ergonomics as you go through your daily tasks.
Speaking with your therapist about the things that typically cause you pain can
help them to educate you about your body and your injuries, so that you can
make any necessary adjustments to the way that you go about your daily
activities.
Limit Additional Injury
If you experience pain when you move,
there’s always the chance that you could injure yourself more due to limited
range of motion or moving oddly. Your physical therapist will work with you to
help you increase your range of motion, decrease your pain, and help you to
limit the possibility of you accidentally causing additional injuries while you
try to avoid moving painfully.
If you’ve injured your back, physical therapy
can be a great way to ensure that you heal as well as possible without causing
additional injury. Seeing a physical therapist can help limit your pain and
assist you with the entire healing process, so that you’re as comfortable and
healthy as possible. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist
you.
