Aging bodies go through many changes. Even healthy bodies with good diets and regular exercise cannot escape the inevitable changes that can come with time: declining muscle strength and flexibility, vision loss, cognitive decline, and more. While we can work to slow down these changes and maybe even make some improvements in our senior years,
Most of us – especially those over the age of 40 – have experienced minor aches, pains or movement issues without feeling the need to seek medical attention. These things tend to go away on their own, after all. More often then than not this is true; most of these minor aches and pains will go away on their own.
Millions of Americans are forced to deal with chronic pain that impacts their lives daily. Chronic conditions like diabetes, arthritis, and chronic back pain make it harder for people to work, play, socialize, and generally enjoy many aspects of life that the rest of us take for granted. For these people, learning how to manage the pain associated with these conditions is essential to their quality of life.
Occasional dizzy spells – or feelings of lightheadedness, wooziness, or being off-balance – are a relatively common experience. Most adults will experience it at some point, and vertigo (a spinning sensation) affects an estimated 40% of people at least once in their lifetime1. While it’s common to experience some temporary dizziness, persistent or severe dizziness can be very disruptive to your daily life,
Imagine stepping out of bed to take the day’s first steps and feeling like you just stepped on broken glass. This can be what it’s like to deal with plantar fasciitis – a frustrating heel pain that doesn’t always go away on its own. Some cases can last months, or even years. Rarely, in severe cases,
For many years now, physical therapy has helped millions of people move better, feel stronger, and recover from injuries – but there are still misconceptions about what PT is and who it’s for. Some people think it’s only for athletes or post-operative surgery patients. Others worry that it’s going to be painful. Even with its history and track record,
The advancements of modern surgery are undoubtedly some of the most impressive in all of medicine. Advancements in knowledge, tools and techniques have led to surgical outcomes that would have seemed miraculous a century ago. In fact, we’ve become so good at performing different types of surgeries, we often forget to consider just how invasive and dangerous it truly is.
Whether from injury, illness, or surgery, pain is something we all must deal with at some point in our lives. When the pain is chronic or severe, it sometimes isn’t enough to just “grin and bear it”. Sometimes, we need something more to help us tolerate it. Unfortunately, oftentimes this means relying on medication – usually opiate-based.
Modern surgical knowledge and technology is largely considered one of the great achievements of modern medicine. Many injuries and conditions that could have been fatal in the not-too-distant past can often be dealt with through relatively common surgical procedures today. Surgery has undoubtedly provided a tremendous amount of benefit to our modern world.
As is the case with anything that provides a benefit,
Modern technology has done some amazing things for our society. We are more connected than ever before, with instant access to more information than previous generations could have imagined. Technology has changed the way we live, the way we communicate, and the way we work. Of course, not every change is an improvement. One of the unfortunate effects of our current information age is a drastic increase in sedentary living.
From car repairs to plumbing problems, people are now trying their hands at many things that used to be left almost exclusively to professionals. With so many do-it-yourself resources available, people can quickly learn how to perform tasks that they otherwise may not have even considered. Just pull up a step-by-step walkthrough online, or watch a YouTube or TikTok video.
The field of physical therapy is always evolving. PT techniques were once niche treatments for training gymnasts or rehabilitating injured soldiers. Now, physical therapy is as mainstream as any other field of medicine. Men and women of any age and physical condition benefit from it. Of course, like everything else in the modern world, innovations in research and new technology continue to push physical therapy forward,
According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, an estimated 10 million Americans suffer from osteoporosis. An additional 44 million have low bone density, putting them at increased risk of developing the disease in their lifetimes. While it’s more common in adults over 50, and more likely to effect women than men, the truth is osteoporosis impacts millions of lives of either sex every year.
Our bodies can present many different challenges as we age, including joints that become stiffer and less flexible. Aging joint cartilage can become thinner, ligaments can shorten and become less flexible, and loss of muscle strength can put extra pressure on your joints. As a result, joints can feel stiff and uncomfortable. This discomfort can be even greater in individuals dealing with osteoarthritis.
There’s a growing trend in the world of physical therapy. Many patients that are soon to undergo surgery are opting for a pre-surgical healthcare intervention intended to reduce complications and enhance post-surgical recovery. This intervention is known as preoperative rehabilitation, or prehabilitation (prehab if you’re really into brevity). The proponents of prehabilitation cite its many perceived benefits and low risk (for most people),
After an injury, the race toward recovery can seem more like a marathon than a sprint. It can be hard to get started with such a long road ahead. The painful truth is that early intervention can mean the difference between a fast track to full recovery and a prolonged struggle with pain and limitation.
By: Marie Serrado
February isn’t just about chocolates and flowers, it’s also American Heart Awareness Month. As we celebrate matters of the heart, let’s delve into the significance of cardiovascular exercise in the realm of physical therapy. Integrating heart-healthy activities into your routine can bring benefits, not only for cardiovascular health but for overall well-being.
While Physical Therapy has been around for ages, practicing this therapy as a career is still relatively new. The roots of some of the physical therapy treatments used today can be found in ancient Greek, Roman, and Egyptian civilizations. These ancient civilizations were using manual therapy and exercise to treat pain and disease,
