5 Signs You’re a Strong Candidate for Physical Therapy

Are you healing from a chronic or acute injury affecting your daily function? Perhaps you’re fresh out of surgery and embarking on the road to recovery. These are just two examples of almost countless reasons you might need physical therapy (PT) at some point in your lifetime. As the global population ages and survival rates increase for people with disabilities or other health concerns, more people continue to register for physical therapy than ever before. 

Highly customizable and rehabilitative, physical therapy doesn’t look the same for everyone. Before you engage in physical therapy and rehabilitation at Elation Physical Therapy in Houston, Pearland, Cypress, or Katy, Texas, our team conducts a detailed examination to get a feel for your functional abilities and needs. The exam includes assessments of your strength, balance, coordination, range of motion, and posture. Any of these functional parameters can improve with targeted physical therapy based on your needs. 

If you’re considering physical therapy for any purpose, let our experts be your guides. We help you set sensible goals and provide the support you need as you work through an individualized program. 

Should physical therapy top your list of priorities? Consider these five signs that you’re a strong PT candidate:

1. Your joints are stiff because of arthritis

Often accompanied by pain, stiff joints can limit your everyday life. You might eventually struggle to climb stairs, grasp objects in your hand, or use the phone. Because many cases of arthritis are progressive, meaning they worsen over time, intervening with physical therapy earlier is better. 

Physical therapy can target every part of your musculoskeletal system, including your joints and the tendons, ligaments, and cartilage that support them. Over time, personalized physical therapy exercises can help you maintain mobility and slow down arthritis progression. 

2. You experience chronic pain

Chronic or long-lasting pain can wreak havoc on your well-being and keep you from focusing on the parts of your life that mean the most to you. Defined as pain that lasts longer than three months, chronic pain can originate from an injury that was originally acute. It can also arise from musculoskeletal overuse or from various diseases, including infections and autoimmune diseases. 

Physical therapy can go a long way in helping with chronic pain management. It may even keep you from relying on habit-forming pain medications to maintain your quality of life. Our physical therapists at Elation Physical Therapy specialize in customized programs to manage chronic pain from:

• Arthritis
• Fibromyalgia
• Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS)
• Myofascial pain syndrome
• Neuropathic pain
• Chronic neck or back pain

Beyond personalized strength and range-of-motion exercises, physical therapy for pain management can involve ultrasound therapy, heat and ice, manual therapy, dry needling, and other supplemental strategies. 

3. You can’t “hold it”

Many people don’t realize that a tailored physical therapy program can address bladder or bowel incontinence. Incontinence happens when you struggle to maintain control over your urine or defecation. As you might imagine, any type of incontinence can be a daily cause of embarrassment, inconvenience, and cancellations. 

Physical therapy helps you strengthen your pelvic floor and regain control over your bathroom visits. 

4. You have balance problems

Trips and falls have long been portrayed in movies and television for comedic effect, but balance problems are no joke. Balance problems are a major risk factor for injuries, especially in older individuals and people with osteoporosis. They can arise from inner ear problems, traumatic brain injuries, musculoskeletal injuries, and many chronic conditions. 

Physical therapy services at Elation Physical Therapy can treat various balance disorders to reduce your risk for falls, accidents, and resulting injuries. The team starts with a balance disorder assessment to evaluate your gait, stance, and posture for instability. 

5. You’re in recovery after an injury or surgery

Countless medical professionals emphasize the importance of physical therapy after surgery or while recovering from a musculoskeletal injury, and for good reason. You’ll work with a physical therapist to recover your strength, mobility, and overall function after an injury or operation causes limitations. 

From a relaxing stroll around the block to full-contact football, physical therapy gives you the best chance to return to the activities you enjoy most after an injury or surgery. It can also be your key to retaining your independence so you don’t have to rely on caretakers for assistance with day-to-day responsibilities. Our experts can give you a more personalized idea of what life after physical therapy will look like. 

Contact us and start today

Physical therapy can benefit almost anyone in some capacity. If you meet any of the criteria in this blog or have other health conditions you’d like to address with our help, schedule a consultation online or over the phone at Elation Physical Therapy right away.