More Than Stretching: Things You Didn't Know About Physical Therapy

If you’ve ever watched a medical drama you know it’s all about the doctors — surgeons in particular. As they slice and dice, it seems like they get all the credit for saving lives. Although these shows sometimes show a little bit of recovery, they’ve trained you to forget about patients as soon as they get their discharge papers and walk out the door.

For many patients, leaving the hospital is just the start. When you’ve suffered a serious bone, muscle, or joint injury, you’ll most likely need physical therapy to truly recover and get back to a normal life. And while the physical therapist may seem like expert stretchers, there’s a lot of medical expertise that goes into rehabbing an injury. After all, most physical therapists go through at least three years of schooling to earn the right to help you heal. Here’s what you might not know about physical therapy.

 When it’s time for your physical therapy journey to begin, come see us at AllCare Chiropractic at one of our three convenient locations in Annapolis, Bowie, and Laurel, Maryland. Jonathan Nou, DC and the rest of our team will work with your specific needs to create a custom physical therapy treatment plan. Dr. Nou, Dr. Garrett Abadom, and Dr. Victor Abadom will make sure you get the comprehensive chiropractic and physical therapy care you need.  

Why physical therapy?

Physical therapy can relieve pain through decreasing inflammation, reducing muscle spasms, and training the body for better posture and function. Your physical therapist may use specific exercises, stretches, and techniques and use specialized equipment to address injured and healing areas.

Physical therapy also does more than just treat pain. Through strength exercises and stretching, your therapist can help you increase your mobility and make it easier to stand, walk, or move. With muscle and joint injuries, physical therapy may also be used to avoid surgery. Even when surgery is necessary, pre-surgery physical therapy can make your body stronger and enable it to heal faster.

More than just hands-on work

All the stretching that comes to mind when you think of physical therapy is just a fraction of what a physical therapist does. 

Manual therapy describes the hands-on approach in which the therapist uses their hands to massage, stretch, and relax injured or sore muscles. Manual therapy is great because it can improve blood flow to the targeted area in addition to improving flexibility, strength, and range of motion.

Passive therapies, like electrical stimulation and therapeutic ultrasound, can help treat inflammation, improve blood flow, or decrease muscle spasms.

What physical therapy can treat

Physical therapy isn’t just a way to treat injuries; it can also be incorporated into a regular exercise or wellness program to prevent injuries and help your body function optimally. However, common treatment areas include the following: 

• Spinal pain and injuries
• Back and neck pain
• Sports injuries
• Knee injuries
• Osteoarthritis
• Rotator cuff injuries
• Repetitive strain injuries
• Musculoskeletal injuries

The treatment area will often determine what type of treatment you receive. Your physical therapist will also give you stretches and exercises to perform at home. 

Ready to see if physical therapy could benefit you? Come see us at AllCare Chiropractic. Call or contact one of our three Maryland offices today.