Treatment goes beyond the clinic room
Our part...
When you come in for injury/rehabilitation treatment, for example an ankle sprain, the therapist will utilise a variety of different techniques during the treatment to aid in freeing up any restrictions that could be causing pain. They may also activate muscles to create a more efficient muscle motor pattern in those under active muscle groups. All of these different techniques may even resolve the problem that you came in for.
However it doesn't always take one treatment to achieve this.
Your part....
As a client you will be given exercises to work on and changes to make in daily life to prevent the injury or pain coming back.
The reason why these changes outside of the clinic room are so important is down to the likelihood of re-injury increasing.
Here are some examples...
- If you've sprained your ankle and had treatment, but haven't been doing the strengthening exercises for the ankle, the ankle will likely sprain again due to a lack of instability in the joint.
- Another example could be if you've come in for shoulder pain, and after a postural assessment your shoulders are rounded, doing exercises to help with posture will then allow for your centre of mass will be closer to being evenly distributed. However, if you don't work on these exercises or change seating position etc. the problem will likely come back again.
The treatment in clinic may have eased the pain and improved range of movement, but if as a client you don't put in the work outside of the clinic room, then the problem will most likely creep back in again.
Rise to the challenge...
Sometimes exercise/daily changes to our posture can seem difficult due to time management, but starting off with basic things to add into your day to day routine will make this easier and seem more achievable.
Consistency is key when it comes to these exercises/stretches and over time you'll notice the benefits of doing them. Initially it will take time to get used to but this is because the body isn't used
to moving in such different ways.
Get in touch if you have any question or need any help or advice.