Physical therapy is one of the most successful forms of recovery. With SOHMA winning the 2023 Best of Long Beach reader’s choice for a second year, we’re proud to help you on the road to recovery. Your injury will be evaluated, and we may recommend physical therapy. From there, the physiotherapist will further evaluate your physical condition and medical history to prepare a recovery program.
However, not all injuries are made equal, and today we’ll go over what kinds of injuries physical therapy can help in recovery.
Sport Injuries
Some of the most common injuries that physical therapy can help with are a result of a sports injury. After suffering a soft tissue injury, you’ll want to protect it from further damage. Try to keep the injury elevated if possible. This can prevent fluids from gathering where you were injured.
- Ankle Sprain
- Rotator Cuff Strain
- Shin Splints
- Tennis Elbow (tendonitis)
- Fractures
- Muscle Tears
- Ligament Tears
Although not life-threatening or life-altering, these injuries can be uncomfortable and painful. While some of these injuries may require surgery to be fully repaired, physical therapy is still valuable pre and post-surgery. Especially for injuries where muscles or ligaments tear or detach.
Work Injuries
Injuries at work are unfortunate but occur regardless of whether you work at a desk in an office, in a kitchen as a cook, or in construction. Many of the injuries you can suffer at work can result in the same types of injuries caused by sports. That being said, injuries from slipping, falling, overexertion, back pain, and accidents with workplace equipment can still happen and must be taken care of.
It’s very common for jobs where there isn’t a significant variety of movements for workers to deal with injuries from repetitive motion. This is similar to tennis elbow and can cause weakness and pain.
Surgery
Although surgery should be the last option for recovery, it is sometimes inevitable. For these cases, physical therapy is used after many surgeries. Physical therapy is crucial in ensuring the body heals without developing scar tissue for joint replacement, muscles, ligament, or tendon repair, and spinal surgeries. Physical therapy is also used before surgeries to help strengthen the body in preparation. A physical therapist can help you determine when you can safely resume certain activities and go back to work.
Concussions
A concussion occurs when the head receives a blow significantly hard enough to move the brain back and forth inside the skull rapidly. This can happen after a car accident, sports injury, or a slip and fall. Although concussions primarily affect the brain, they are known to cause issues with balance and coordination. Most concussions resolve themselves after a week or two, with no symptoms. If symptoms don’t go away on their own, physical therapy can help regain balance, stability, coordination, and focus.
Radiculopathy (Pinched Nerve)
Pinched nerves can cause severe pain. Depending on the nerve being pinched, it can make daily activities extremely painful or nearly impossible, including sleep. When the space where nerve roots exit the spine becomes narrow, the nerve can become irritated. The sciatic nerve, for example, travels from the lower back through the hips and down each leg. When it is pinched, the pain can make it difficult to walk. Physiotherapists can provide stretches and exercises to alleviate pressure from the nerve. However, there are some cases where surgery may be needed to remove some material.
Take the Next Step In Improving Your Health by Contacting SOHMA Integrative Medicine
Our goal is to help you improve your health. You can contact us and ask about the Myers Cocktail, IV Therapy, Chiropractic care, or how our other health service lines can help you with your journey to improved health.
Located in Long Beach, CA, we help individuals from the surrounding cities.
We look forward to helping you take the next step in your journey to better health.
