Your shoulders are the most movable and flexible joints in your body, which is made up of multiple tendons, muscles, and bones. They offer mobility and allow you to carry out your everyday tasks. However, when the shoulders get injured, it decreases your range of motion and affects your quality of life. Many people suffering from this pain would consult a physical therapist for shoulder pain treatment at some point. But do you know what advantages does this therapy give?
Personalized Treatment Plan
At first, your physical therapist will check your range of motion and strength of your shoulder as well as functional abilities like how far you can reach behind your back. They will also ask about your goals and and formulate a personalized plan for shoulder pain treatment that will help you to restore the normal functions of your shoulder.
Physical therapy treatment procedures may include joint stabilization, joint mobilization, strengthening, and stretching. The program may also include athletic taping, and stimulation through electricity, ultrasound, ice, and heat.
A qualified physical therapist can give you some valuable advice regarding work-place ergonomics and modifying your daily activities. They will also create a home exercise program for you, so that you can maintain a high quality life even outside of these sessions.
Prevent Surgical Procedures
Depending on your medical history and the extent of the pain, shoulder pain treatment through physical therapy can be an effective form of treatment. If you have mild or moderate osteoarthritis, small rotator cuff tears, or shoulder impingement, you can drastically improve your quality of life with these physical therapies and prevent complex surgical procedures that are both financially and physically risky.
Helps You Recover from Surgeries
If you have a condition where surgery is unavoidable, physical therapy before or after surgery can help you recover faster. Your doctor may recommend physical therapy before surgery for developing an exercise routine at your home and for strength development. Research shows patients who undergo pre-surgical physical therapy usually recover faster and require less amount of therapies after the surgeries.
Additionally, it is very common for shoulder pain treatment procedures to be performed after surgeries, whether it is a joint replacement, a rotator cuff repair, or an arthroscopic procedure. Physical therapy can help you regain your flexibility and strength after surgery and return to your recreational activities, family, and work.
Improves your Range of Motion
In addition to reducing the discomfort and pain that you are feeling, a physical therapist uses several methods of shoulder pain treatment to improve your range of motion. They may use soft tissue mobilization to relieve the built-up pressure in your tendons, joints, and muscles, thereby improving mobility. The treatment program may involve other methods like electrical nerve stimulation, cold therapy, ultrasound, and kinesiotape, etc.
Improves Blood Circulation
Shoulder pain treatment procedures often involve the use of effleurage. A therapist will perform this treatment procedure by using flattened fingers and hands. Different therapists will use different amounts of pressure during this procedure. This can be an extremely relaxing experience that can help in relieving tightness, stress, and pain in the shoulders.
This also helps in improving blood circulation by increasing muscle temperature. The muscles have enhanced elasticity and are free from tension and tightness. Effleurage also improves lymphatic circulation, which in turn aids in the elimination of toxic and waste products from the body.
Knots may often form on your shoulder because of which the blood may not be able to flow properly in that area. By releasing pressure, a shoulder massage allows the body to send blood to the affected areas.
Now that you know about all the benefits of physical therapies, there is no reason why you shouldn’t consider it for treating your shoulder pain. This way, you can recover faster and get back to your normal routine within few days.
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