Physical Therapy Tips For the First Timer
If you need to go to physical therapy, it's likely because you are suffering from an injury or trying to recover from a traumatic incident. This can make your mindset less than ideal during this time. To get the most out of physical therapy, you need to go into it with a winning mindset. The more positive you remain, the more likely it is that your mind will be able to push your body towards your goal. To that end, here are some tips to keep in mind ahead of your first physical therapy session.
One Day at a Time
Successful physical therapy is always a marathon, not a sprint. Yes, you want to get better and restore your body as quickly as possible, but you also need to go into this process knowing that it's not going to happen overnight. What you should do before your first appointment is to set some small goals for yourself. Then, after the first session, your therapist may be able to help you adjust those goals based on the progress you made during the first day. This is a situation where you don't want to shoot for the moon. If you need to learn how to walk again, for example, your first goal might actually be to just stand up without assistance, never mind taking any actual steps. Push yourself a little bit further each day and you can be excited about making progress instead of disappointed that you aren't further along.
Prepare Mentally for Homework and Then Follow Through
When you first start physical therapy, you might have the opportunity to jump start your initial progress by following some exercises provided by your therapist when you are at home. It's very important that you do everything your therapist tells you to do, whether you are in a session or at home on your own. Unless you are in very intensive therapy, it's likely that you won't have to go see your physical therapist every single day, but you absolutely must complete your at-home assignments if you want to maintain your progress throughout the week.
Understand Your Body Before and After Each Appointment
When you first start physical therapy, your therapist may ask questions to get to know your situation. It can help if prior to the appointment you make your own assessment. Do you know exactly how far you can lift your legs or arms, for example? At what point do you begin to feel pain? Then, follow through with these questions after each appointment and let your therapist know if you are making progress or if the pain seems to be getting worse.
Contact a physical therapy expert today for more information