Youre in pain from an injury, have a chronic muscle or bone condition, or youve gotten a joint replacement, and now your doctor recommends a series of physical therapy sessions. You might wonder whether the time and effort (not to mention money if insurance wont cover it) is worth it. The answer is yes.
But its as much up to you as it is your physical therapist to make your experience as good as it can be.Heres what you can do:
Keep an upbeat attitude that this going to work. You will need to go into it as an optimist and believe that you can start to finally get on the road to recovery. Stop thinking that you'll never start to feel better and the pain will never go away.
Wear comfy, loose-fitting clothing. Exercise wear such as sweats, t-shirts, and shorts (not snug spandex outfits) are best, but not necessary. Your therapist will need access to the area of your injury.
Talk about what you want to get out of therapy. Do you want your pain to go away? To return to work? To get back to your normal activities? To prevent injury or improve sports performance? Discuss your goals in detail with your therapist so youll get the treatment thats appropriate for you. Have a discussion during your first meeting. At that time, the therapist will also take your health history, observe your posture and movement, and evaluate problem areas. Keep your appointments and arrive on time so youll have time for the full treatment.
