Top 5 Benefits of Aquatic Physical Therapy

Top 5 Benefits of Aquatic Physical Therapy

Top 5 Benefits of Aquatic Physical Therapy
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Aquatic physical therapy is offered by the most upstanding physical therapy treatment centers, and it is not without reason. This form of therapy occurs in the water, usually either at the side of a pool or with a flotation device and is supervised and instructed by a physical therapy professional. The water creates a highly effective setting for patients to work on recuperating from injuries and limitations. Take a look at the primary benefits of aquatic physical therapy.

Gravity Reduction Allows Easier Support

Because your body is lighter in the water, you are able to stand easier and support your weight better than what you would be able to do on the regular floor. For patients who have bodily structures still healing, such as torn ligaments in the knees, or from recent surgery, this lack of gravitational pull allows them to work on things like gait training earlier than usual.

Warm Water Encourages Muscle Relaxation

The pool that is inside of a physical therapy center is not going to be icy cold like it would be in most other settings. The water is typically heated to a warm degree. The warm water helps the muscles to relax. Additionally, warm water enveloping your body during physical therapy helps to:

  • Improve peripheral circulation
  • Improve body awareness and balance
  • Improve trunk stability

When training sessions take place out of the water, devices and wraps that introduce heat to stressed or tensed muscles can prevent free range of motion. However, in warm water, there are no devices in the way, so the exercises can be done while the heat is applied without a hassle.

Water Viscosity Allows Resistance Training Without Devices

It takes an effort to move your body and limbs through the water, where moving through air takes no real effort. Therefore, strength training is easy to achieve in the water. The resistance of the water offers just enough to help encourage your muscles and bodily systems to work a little harder than usual.

Buoyancy Helps Reduce Stress and Pain

A lot of physical therapy clients have a difficult time during sessions because the therapeutic actions instructed can be stressing on the injured area in a way that causes pain. Since water allows you to be more buoyant, there will be less stress on things like joints, ligaments, and injuries while you perform instructed exercises.

Aquatic Therapy Can Be An Enjoyable Experience

For patients who have a prolonged need for physical therapy, their morale, and energy, to do the therapy can drop really quickly, especially if the typical sessions cause pain. With aquatic therapy sessions, you will feel more accomplished because you will have less of a struggle completing the training sessions, and you may even have a little fun in the process.

Overall, aquatic therapy is an excellent addition to a physical therapy program or plan for a lot of patients. In some situations, physical therapy combined with aquatic therapy helps patients achieve the best outcome in their treatment. Reach out to us at Kleinpeter Physical Therapy for more information about aquatic physical therapy.