Recovering from an illness or injury that reduced your mobility will often include physical therapy. While it may be easy to follow a program when you are in session with a physical therapist, keeping up with exercises at home can be another story. The following tips may be helpful in making sure you stick with the homework exercises your therapist gives you to work on between sessions.
Get a Partner
One reason that patients have an issue with at-home compliance is that they lack the motivation to do the exercises on their own. Having a physical therapy partner is like having a personal trainer, or coach, to help motivate you to stay on course. Your partner can be a friend, family member, or care giver, whoever you feel comfortable with and who will keep you.
Give Yourself a Reward
Use a system of rewards to help motivate you to finish the exercises at home. Fun and healthy rewards that you don’t normally treat yourself to are great ways to encourage participation. Simple things like a fresh snack, five extra minutes on the morning alarm, or an extra episode of your favorite show are common examples of rewards that patients set for themselves. With a reward system and a partner, many patients find it a lot easier to comply with the full regimen of physical therapy exercises.
Keep Your Eyes on the Prize
Physical therapy is designed to help you reach an important health goal. When patients lose sight of the goal, they tend to taper off in complying with the at-home portion of therapy. Keeping the end goal in mind via reminders you see every day can help keep you focused.
Stay Positive
Sometimes, when a patient begins to doubt that their therapy goals are going to be reached, they give up. Keeping a positive attitude can make all the difference in the world. While it may not always be easy, tracking your progress as you go through therapy can provide an excellent motivational tool. When you have something to look back on that reflects your progress in a tangible way, it can help fight off doubt. For patients requiring long-term therapy or those who have a lot of pain, staying positive can be more challenging. Proper pain management and positive encouragement are the biggest keys to getting patients to stick with it.
Suburban Orthopaedics has a fully-trained staff of professionals that can help with all your physical therapy needs. Contact them today to find out what they can do for you. You can also follow them on Twitter for more updates!