Five ways physical therapists provide arthritis pain management

Arthritis can affect one or multiple joints, making it difficult to enjoy your favorite activities or accomplish what used to be simple tasks. Arthritis can cause joint pain during movement, limit your range of motion, or make it difficult to balance or coordinate your movements. There is no cure for arthritis, but there are treatments that can help manage the pain and symptoms. One effective form of treatment is physical therapy.

Physical therapists specialize in many treatment methods that can help manage arthritis pain and other related functional challenges. Take a look here to discover five ways physical therapy can help you:

1. Therapeutic exercises

Therapeutic exercises are safe and gentle exercises designed by your physical therapist to help improve your strength and flexibility. This provides improved structural support for your body and its joints that are affected by arthritis, which helps reduce pain and increase your range of motion.

2. Manual therapy

Also known as hands-on therapy, manual therapy is a practice in which your physical therapist uses their hands to engage your soft tissue and joints. Techniques like joint mobilization and soft tissue mobilization focus on maneuvering your tissue and joints into positions unattainable on your own. Through this process, your physical therapist can help reduce pain and improve your range of motion. 

3. Balance exercises

The effects of arthritis can impair your ability to maintain functional balance correctly. Physical therapists can guide you through various balance exercises designed to help you in your specific circumstances. Improving your balance is a vital step for reducing your chances of falling, which can be a common cause of injury in people with arthritis.

4. Posture guidance

Improving your posture can reduce stress on your joints. Your physical therapist can evaluate your standing, sitting and sleeping posture to identify areas that need improvement. They’ll give you guidance on how to make these improvements so you can take some pressure off your joints.

5. Patient education

Living with arthritis presents some unique challenges. You might need to relearn how to perform some basic activities like getting dressed or exercising. Our physical therapists can help you identify your challenges and come up with a strategy to overcome them.

You might also need to use assistive devices like canes or walkers to help you get around when you have advanced arthritis. Our physical therapists can show you how to use these devices correctly and safely. 

Visit Armor Physical Therapy for arthritis pain management

Arthritis makes your life more challenging, but you can better prepare yourself to face these challenges with the assistance of a physical therapist. Contact our team today for more information about arthritis pain management or to schedule an initial appointment. Movement is life!  Our team can help to improve your functional status.