Physiotherapy a great tool for preventing long-term health issues, which is why it’s critical kids are seen throughout the season, not just when an injury has occurred—or even worse, years later when the pain has become unbearable.
Chances are, if you are raising a child, at some point the words “physical therapy” will come your way. At all ages and stages, there can be many benefits of physical therapy for your child.
I say it all the time; children aren’t just little adults. And whether the cause is playing their favorite sport, or simply playing outside with friends, their bones, muscles and joints require special, personalized care when they suffer an injury.
Physical therapists might guide children through a variety of different exercise routines and activities such as:
- Developmental activities such as crawling and walking.
- Flexibility exercises to increase range of motion.
- Balance and coordination activities.
- Adaptive play.
Remember: A child’s bones, muscles and joints require special care.
A child’s growth plates – the areas at the end of the long bones in the arms and legs responsible for making new bone tissue – are still open.
If a child or teenager injured these growth plates, and is not diagnosed or treated properly, it can lead to damage that may leave them permanently sidelined from their favorite activities.
Today’s injuries among children are commonly related to overuse. Kids are more competitive and specialized in their sports, which can lead to working out one area of the body more than their developing bodies may be able to handle.
The benefits of physical therapy may include:
- Increase coordination
- Decrease pain
- Decrease muscle spasm and spasticity
- Decrease swelling and inflammation of joints
- Promote healing of soft tissue lesions
- Prevent contracture and deformity of limbs
- Promote mobility through walking or use of wheeled-mobility
- Increase ability in daily activities such as self-care and play
- Educate patients and family
- Decrease stress
It is now more common for kids to experience pain that adults tend to have, such as back pain or muscular strains.
That doesn’t mean you should keep your child from participating in sports or recreational play.
Above all, being active is important for their development. And the good news is that kids recover faster from many injuries than adults would. Despite generally fast recovery time,the best way to handle injuries is to prevent them from occurring in the first place.
I can work with your child to recover and strengthen areas that may be affected by the injury.
I can also help him or her work on methods to prevent the injury from recurring. Like teaching them specific stretches and strengthening exercises.
On top of that parents should talk with their kids about balancing their activities, recognizing symptoms of pain, and teaching them when they may be overdoing it.
Kids are less likely to recognize when they’re injured.
Parents should talk with the physical therapist separately to learn more about how to help their children recover and work through the prescribed home exercises.
Physical therapy can be beneficial to help your children prevent or recover from sports or other injuries as they grow up.
We can mold and craft the best future of our KIDS FUTURE in the sports arena. I can guarantee the benefits of physiotherapy to your kids development and helping them to best players that they can dream of!
