RehaBlog

RehaBlog

The Role of Occupational Therapy in Recovery

Whether we realize it or not, we always engage in some kind of activity, even when we’re asleep. Occupational therapists assess a person’s routines, like taking a shower, making breakfast, or checking the mail, as well as a person’s habits, or those expressions of occupation that, for better or worse, create predictability for a person to help navigate life demands.

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Music Therapy Resources

Music therapy is the evidence-based use of music to achieve non-musical goals. It’s a creative approach to wellness and a form of non-verbal self-expression that supports interaction, confidence, and self-esteem. Music can be adapted to support cognitive, speech and language, and sensorimotor goals, and provide emotional and social support. Learn about the various diagnoses music therapy can support and resources for accessing music therapy services.

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3 Things You Need to Know About Exercise if You Have Diabetes

Exercise is an important component in managing blood sugar levels for those with diabetes. It can acutely lower your blood sugar, and lower A1C if performed regularly long term. Exercise can increase insulin sensitivity, resulting in more glucose from your blood being metabolized with smaller amounts of insulin available.

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Can CBD Help with Pain Management?

CBD, or cannabidiol, is a non-intoxicating cannabinoid product derived from hemp or cannabis plants. Unlike its more controversial counterpart THC, which causes the euphoric “high” experienced with recreational cannabis use, CBD is becoming associated with a variety of health benefits. Discover its potential uses, side effects, and the research behind it.

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Navigating Daily Life with Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral Palsy (CP) affects many aspects of daily life with symptoms that can evolve over time. Learn more about the challenges, management strategies, and potential interventions for adults living with CP.

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What Is Dry Needling?

Dry needling is the use of a very thin filament (needle) to address areas of muscle tension and pain. The purpose is to relieve pain by increasing blood flow to the muscles and joints, helping nerves become less irritated, and encouraging the relaxation of muscles. Dry needling addresses musculoskeletal issues by targeting muscle trigger points to alleviate pain and muscle tightness, while acupuncture uses needles at specific points along energy pathways to address the body’s

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Smartphone Apps to Help Spinal Cord Injury Patients

In contemporary life, we as individuals and communities are constantly connected to each other. We crave social interaction, leisure activities, and access to each other as well as the world around us. Over the past decades, modern technologies such as smartphones have facilitated our desire to engage not only in communication with each other, but with our environment as well.

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Managing and Preventing Incontinence with Physical Therapy

More than 25 million adult Americans suffer from incontinence. Men and women are often embarrassed to seek treatment for loss of bladder or bowel control. Urinary and fecal incontinence can cause low self-esteem, create social isolation, and impair quality of life. Incontinence is the lack of voluntary control over urination or defecation. There are two major types of incontinence and they are treated differently.

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Backpack Safety

Backpacks are a convenient way for students to carry around their schoolbooks and supplies throughout the day, but using them incorrectly can lead to serious muscle and joint injuries. Carrying a heavy load can strain the shoulders, back, and neck. As a result, the body tries to compensate by leaning forward or sideways, which can lead to misalignment of the spine and weakening of muscles.

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How to Keep Your Wheelchair Running Smoothly

Poor wheelchair maintenance can increase the risk of your wheelchair breaking down, which can lead to personal injury or even death, and increase the cost of your medical care. Additionally, wheelchair breakdown can limit your mobility and social participation. Here are tips to keep your wheelchair running smoothly.

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5 Assistive Tools to Help with Daily Living

Staying independent and functioning efficiently in your daily life is important for your overall well-being. Occupational therapists are trained to analyze an activity and find the best tool to assist you. Here are 5 common examples.

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New mom holding baby postpartum
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Does Every New Mother Need Physical Therapy?

Have you or a woman you know experienced leaks when laughing? Contrary to popular belief, this is not normal. The U.S. is following in the footsteps of other countries when it comes to postpartum health. Sheltering Arms Institute’s pregnancy recovery services aim to prevent such issues as more women receive education and a referral from their doctor to see a women’s health physical therapist after childbirth.

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Tired man rubbing eyes
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How to Improve Fatigue

One of the most common symptoms among people with chronic medical conditions is fatigue. For some people, fatigue is their most debilitating symptom. Disease-related fatigue is associated with a poorer quality of life and increased disability; however, many people feel like they do not have a treatment plan to address fatigue. Here are some common questions you may have regarding fatigue.

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Apps for Improving Memory

In a time where people are focused on their health more than ever before, many are seeking out ways to not only improve their physical health, but their cognitive health as well. As a speech-language pathologist, one of the most frequently asked questions I receive is, “Are there any apps that I can download to improve my memory?” The first line of defense is to speak with your physician about your memory concerns; however, there

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Novel Ways Occupational Therapists Can Use Bodyweight Support Technology

Bodyweight support technology (BWST) is used in physical rehabilitation to offload a percentage of an individual’s body weight with a harness and robotic technology. Many existing technologies implement body weight support. Bodyweight support technology decreases a person’s risk of further injury while also optimizing the challenges implemented in therapy. It can help increase confidence for both the patient and clinician when trying new, taxing activities in a safe environment. Strength, activity tolerance, and balance can

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Physical Therapy for Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fasciitis is a common cause of heel pain; approximately one in 10 people will develop it at some point in their life. The plantar fascia is a tissue that supports and helps maintain the longitudinal foot arch. Plantar fasciitis is an over-stretch injury; inadequate arch support can lead to plantar fasciitis. The good news: nearly 90 percent of individuals respond to conservative treatment such as physical therapy.

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Understanding the Different Types of Stroke

Stroke? CVA? TIA? With so many acronyms and names, it can be overwhelming to understand how and why a stroke might happen. A stroke, or a cerebral vascular accident (CVA), is a medical emergency in which the blood supply to the brain is limited or interrupted. This causes a lack of nutrients and oxygen that may result in brain damage and cell death.

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Rediscovering Identity: Navigating Life After Limb Loss

The full or partial loss of a limb is a challenging, life-altering event. Those who experience it often endure changes in many aspects of their life from their work to their relationships to their perception of themselves. There is a grieving process due to the loss of the limb, and the apparent loss of the life that they had once lived. These factors can leave individuals with limb loss struggling with their personal identity or

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5 Exercises to Strengthen Your Core

The core and its importance in exercise is far more complex than most people know. In its entirety, the core can be thought of as a box that includes the abdominals in the front, the spinal and gluteal muscles in the back, the diaphragm as the roof, and the pelvic floor and hip muscles as the bottom. When all these muscle groups are equally strong and working together, safe and stable exercise is possible. However,

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Physical therapy for limb loss
RehaBlog

Why Do My Therapists Collect Outcome Measures?

If you have received physical rehabilitation services at some point, your therapist likely said to you, “Today, we are going to collect some outcome measures to see where we are starting.” Hopefully, you also heard, “Today, we are going to repeat those outcome measures to see how well you are doing.” Those two statements alone should provide some insight as to why outcome measures are being performed. Outcome measurement can give therapists an idea of

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Occupational Therapy for Concussions

A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that can have far reaching effects on daily life by impacting vision, balance, memory, attention, problem solving, emotions, and sleep. Occupational therapists specialize in rehabilitation and adapting activities of daily life. Occupational therapy is highly individualized and centers on the specific roles, impairments, and demands of each person. Based on the specific needs of the individual, occupational therapy is often used to address the following after

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What is Lymphedema and How is it Treated?

Lymphedema refers to an injury or issue with the lymphatic system that leads to excessive accumulation of lymphatic fluid. This fluid can build up anywhere in the body and result in swelling. Lymphedema is most often caused by cancer treatment such as lymph node removal or radiation therapy though some other common causes include surgery and venous insufficiency.

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Aphasia and the Role of the Speech-Language Pathologist

Aphasia (pronounced uh-FEY-zhuh) is the medical term used to describe difficulty with the production and comprehension of language. This can occur after a stroke or other injury to the brain. In addition to speaking, aphasia can also affect listening, reading, and writing. Individuals with aphasia may experience trouble finding the right words and producing intact sentences, which can impact their ability to express themselves as well as having trouble understanding what others are saying to

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What’s Your Target Heart Rate?

After suffering a life-changing event such as a stroke, oftentimes patients wonder “Now what? What can I do outside of therapy to help with my recovery?” One of the best things you can do is MOVE! What is good for your heart is also good for your brain. To help drive that recovery, exercising at a certain level of intensity can be one of the best things you can do. It increases blood flow to

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What is Manual Physical Therapy?

Manual physical therapy is a hands-on treatment involving the application of targeted pressure, stretching, and manipulation of the muscles, joints, and soft tissues of the body. There are many reasons to perform manual therapy such as reducing pain, improving mobility, and improving posture and alignment. This type of therapy is performed by a licensed physical therapist and is commonly used to treat various musculoskeletal conditions, often in conjunction with therapeutic exercise.

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Signs of a Traumatic Brain Injury You May Not Know

What exactly is a traumatic brain injury? A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an injury to the brain that can be caused by a forceful jolt, bump, or hit to the head. It can also be caused by a sharp object that pushes through the skull and into the brain. Such injuries are often caused by car accidents, falls, sports, or natural disasters. For example, a concussion is a mild form of TBI; however, not

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