What do you think when you hear “physical therapy”?
Maybe exercise or massage come to mind; maybe even pain. You know it deals with improving from injuries, and you probably had some personal experience at your local therapy clinic.
To be honest, at first I had no clue what physical therapy was.
After a shoulder subluxation playing basketball, I saw a PT who did some stretchy things with my arm and told me she was going to get my shoulder muscles really strong. Then she had me push against walls, and against my reluctance, I continued those and other exercises. Eventually, the pain and loose feeling in my shoulder subsided, and I was a believer!
Many years later – with a Doctorate degree (and many thousands in loans) – I still know plenty of people who think PTs perform massages for a living. Not knocking Massage Therapists in any way, but PTs have a separate scope of practice in healthcare. This is what you need to know about the roles and approaches of a Physical Therapist. 👇🏽
