How To Stay Motivated And Keep A Good Mindset Throughout Physical (Physio) Therapy by Sierra Powell

April 2, 2022 ~ Eleanor Segall ~ 1 Comment

Photo from Pexels

Physical (physio) therapy sticks out as an important part of the recovery process if you find yourself in pain or overcoming an injury. Continuing to do your physical therapy may seem overwhelming, so you could end up losing your motivation. This means you should find some ways to keep yourself motivated, so you can enjoy all the benefits of physical therapy.

Ask Someone to Help You

If you struggle with motivation, you can always talk with people close to you for some help. For example, if you have a family member you trust, you can mention your lack of motivation. From there, you can ask that person to keep you motivated and check in with you, so you can stick with the physical (physio) therapy and overcome your injury.

Sometimes, motivation simply requires another person to help you out. If you let someone work alongside you, then you don’t have to tackle the challenge on your own. Having the additional support can help you remain motivated and stick with the therapy process.

Remember the Potential Benefits

Sometimes, people don’t like to go through physical (physio) therapy since they may feel pain and spend multiple hours tackling the process. For example, if you deal with sciatica pain, you may feel excruciating back pain while you go through therapy. Since you may not want to deal with the pain, you may lose your motivation to continue.

You need to remember the benefits of physical (physio) therapy, so you can stick with it. After all, you can lower your pain in the future if you effectively treat it now, so make sure you remember this point whenever you want to quit.

Make Note of Your Progress

When you go through physical (physio) therapy, you may overlook the progress you make if you focus on the negatives. For example, if you don’t like spending an hour every few days working on your physical (physio) therapy, you won’t realise the progress you made. If you change your mindset to focus on your progress, you may build your motivation up again.

This means you should remember how much time and hours you put into the process to help you stick with it. That way, you can get a better understanding of how much it helped you out since you can see how much you have progressed compared to the beginning.

Enjoy Every Victory

On top of tracking your progress, you should also celebrate each victory you experience. For example, if you go through physical (physio) therapy to help you walk again, you should celebrate once you take your first step. Even though it may not seem like much, reminding yourself of each of these moments can help you feel motivated to continue.

Even the smallest victories can help you with motivation, so make sure you never overlook them. You can enjoy the first step, but you should also celebrate every step you take. You can apply this type of thought process to any therapy you need to participate in.

Create a Timeline for Yourself

Sometimes, people need to know how much they must dedicate to the process if they want to keep themselves motivated. For example, if you need to go through physical therapy twice a week for a month, you can note how many days you have left. This means if you just finished your second session, you only have six more to go through.

Creating a timeline like his can help you visualise what you still need to do. You can mark these days on a calendar to keep track of each important date, so you can make sure you go through the whole process and finish it.

Conclusion

Maintaining your motivation requires you to focus on your mind, since doing so will help you look at the situation positively.

Make sure you keep yourself in a good headspace and boost your mental health, so you can get through the recovery process and get back to your usual life. Self care is so important.

This requires tons of effort on your part, but you can help yourself to get better and recover.

Sierra Powell is a content writer from the USA.

How is Massage Therapy useful when recovering from an Anxiety Disorder? Guest Blog by Ashley Smith

March 12, 2019March 25, 2019 ~ Eleanor Segall ~ 1 Comment

(image: Ashley Smith)

Massage therapy, which is often sought by people for relaxation, is not only offered by luxurious spas but it’s also becoming a mainstream treatment technique for boosting mental and physical health. Nowadays, healthcare professionals especially physical (physio) therapists are using this age-old and unique healing technique to relieve pain that stems from a wide range of physical and mental health issues.

Yes, massage therapy is not only essential for improving the mood and offering relaxation to those who live an utterly busy life where they have to deal with tight deadlines all the time, but it’s also beneficial for people struggling with conditions like stress, anxiety disorders, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder apart from musculoskeletal injuries and illnesses.

Yes, the mental health benefits of massage therapy are endless, so you shouldn’t hesitate to seek it. Divided into several sub-categories such as Swedish massage, deep tissue massage, sports massage, prenatal massage, and infant massage, etc., massage therapy is one of the most crucial techniques that make it easier for you to live a pain-free and fulfilling life.

If you talk specifically about anxiety disorders which include generalized anxiety disorder, phobias, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, separation anxiety disorder, and selective mutism, they can interrupt your life completely.

Characterised by common symptoms like sweating, trembling, sadness, restlessness, excessive worry, fatigue, insomnia, fear, and nausea, etc., an anxiety disorder makes it difficult for you to focus on both your personal and professional life. For example, if you are struggling with a panic disorder, you will keep on experiencing frequent episodes of intense anxiety and fear that prevent you from concentrating on your work. And when your fear reaches a peak, you encounter a panic attack.

Similarly, if you talk about Generalised Anxiety Disorder, you will keep on worrying about day-to-day activities.

According to The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), people who suffer from Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) experience excessive worry for a minimum of 6 months about various areas of their life like activities of daily living, interacting with people, and personal health, etc. And this fear makes it difficult for them to do good in these areas.

Experiencing anxiety is normal; the problem comes when you suffer from an anxiety disorder. Yes, there is a vast difference between experiencing anxiety and suffering from an anxiety disorder; the former is quite healthy for you, but the later is a mental illness. That’s true. Normal anxiety helps you prepare for future events and situations, whereas an anxiety disorder like panic disorder and social anxiety disorder, make it difficult for you to face those events.

The fear that stems from normal anxiety disappears soon; however, the worry that attacks you due to an anxiety disorder stays with you until you recover from your problem. And what’s concerning is it can worsen with the passage of time in the absence of professional help.

Yes, seeking professional help is the only way to recover from this mental illness.

According to Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), “Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older, or 18.1% of the population every year.” It further states that “Anxiety disorders are highly treatable, yet only 36.9% of those suffering receive treatment.”

So, here is how massage therapy can help you battle an anxiety disorder.

In Reducing Stress

The stress that stems from facing tough situations can lead to further health complications if you fail to take professional help for it at the right time. You should take corrective steps to minimise your stress levels if you can. Consulting a licensed physical (physio) therapist to seek massage therapy can bring tremendous change in your health.

I believe that since people struggling with an anxiety disorder also experience high-level of stress, they should seek massage therapy to address anxiety, alongside other methods.

When you are stressed out, your body releases a hormone called Cortisol, which affects several areas in your life such as public speaking, social interactions, performance at work, and happiness.

Since you always feel stressed out, you can’t experience happiness in your life. Therefore, to deal with the problems that you face in different areas of your life, it’s essential that you work on improving your mental health, and one of the best ways to start in this direction is to control your stress levels and promote relaxation by seeking massage therapy.

Your therapist might use Swedish massage to reduce your stress level. According to Gulf Shore Physical Therapy Center, “Swedish massage is more gentle and targets more superficial tissues, perfect for anyone looking to relax and relieve mental as well as physical stress. As the best-known type of bodywork performed today, one of the primary goals of the Swedish massage technique is to relax the entire body.”

In Minimising Muscle Tension

Muscle tension and muscle pain are the symptoms of elevated stress level, and hence, people living with an anxiety disorder also experience them. Seeking massage therapy, wherein your massage therapist uses hand techniques to reduce muscle tension and pain, can have significant benefits for your mental health.

Since it offers relaxation, it not only helps in improving your performance at work but also allows you to spend quality time with your loved ones at home.

In Improving Sleep

Sleep problems are one of the most common signs of an anxiety disorder, and massage therapy is in our opinion, the best way to address it. Whether you stay awake the whole night because you find it difficult to fall asleep or you are someone who wakes up frequently from your sleep, massage therapy will deal with these issues by offering relaxation and addressing the problem of muscle tension and pain.

When you enjoy a good night’s sleep, you will wake up feeling fresh and energetic in the morning, which plays a crucial role in improving your entire day.

In Enhancing Your Emotional Well-Being

People with an anxiety disorder often struggle with their mental health and some have depression alongside it. Massage therapy can promote relaxation and boost wellbeing. Experts believe that it has several benefits for mental health, you shouldn’t underestimate its potential to improve your emotional well-being.

Since it reduces stress and anxiety, it eventually stabilises your mind which improves your emotional well-being.

In Reducing Chronic Pain

If you are also living with pain due to an injury or illness apart from an anxiety disorder, massage therapy can help reduce your pain. Since it helps in enhancing circulation, you will see a tremendous improvement in the reduction of pain after a massage therapy session.

It will also accelerate the natural healing process by supplying nutrients to injured tissues.

Massage therapy will also help in enhancing your mind-body connection, which is extremely useful for your overall well-being. It can be used alongside conventional therapies, to support relaxation and good mental health. Try it today.

This article was written by Ashley Smith, freelance writer in the USA

How Physio/ Physical Therapy can help you manage Stress and Anxiety: Guest post by Ashley Smith

October 7, 2018 ~ Eleanor Segall ~ Leave a comment

(image: www.physiquemassagetherapy.com)

Stress and anxiety, which can lead to a large number of health problems, are common among people of all ages. The first step toward managing these problems is to change your attitude toward them. Most people think that these are common problems, so they do not pay much attention when it comes to managing them.

However, if you talk about long-term stress, it increases the risk of health conditions like obesity, memory impairment, trouble sleeping, autoimmune diseases, heart problems, high blood pressure, heart attacks, and stroke, etc., so it’s essential to seek quality treatment to deal with them.

You can feel stressed due to several reasons including tough competition in the workplace, family problems, relationship issues, divorce, financial problems, and tiredness, etc. And if you fail to deal with it, you can face further complications.

Here are The Symptoms of Stress

-Mood swings and getting frustrated

-Difficulty in controlling your emotions

-The feeling of loneliness and low self-esteem

-Reduced energy levels

-Suffering from conditions like headaches, muscle tension, and chest pain

-Stomach problems like constipation or diarrhea

-Dry mouth and grinding teeth

-Difficulty focusing on your task

Experiencing negative thoughts

Loss of interest in the activities you used to love the most

Facing problem in relaxing and stabilizing your mood

A Brief Description of Anxiety

Anxiety, which is experienced by everyone at some point in their lives, can lead to a variety of other problems. When your anxiety progresses into an anxiety disorder, which is a mental health condition, it becomes harder to recover from it. Therefore, seeking quality treatment at the right time remains the only solution for you.

Signs & Symptoms of Anxiety

-Avoiding situations, places, and things linked to a horrific event

-Experiencing problems in concentrating at work

-Losing interest in the activities of daily living

-Sleep problems and difficulty in staying calm

-Cold and sweaty hands and feet

-Increased heart rate and feeling nervousness

-Dry mouth and tense muscles

So, if you are someone who is living with high-level of stress and anxiety, it’s necessary that you seek proper treatment. Experts believe that physical (physio) therapy is the best way to manage stress and anxiety.

It’s a drug-free treatment for stress and anxiety; therefore, anyone can seek it. It means whether you are an adult above 40 or a 15-year old child if you are struggling with any of these problems, physical (physio) therapy could be a suitable treatment.

Here’s how a physical/ physio therapist helps you recover from stress and anxiety.

The best part of consulting a physical/ physio therapist is that they devote their time and resources to identify the underlying cause of your problem so that they can address it with the right therapy techniques.

For figuring out the actual cause of your stress and anxiety, they check your medical history and symptoms. Besides, they may also ask a variety of questions linked to your daily routine to arrive at a reliable diagnosis.

The kind of techniques that physical therapists use show a quick result when it comes to managing stress and anxiety.

For example, if you are experiencing stress due to work pressure or tight deadlines, then they will create a treatment plan that will consist of exercises that promote relaxation.

Massage therapy or therapeutic massage is one of the most effective treatments for relieving stress and anxiety. It not only helps in reducing stress and anxiety, but also improves circulation and lymphatic drainage, boosts mood, cures pain, minimizes inflammation and swelling, and accelerates the healing process.

Physical/ physio therapists use different types of massage therapy techniques such as pressure point massage, Swedish massage, deep tissue massage, and functional message to address individual problems.

According to Excel Sports & Physical Therapy, “Swedish massage is more gentle and targets more superficial tissues, perfect for anyone looking to relax and relieve mental as well as physical stress.“

Your therapist may use a variety of aromatic oils while administering therapeutic massage to promote relaxation.

Apart from massage therapy, your physical therapist may also use manual therapy to address the signs and symptoms of stress and anxiety.

A unique form of hands-on treatment, manual therapy helps in enhancing the ability of your body parts to function effectively. When your body parts work in harmony with each other, you naturally feel relaxed. While administering this technique, physical (physio) therapists apply pressure on your body through their hands, which feels quite relaxing.

It’s not only used by physical/ physio therapists but also by massage therapists, athletic trainers, and chiropractors, etc., to heal people struggling with pain, discomfort, stress, and anxiety.

So whether you are struggling with stress and anxiety or conditions like the neck, back, shoulder, and knee pain, etc., this therapy can bring a world of difference in your health.

This article was written by Ashley Smith, expert in this area of therapy.