If you are one of the millions of Americans who suffer from an autoimmune disease, you know how it can interfere with living a normal lifestyle. Autoimmune diseases can cause everything from muscle weakness and fatigue to chronic inflammation of different organs and bodily systems.
While medical management with steroids, interferon, and other disease-modifying drugs is warranted to address the disease itself, physical therapy can reduce the symptoms. Your physical therapist can show you various exercises and stretches to make you stronger and more limber, thereby counteracting the effects.
Whether you have rheumatoid arthritis (RA), multiple sclerosis (MS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, or “lupus”), or another type of autoimmune issue, physical therapy can help greatly. Let’s talk about some of the key benefits in tamping down autoimmune diseases through physical therapy, and where you can go in Austin for world-class physical therapy to help you feel great again.
Benefits of Physical Therapy for Autoimmune Disease
An individualized physical therapy program consists of strengthening, flexibility, and endurance training that can benefit patients who have autoimmune disease in the following ways:
- Reduce pain and stiffness
- Improve range of motion
- Improve mobility
- Strengthen and stabilize
- Improve sleep
- Reduce weight (if necessary)
- Reduce stress
- Decrease feelings of depression
- Retain neurological coordination and reduce the risk of falls
Physical Therapy for Lupus
Systemic lupus erythematosus can increase fatigue, reduce muscle strength, and diminish your body’s capacity for exercise. Improving your fitness level is therefore an incredible help in combating fatigue and giving you renewed strength and endurance.
As a part of a holistic approach to treating lupus, physical therapy strengthens the heart muscle and addresses damage to the connective and muscular tissues.
Physical Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis
Symptoms of multiple sclerosis vary from individual to individual. MS symptoms that are most responsive to physical therapy include muscle stiffness, muscle spasms, unsteady gait, and weakness or numbness of one or more limbs.
A physical therapy plan for MS might consist of training to normalize gait patterns and stretching exercises for muscle stiffness.
Physical Therapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Joint pain and swelling are the chief symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis that can be managed with physical therapy. Physical therapy can improve your mobility, restore function, relieve joint pain, and limit disability due to rheumatoid arthritis. Weight-bearing and strength training exercises can help to maintain bone density and increase functional abilities.
The inclusion of “pool therapy” in the physical therapy plan can help unload body weight from painful joints and minimize joint stress in RA.
Physical Therapist in Manor, Austin, and Bee Cave, TX
Whether you have an autoimmune disease or are recovering from surgery, the outstanding physical therapists at Endeavor Physical Therapy & Wellness are here to help you regain your strength and capabilities. Our licensed and experienced physical therapists serve to counteract deconditioning, pain, fatigue, and discomfort that often accompany an autoimmune disease.
To schedule an appointment with a physical therapist, call us today at (512) 213-1092 or fill out our appointment request form online now. We have convenient locations throughout Austin, Round Rock, Manor, Pflugerville, Cedar Park, Bee Cave, Hutto, and San Marcos, and we look forward to serving you!
