Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) is a common condition that limits the natural function of the jaw, such as opening the mouth and chewing, and can cause pain. The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is a hinge joint that connects your jaw to your skull in front of your ear. The TMJ guides jaw movement and allows you to open and close your mouth and move it from side to side to talk, yawn, or chew.
Symptoms of TMJ include Jaw pain or Jaw fatigue, Difficulty opening your mouth to eat or talk, Ringing in your ears, Dizziness, Headache, Popping sounds in your jaw, Neck pain, Locking jaw.
Aquatic Therapy is defined as physical therapy that takes place in a pool or another aquatic environment under the supervision of a trained healthcare professional. Aquatic therapy is also known as water therapy, aquatic rehabilitation, pool therapy, therapeutic aquatic exercise or hydrotherapy.
Common goals of aqua therapy programs include: Improving flexibility, balance and coordination.Building muscle strength and endurance. Enhancing aerobic capacity, Assisting with gait and locomotion. Lastly, reducing stress and promoting relaxation
It is different from aquatic exercise or aquatic fitness because it is a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialty that requires the involvement of a trained professional and is covered by many insurance providers due to the personalized nature of the treatment.
Aquatic therapy should not be confused with adaptive aquatics, either. Adaptive aquatics is the process of teaching people with disabilities how to swim safely in the water. Aquatic therapy does not focus on teaching clients how to swim.
There are different types of aquatic therapy, listed below are a few popular examples.
- Hydro-Massage a relaxing form of water-based hydrotherapy massage that can take place in a dedicated spa pool or in a specially designed bath.
- Aqua Running provides an excellent cardiovascular workout, but can lead to joint damage. However, with an underwater treadmill, it’s possible to enjoy all the benefits of running.Underwater treadmills can be used to help athletes recover from injuries or to regain full-body motion after surgery.
- Bad Ragaz Ring Method's goal is to develop a water-based strengthening and mobilizing resistive exercise model through the use of combined elements of aquatic exercise techniques. The “ring” portion of the name of this water therapy technique refers to the ring-shaped flotation devices used to support the client as they move across the water’s surface.
- Burdenko Method is often used for treating sports-related injuries. It works to improve a patient’s speed, strength, flexibility, coordination, balance and endurance by performing rehabilitative exercises in the water and progressing into performing the exercises on land as their condition improves.
- Halliwick Concept focuses on helping clients develop balance and core stability.
The weather is warming up and that means people are out, about and doing more. For many people that means summertime sports, vacation, golf, running and even rigorous gardening and lawn chores. These activities are great to engage in but be aware that they can lead to a wide range of injuries such as runner's knee, tennis elbow, back pain and strain, tendinitis and more. When these things happen it is recommended to see either a physical therapist or a doctor to not only get fast relief, but also to address the underlying issues causing pain.
When sports injuries occur it is important to get the right kind of help. It is one thing to treat or manage the pain, which is what traditional medicine offers. This is generally done through treatment with pain medications or anti-inflammatory treatments but doesn't address the root cause of the injury at all. Physical Therapy provides a natural alternative for treatments and addresses the cause of pain while simultaneously providing some degree of relief for the pain almost immediately.
Educators have the opportunity to make a huge impact on their students – however, they face many challenges, which may result in low back, neck and shoulder pain; tired feet, aching legs, headaches, insomnia and stress. Often, the number one concern for teachers is back pain when standing.
Whether you’re a nursery school teacher or a college professor, job-related challenges can be reduced or avoided, especially if you know how to improve posture. Challenges include: teachers often stand “lecture-style” for extended hours, placing an extra burden on the low back and legs, which may lead to poor posture. Additionally, hard unforgiving surfaces can take their toll after prolonged standing. Bending or stooping over children at their desks and sitting down for long periods when grading assignments.
Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS), or runner's knee, got its nickname for an obvious and very unfortunate reason—it's common among runners. The stress of running can cause irritation where the kneecap (patella) rests on the thighbone. The resulting pain can be sharp and sudden or dull and chronic, and it may disappear while you're running, only to return again afterward. While biomechanical issues may be to blame for runner's knee, the cause can often be traced back to poorly conditioned quadriceps and tight hamstrings.
Weak quads aren't able to support the patella, leading it to track out of alignment, and inflexible hamstrings can put pressure on the knee. If you want to treat and avoid another bout with runner's knee, add strengthening and stretching to your routine.
What did you learn growing up that you implement in your physical therapy practice now?
Compassion and empathy to go along with the knowledge. I think that’s all people want from anybody. Just be honest, be a little compassionate with me. Especially people who are in pain. They don’t want to come through the door complaining. They’re hurting. You’re an outlet for them.
How do you get started with a new patient?
The first thing I ask is, “How can I help you?” Because you’re here and I’m here to help you. It’s not my therapy.
What happens once you’re working with patients who say they’re starting to feel better from the treatment?
Hopefully they’re saying, “I’m a lot better.” I’ll go through what I just did with them and then I’ll try to incorporate exercises. Now at this point I’m trying to empower you as the patient. It’s not about me now. I always give exercises that you’ll be able to do in a timely fashion.
What happens once a patient is empowered in your care?
It’s about you talking about your problems and me, like a scientist, I’m just helping you interpret those results. We’re working as a team. And that empowers people, too. They feel like they’re part of this.
If you sense patients are stressed in their everyday lives, what can you do for them?
I tell people, “Put your phone over there. Forget about the phone. You’re a slave to your phone.” So they’ll put the phone away. I have dim lighting. I have the aromatherapy in my room. And I have Pandora so they can pick the music. That’s it. I’ll leave them in there for 15 to 20 minutes. In that time, they get to integrate all this. It lets them unwind. They get to decompress. They get to unplug. And they get to appreciate the whole therapy. I’ve incorporated not only therapy, but the experience. Usually people will come out and say, “I feel great.” After a while I’ll get people saying, “I couldn’t wait to get here.” When do you hear people say they couldn’t wait to get to a medical office?
What is the best exercise?
I get that question a lot. I’ll throw it right back at them -- “What do you think is the best exercise?” They all say the same thing. “Well, walking, right?” I say, “Maybe.” They’ll say, “What about swimming?” I’ll say, “You know what? Those are two good exercises, but it’s a trick question. The best exercise is the one you’ll do.”
What if patients say their doctor has told them to stop working out? Can you still recommend exercises?
Let’s work on the problem. If something you do is part of who you are and you feel good about that, then I just want to support that. But I want to support it in a safe way so you don’t get injured. That’s where I’ll come in. Because I really understand that injury has a psychological and a spiritual effect. You start to lose your focus on things because you don’t feel good about yourself. So I’ll constantly support you in what you do; I’ll just modify certain things. You still have who you are, but you’re doing it in the safest way possible.
A) To help bio mechanical abnormalities related to pain.
e.g. flat feet
B) To help accelerate tissue repair by temporarily supporting and uploading injured soft-tissues
e.g. Rotator Cuff tendonitis / partial tear
C) To help temporarily support hyper-mobile segments or joints
e.g. Sacro-iliac joint (SIJ) hyper-mobility and pain (very common in pregnant women)
D) To help unload stress and reduce pain from hyper tonic / overactive muscles
e.g. Muscle Tension in the Neck and Low back
E) To help restrict and limit potentially aggravating postures and movements
e.g. Lumbar flexion and rotation for low back pain
F) To help facilitate muscle activity, in order to increase the effectiveness of therapeutic exercises
e.g. Knee pain from poor tracking of the kneecap (very common in runners)
G) To help relieve acute perfuse myofascial pain
e.g. Whiplash Associated Disorders
The cause of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction is often caused by pregnancy, trauma from a car accident, infections, or surgery. Sometimes a gym injury can bring it on. Even doing too many kegels or rough menstrual cramps can cause PFD to manifest itself.
Symptoms of PFD range from a muscle or groin pull, frequent or painful urination, lower back pain, constipation or painful intercourse, yet the diagnosis is sometimes hard to get. When you are in pain in the pelvic or groin region, doctors will test for infections and come up empty. Often PFD is the cause. If not treated properly, PDF can go on to affect the bladder causing incontinence, IBS or Irritable Bowel Syndrome, certain sexual dysfunctions, trouble sitting for long periods and other related pain.
Yet all is not lost. Physical Therapy has been known to have excellent results ranging from relief to full recovery. Some of the options available for patients of PFD include trigger point release massage, connective tissue manipulation, heat and cold therapy, electrical stimulation, deep tissue massage, mysofascial release, biofeedback, ultrasound, and rehab including strengthening exercises and Pilates
These exercise can range from simple pelvic tilts while lying on the floor, to lying on a tennis ball to release the tension and re-educate the muscles around the sacroilliac joint, to simple Pilates moves, like sit ups and stretches, to strengthen the entire core and the pelvic floor.
With a well-rounded physical therapy program in place, patients will heal and achieve a better level of health and fitness overall.
