Is persistent, lingering pain keeping you from living the full, active life you want? Maybe you have an underlying condition such as osteoarthritis that makes it difficult to start moving, or perhaps your pain has always been there, even if the cause isn’t clear. Either way, aquatic therapy for chronic pain could be the solution you need!
Aquatic therapy is similar to physical therapy–it just takes place in the water rather than out on land. This one simple change offers a host of additional benefits, particularly for people with chronic pain conditions. Exercising in the water is less stressful on the joints and makes it easier to build strength without additional equipment. It can also be relaxing unto itself!
At Ohana Physical Therapy, we offer aquatic therapy as part of our comprehensive approach to physical therapy. Our onsite pools aren’t like the swimming pools at your local recreation center: you won’t find any splashing kids or lifeguard whistles here! Instead, you’ll find gently heated water, specialized therapeutic equipment, and our compassionate physical therapists, who will guide you through your personal treatment program.
If standard chronic pain treatments aren’t working for you, spending some dedicated time in the water might do the trick. Keep reading to learn more about aquatic therapy for chronic pain!
What Chronic Pain Conditions Can Benefit from Aquatic Therapy?
Firstly, it’s important to understand what exactly chronic pain is. Experts generally divide pain into two categories: acute (pain lasting less than three months) and chronic (lasting longer than three months).
Everyone experiences acute pain: it’s your body’s way of telling you something’s wrong. The pain you feel when you pull a muscle, stub your toe, or touch a hot pan are all examples of acute pain. It’s your body’s alarm system, and when the initial impairment resolves, so does the pain.
Chronic pain is different. It lasts well past the time it takes for an injury to heal, becoming a condition called chronic pain syndrome. People with chronic pain syndrome might feel pain throughout the body, not just at an injury site. Their mood can also impact their pain, causing it to worsen when they’re stressed or anxious. They might experience additional symptoms, too, such as fatigue or mental health struggles.
That said, some medical conditions can cause chronic pain. Arthritis is one of the most common, particularly osteoarthritis, which occurs when tissue in the affected joint degenerates, leading to inflammation that causes pain and immobility. Because osteoarthritis has no cure, there’s no way of resolving it as you would an injury. Instead, people with the condition focus on managing their symptoms.
Why Aquatic Therapy is a Great Choice for Managing Chronic Pain
When it comes to chronic pain, rest and inactivity can make things worse. Regular exercise is one of the best ways to improve your overall health and wellness and provides several benefits that can help lessen chronic pain syndromes. Exercise can…
- Build strength and mobility, making it easier for you to move
- Reduce pain sensitivity
- Reduce fatigue, a common side effect of chronic pain
- Improve your sleep quality
However, it can be extremely difficult for someone struggling with chronic pain to begin exercising. After all, if you struggle to walk for extended periods or go up and down stairs, more strenuous exercise might seem like an impossible task.
This is where aquatic therapy comes in. Water’s natural buoyancy reduces pressure on your joints–that’s why you feel like you’re floating whenever you get in the water. That buoyancy will allow you to complete various strengthening and stretching exercises more easily, providing the benefits of movement with less discomfort.
Furthermore, exercising in the water strengthens your muscles in and of itself. Just as you feel like you’re floating in the water, you also move more slowly, thanks to the water’s density. This means your muscles work harder than they would if you were on land. Simple movements like walking will build strength more easily when they happen in a pool.
Finally, aquatic therapy has several additional psychological benefits. All exercise can elevate mood, but simply being in the water can promote relaxation for many people. And because aquatic therapy often feels “easier” than regular physical therapy, it can help build your confidence, making it more likely you’ll continue your treatment (and see results).
What Are Some of the Aquatic Therapy Exercises We Might Recommend?
When you begin a treatment program at Ohana Physical Therapy , our therapists will work with you to develop a customized program that addresses your specific symptoms and goals. We’ll show you how to perform each exercise, track your progress, and increase the intensity as you improve.
It’s important to remember that aquatic therapy is not the same as swimming. In fact, you don’t even need to know how to swim at all. In some cases, we might recommend deep water exercises, in which you use a pool noodle or floating belt to keep afloat as you perform movements without touching the bottom. But for the most part, you’ll perform exercises while standing in waist- or chest-high water.
Here are examples of the types of exercises we might incorporate into your treatment plan:
- Water Walking: Just like regular walking, except you do it in the water!
- Leg Raise: You’ll extend your leg forward or to the side (while holding on to the pool’s edge for support if needed).
- Water Cycling: While using a floating device to keep you above water, move your legs like you’re riding a bicycle.
No matter your needs, we’ll find an aquatic therapy program that works for you!
Dive in Today!
Research shows that aquatic therapy is often more beneficial for people with chronic pain than land-based physical therapy. Reducing joint load (and therefore joint pain) while increasing the pressure on your muscles is a winning combination for people who struggle with persistent discomfort.
If you think you might benefit from aquatic therapy for chronic pain, contact Ohana Physical Therapy clinic today!
