Yes! You can, and should, get Physical Therapy even if you don't have pain!

#FAQF… “ I can get Physical Therapy even though I don’t have pain?”… YES!! and you SHOULD! Why wait until you are already hurt or in pain when there are things you can do preemptively? We do it with immunizations. We do it with the dentist. Why not do it with our physical body? In fact, “by their very nature, preventive measures succeed when disease doesn’t even appear”-The Miracle Cure
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So if we may be able to head off disaster, why would we not try?
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If you do not have an injury or an ache/pain you are a perfect candidate for a Physical Therapy Annual Physical. Most of us go to our GP for a Physical each year to check out our insides and to the Dentist to check out our teeth so this is the same thing but to check out how your body is moving.
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Each PT will incorporate different elements but it should consist of a general tests for your musculoskeletal, neurologic, cardiovascular, respiratory, and vestibular systems to get some baseline values. Then, most importantly, you will be taken through some motor control drills along with some movement analysis of things that you as an individual enjoy doing to get a feel for how well all of your systems are working together. This piece is where the music happens.
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To a Physical Therapist, your individual body systems are like instruments and your movement is the full orchestra. And you can think of us as your conductor. We have the ability to determine which instrument is out of tune or off tempo and to teach you how to improve so that your orchestra plays as flawlessly as possible.
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After the tests, the PT will have an idea of where your body is doing amazing as well as some areas that have some room from growth. A simple plan of care will be developed that may include an exercise or two, an activity, or just a few pointers. If you stay diligent to these, your body, movement, and function will thank you.
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Think of how amazing our movement could be if we added some individualized exercises to our daily routine the way we do with brushing our teeth.
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We don’t wait until we get a cavity to brush our teeth so why should we wait until we have back pain to see a PT?
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Food for weekend thought
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-Doc AAW