How Physical Therapy Can Help a Senior with Balance Issues

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Weak balance is a huge problem for your senior because it can lead to falls and to bigger injuries. Often seniors find that as their balance worsens, they do less and that exacerbates the problem. One possible solution is to start physical therapy, particularly if your senior’s doctor agrees that it might be beneficial for her in improving her balance problems. Home health care providers can make sure the plans are being implemented.

Understanding Why Your Senior Has Balance Problems

Home Health Care New Providence NJ - How Physical Therapy Can Help a Senior with Balance Issues

Home Health Care New Providence NJ – How Physical Therapy Can Help a Senior with Balance Issues

There are a lot of different factors that can contribute to balance issues for your senior. Health issues, medication side effects, and more all have an impact. There may be ways to help your senior to counteract those factors, however, particularly through things like physical therapy at home. This is where a physical therapist comes to your senior and helps her to address the causes of her balance problems.

Physical Therapists Evaluate Contributing Factors

Physical therapists are able to thoroughly evaluate everything affecting your senior’s balance concerns. They can identify weaknesses in muscle groups, evaluate flexibility, and put together a plan for your senior to follow. Physical therapists work with your senior’s medical team to ensure that all of the different potential causes of balance problems are accounted for and that she’s got a plan for going forward.

Your Senior Has Targeted Exercises to Try

The key to physical therapy is the series of exercises that are recommended to your aging family member. Each activity is one that addresses a specific muscle group or improves other weaknesses that affect your senior’s balance. Actually doing those exercises on a regular basis can give your senior some big benefits.

Physical Therapy Adjusts as Your Senior’s Needs Change and Home Health Care Aides can Help Implement

Ultimately, your senior’s goals and needs are going to change as she continues with physical therapy. Home health care providers are able to help her to make adjustments to her routines and to her therapy exercises to accommodate those new needs. As your senior improves her balance, she may find that she’s able to tackle bigger challenges in terms of what her physical therapist can have her try.

Physical therapy at home allows your senior to address the issues she’s got with balance without fear that it’s going to be difficult to get to her appointments. Her physical therapist comes to her and is able to evaluate her existing environment in order to address specific challenges that could be affecting your elderly family member’s progress. That’s crucial if she’s going to achieve the goals that she has with physical therapy.

Excerpt: Balance issues are a tremendous problem for your senior and physical therapy can help.

If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring professional Home Health Care Services in New Providence NJ, please talk to the caring staff at Generations Home Health Care today. Providing Home Care in Somerset, Essex, Union, Morris and Hunterdon Counties. Call us today at (908) 290-0691 or (973) 241-4534.

Susan Myer, RN, BSN, CCRN, CDP