5 Signs You Should See A Physical Therapist For Your Concussion

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If you’ve suffered a concussion, it’s important to be aware of the signs that may indicate your injury is not healing properly. A lot of people don’t realize that if they have these symptoms, they need to see a physical therapist sooner rather than later. Physical therapy can help heal concussions by improving muscle flexibility and strength, range of motion, balance, and coordination. Physical therapists are specially trained in techniques such as therapeutic exercise, manual therapy, and neuromuscular re-education to address these issues post-injury so patients can experience a faster and more complete recovery. The earlier you see a physical therapist, the sooner your symptoms can be resolved. Read on for more information about five signs that you should seek treatment from a physical therapist as soon as possible following an injury.

Why Consider Seeing  A Physical Therapist For Your Concussion?

    A physical therapist can provide comprehensive care for your concussion. From improving strength, stability, and balance to increasing the range of motion in the muscles surrounding the head and neck, a physical therapist will help you recover quickly. You may have many questions about what might happen during treatment sessions after an injury like this. Your physical therapist should explain everything they intend on doing before performing any treatments.

    Your doctor may refer you directly to one or more specific therapists who work with people recovering from concussions. If that’s not possible, do some research online or ask friends for recommendations. Once you find someone qualified, make sure he or she knows exactly when your symptoms started so they don’t miss anything important while evaluating how far along you are in the recovery process. 

5 Signs You Should See A Physical Therapist For Your Concussion

    Signs of concussion include headaches, confusion, drowsiness, and vision changes. People suffering from concussions are not usually able to function properly at their jobs or even carry on normal life tasks for a while. Sometimes they can worsen over time if left untreated which is why you must visit the doctor as soon as possible after your injury occurs. If you experience any kind of head trauma just remember these five simple signs that indicate that seeing a physical therapist may be necessary:

1.  Memory Loss

    The most common sign is memory loss, and not just forgetting where you put your car keys. If the injury impacted your brain’s ability to function properly, you need a skilled professional who can help with that. This person needs to be able to assess if the problem is cognitive in nature or physical, for example, motor control issues like feeling clumsy would point towards an issue with muscle strength, but they also must know how to correct both problems. Even though there’s no such thing as, healing concussions once they happen, we can do things after diagnosis and treatment plans are set up so people don’t have long-term effects from them. A lot of times those long-term effects can be devastating and we see them as people get older.

2. Persistent Headache

A headache that doesn’t go away after a few days is also something to consider. The headaches can be very intense and debilitating, especially if they’re related to the eye or inner ear as well. In those cases, it’s not just about treating the head area but instead looking at how it impacts other areas of your body as well because you want people back in their optimal function again, whatever that looks like for them based on what we see from our assessments getting started with treatment plans.

3. Dizziness

    One of the signs is dizziness which can be very difficult for people. If you have a head injury there are some things that we need to do to ensure your safety while making sure they don’t exacerbate their symptoms or make them worse long term because there’s no such thing as healing concussions, only managing the symptoms and preventing further damage. Sometimes what happens is if someone has hit their head hard enough, it impacts how the fluid works inside of this area so even though nothing may show up on an MRI then maybe something does later down the line after treatment plans are physical therapy. That’s why when these kinds of injuries happen early on, whether set up with other physicians or physical therapists, we want to see that the people are going to be monitored over time.

4. Nausea And Vomiting

    Another sign is nausea and vomiting which can be difficult for people as well. Sometimes it’s just the physical injuries that we see but then there are other times where it could be a side effect of medications they’re on or some other medical condition such as viral infections, flu season, and many more, so those kinds of things need to be taken into consideration as well because our goal is to get them back in their optimal function again, whatever that looks like for them based on what we see from our assessment getting started with treatment plans.

5. Changes In Vision

    Vision changes are one of the signs. Sometimes this can be caused by head trauma but other times it’s just looking at how they’re seeing and processing things because we want people back to their optimal function again, whatever that looks like for them based on what we see from our assessment getting started with treatment plans.

    It’s important to see a physical therapist for your concussion if you have any of the symptoms listed above. You should also be sure to visit a doctor immediately and follow their instructions about when it is safe to return to work or school. When in doubt, call us. We can help determine what type of therapy will best relieve your pain and get you back on track so that you can resume being social again with less worry.

Are You Looking for Help with Concussion Symptoms? 

Pace Physical Therapy in San Jose, California specializes in non-surgical relief and recovery therapies for Sports Injuries.  Concussion therapy is a highly useful tool in supporting recovery from traumatic brain injury. During concussion therapy, you can expect to work with a highly experienced San Jose, CA physical therapist who will evaluate the severity of your brain trauma and match you with tricks and strategies that can reduce discomfort, alleviate painful symptoms, and improve brain functionality. Physical therapy programs for concussions often build in vestibular therapy, which helps you orient yourself during periods of lightheadedness or loss of balance. The staff at Pace Physical Therapy strive every day to provide excellent service for all our patients because we understand it can be frustrating not being able to do what you love most due to an injury keeping us off the field or court! Contact us today to schedule your appointment!