When many think of rehabilitation, they focus on the physical aspect of the whole recovery process. Without a doubt this is a HUGE PART; however, of course, depending on the severity of the injury, different people need different kinds and/or different amounts of therapy Some may not even need PT.
There are several kinds of therapy besides physical therapy. Occupational therapy teaches people to use (or use once again) arms and to be able to carry out daily activities. Here, people might learn how to clean/groom themselves. They also could be trained on how to eat or how to go to the bathroom.
In one sense physical and occupational therapies overlap. Both stretch a person’s arms. After all, arms must swing properly for the whole walking process to work.
Somewhat obviously, speech therapy teaches those injured in some way how to speak properly.
People learn how to articulate (a BIG WORD for “speak clearly”). They are taught how to breathe and not breathe properly when they speak. It is in these sessions that people discover ways to manipulate their tongues when they talk.
Neuropsych therapy, as is implied by the portion, “psych” in its name, deals with the brain and making sure it functions properly. This therapy often teaches reading practice/ comprehension. A neuropsych therapist might use flashcards to test/improve memory.
Boy, this blog is more than a little bit personal to me. Following my car accident and subsequent head injury, I was in a hospital for over a year. I lay in a coma from
December 15, 1989, until March 23, 1990. I was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital sometime around January 1990. Physical therapists came to my bedside and performed what is called “coma stimulation” on me several times daily. They exercised my arms, legs, and other body parts often. The hope of doing this was it would, in essence, make my body get ready to behave like it once should and did, so that if I ever woke up, I would be just a little further down the road to recovery. When therapists were not available, my family took over the duties.
I underwent an extensive rehabilitation program. I lived in this rehabilitation hospital until early August 1990. While there, I had many therapy sessions with therapists and therapist aids. I exercised in therapy each day from 9 A.M. until 5 P.M.
My first session daily was with a physical therapist aid. Because I am and was extremely tight since the head injury, we worked on things like stretching, balance exercises, and, as surely would be expected, walking. My second session was my first daily meeting with my PT. We worked on many, similar stretches and exercises. At 11:00 I had OT. Sometime in here is when I ate lunch in a group dynamic with the other patients on my hall, which enabled us to be around others who were going through, a least, similar, even if not identical, circumstances. Neuropsych was at Noon, followed by Speech Therapy at 1 P.M. At 2 o’clock I got my second daily dose of Occupational Therapy. Three P.M. was when I saw my PT once more. At 4 o’clock I stood on a tilt table to stretch my heel cords while a beautiful PT aid fed me strawberry ice cream.
One main goal or hope of this website is to act as a resource to users by providing links to other relevant websites on different topics. Click below for rehabilitation, website links.
rehabilitation after an accident websites – Google Search
occupational therapy websites – Google Search
speech therapy websites – Google Search
neuropsych therapy websites – Google Search
When someone or a loved one is going through rehabilitation, some kind of guidance is often appreciated. Click below for rehabilitation and therapy forum links.
physical rehabilitation forums – Search
occupational therapy forums – Search
neuropsych therapy forums – Search
Click below to chat in a supposedly “private” chat room with another person experiencing rehabilitation or therapy.
physical therapy chat rooms – Google Search
occupational therapy chat rooms – Search
speech therapy chat rooms – Google Search
rehabilitation chat rooms – Yahoo Search Results
neuropsych therapy chat rooms – Yahoo Search Results
Unlike chat rooms, in which the only support provided is over the Internet and, therefore, seemingly distant and cold, support groups give support where people can actually feel human contact. Click below to visit support groups.
physical therapy support groups – Google Search
occupational therapy support groups – Google Search
speech therapy support groups – Google Search
neuropsych therapy support groups – Search
I hope this blog helps some!