Benefits of Aquatic Therapy

Learn more about the benefits of Aquatic Therapy from Physical Therapist Jena Mizner and Physical Therapist Assistant Wendy Fjeldheim at Balance Mobility and Aquatic Therapy Center in Grand Island, Nebraska!

Let’s talk about why exercising in the water works and is a great method of therapy for a variety of ages and conditions!

First, buoyancy: this is the water’s power to unload the weight of the body. By unloading painful joints, the body has a better ability to move with less pain and greater range of movement. The body is meant to move … if it is in pain, moving is the LAST thing it wants to do. Water helps decrease pain, and improve movement.

Next, warmth: Our pool is a warm 93 degrees, which allows the muscles to relax. When the body is in pain, it tightens up to protect. In doing this, the body avoids moving or moves incorrectly – this can create new problems. The warmth allows relaxation to occur and increased blood flow to facilitate tissue healing. Then we have hydrostatic pressure - By submerging the body in our warm water pool, people notice a significant improvement in swelling. The water creates a very gentle compression. Combine this with increased blood flow, and the circulatory system is able to more effective.

Aquatic therapy is beneficial for all ages, from children to adults. There are a number of conditions that can benefit from aquatic therapy as well, such as: fibromyalgia, low back pain, hip pain, general weakness, balance deficits, and people who are non or partial weight bearing because of an injury or surgery. There are many properties of aquatic therapy that assist in the getting each patient back to the activities he or she needs to do on a daily basis, as well as the things they love to do.

People often ask us, “Do I need a swimsuit?” The answer is, no! You may wear whatever YOU are comfortable wearing, as long as you can move around in the water. A t-shirt and shorts are just fine! Another popular question is, Do I need to know how to swim? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Our highly trained and certified aquatic therapists will be with you every step of the way! If you’re not able to manage stairs, don’t worry, we have you covered! We have the ONLY lift in the area that has the ability to transfer up to 500 pounds! Once you are IN the pool, your therapist and the water’s buoyancy will help you! Let us help you so that those stairs are no longer an issue!

Curious who will be with you in the pool? We are trained and certified specifically in aquatics (ATRIC certified) and have over 23 years of experience in many areas of physical therapy, making our knowledge collected from these years of experience a huge asset to your recovery. We are physical therapists who specialize in aquatic therapy to assess any complaints you may have such as pain, weakness, balance issues, or decreased endurance, and can form a treatment plan specifically for you. We are here for YOU! Please contact Balance Mobility and Aquatic Therapy Center today to learn more!