How I work with your Physical Therapist at Tony Schwartz Bodywork LLC

Physical therapy is a very important part of the healing process that many people take for granted because if it's repetitive and painful nature but if you follow your physical therapy regimen correctly and completely I promise you that you will be significantly better off and reducing further injury and going back to a normal routine for the rest of your life compared to those who do not do physical therapy who may have recurring problems for years this is something I have seem many times. People ask what I do compared to a physical therapist and there are some very distinct differences especially now that we're seeing more insurance company strictly limit how many physical therapy appointments are covered during the calendar year which I must admit I consider a very disappointing trend.

Let us first to find what physical therapy scope of practice really is compared to that of a bodyworker like myself. Physical therapy uses an evidence-based approach using kinesiology, exercise preparation, mobilization with electronic and physical devices to aid in correct body movement after injury or illness. Most often physical therapist will use a very thorough diagnostic process to determine the best course of action normally in the area of exercise to help your body regain a natural alignment and body movement. So a physical therapist does share something with massage therapy and personal training we all use the science of kinesiology which is the study of human movement. Where we break this down is at your personal trainer helps you to gain muscle and coordination when you're healthy. Your physical therapist does this when you're injured because it requires a very specific skill set to help your bodies trying to transsecurity commonly referred to as compensation patterns. A body worker like myself is supposed to manipulate the muscles directly along with the connective tissue and joints to help you deal with sore muscles and tissues while you're healthy and in a very limited capacity when you're injured. A personal trainer needs a special certification to do anybody work besides instruction. A physical therapist does occasionally massage someone but that's more often to get a joint unlocked then it is the direct application of pressure to muscles or other tissues. A body worker like myself can see patterns of compensation and attempt to deal with them by loosening up tight tissue however if that cannot accomplish the goal physical therapy is sometimes needed.

When a persons physical therapy sessions create sore muscles often times they will come to a bodyworker like myself in order to help them deal with that this would still be well within my scope of practice. I will often request that clients bring in the physical therapy exercise notes so that I can better understand where in the process they are and to ensure that I do not in advertently hinder the progress of your physical therapist. Like in many parts of many professions when professionals and related fields work as a team to help somebody they appreciate the courtesy of understanding what the others doing. As a body worker and a dedicated professional is essential to understand the route basics of each profession and the basic routines and protocols that they use to help you so that way we can get you the best outcome in the quickest time possible for your situation. In some cases correct of exercise for healthy person can be done by a bodyworker with the correct certifications a correct of exercise is meant to help balance tight bilateral tissue think of a leg or an arm or shoulder not being tight equally on both sides. This is a very limited application of bodywork but an important one. One of the most common issues that we do have to deal with that body worker cannot is called muscle firing sequence. Muscle fire sequencing is a simple term that acknowledges that muscles must fire in the correct order in order to achieve movement if they do not coordination and balance can be impaired. Personal trainers and physical therapist are properly trained to do so bodyworkers have a very limited understanding of this. 

As always it is very important to ask questions to your physical therapist or to your body worker regarding what it is they canning cannot do as a line between what insurance companies will pay for and what is within someone's scope of practice is becoming a larger gray area but most importantly it's for your health and safety.