1135 Milwaukee Ave, Riverwoods, IL 60015
(847) 594-1613
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Manual Therapy
A Hands-On Approach to Treating Your Pain
Are you suffering from pain as a result of injury, illness, or surgical procedure? If so, it is likely that you would benefit from manual physical therapy at MotionFit IL Physical Therapy. If you are apprehensive, let us ease your mind a bit:
We realize many first-time physical therapy patients visit assuming their treatments will be painful, uncomfortable, or even agonizing due to the condition they are in. However, that is not the case at all!
Manual Therapy – What is it?
Manual therapy is one of many physical treatments that stimulate movement in the soft tissue and stiff joints. This method helps in reducing swelling, mobilizing joints, and increasing your range of motion. MotionFit IL’s experienced physical therapists have received extensive training in specialized manual therapy techniques from a diverse range of schools and instructors.
Medical Massage Therapy
Medical massage therapy is a therapeutic treatment commonly used to address muscle tension, soft tissue restrictions, and pain caused by overuse, injury, or prolonged postural stress. This hands-on technique focuses on releasing tight or restricted areas in the muscles and connective tissue to promote healing, improve circulation, and support faster recovery.
How massage therapy will improve your life?
Medical massage therapy helps stimulate tissue healing and restore normal muscle function, allowing you to return to daily activities more comfortably. By mobilizing, loosening, and relaxing tight muscles, this treatment improves flexibility, reduces pain, and lowers the risk of future muscle strains, sprains, and soft tissue injuries.
Myofascial Release
How Myofascial Release works?
Myofascial release is ideal for those who experience stiff or tight muscles. This technique facilitates pain relief by easing the tension in your muscles. It is a form of massage performed by your physical therapist that focuses on specific pressure points, aimed at bringing the myofascial back to its elastic form.
If you’ve been feeling stiff, and you think you could benefit from this treatment, give us a call today at (847) 594-1613. We would be happy to set up a consultation and discuss how our treatment services could benefit you!
Why does Myofascial require treatment?
When your muscles become constricted and tight, the mobility of the affected gets becomes restricted, and any movement you make can result in pain. This treatment relieves your muscles, thus promoting easier mobility and less pain.
Joint Mobilization
Joints, formed by the articulating surfaces of two or more bones, depend on a combination of both stability and mobility in order to help you function efficiently and comfortably. Importantly, joints are supported by a wide variety of physiological structures including capsules, ligaments, tendons, cartilage, and muscle fibers, all of which can become injured and potentially benefit from physical therapy services, including a service known as joint mobilization.
What conditions can benefit from joint mobilization?
Sometimes, a joint can become irritated, swollen, or misaligned as a result of injury, stress, poor posture, repetitive movement, or even as a result of age-related wear and tear. When this happens, the joint may not move correctly and become stiff and painful.
Electrical Stimulation
Electrical stimulation is a safe and effective method of treatment that can provide pain relief and recovery for several conditions. A standard electrical stimulation device utilizes self-adhesive electrodes placed around the target treatment area on the body. The electrodes are then connected to the unit via wire, through which electricity can pass and ultimately interact with sensory and/or motor nerves.
Will Electrical Stimulation Hurt Me?
To put it simply – no! In fact, the intensity of the electrical muscle stimulation or sensory nerve stimulation can be easily modified to the tolerance of each patient. Electrical stimulation contains a variety of different modes to stimulate the nerves in different ways. These modes all consist of different currents, and the current you are prescribed will be dependent upon the nature of your condition and the severity of it.
What Should I Experience From Electrical Stimulation?
One of the biggest reasons electrical stimulation is prescribed is for pain management. This modality can trigger an innate and completely natural analgesic effect by stimulating specific sensory nerve fibers (including A-beta, A-delta, and C fibers), which both decrease the sensation of pain and release neurotransmitters that prolong the pain-relieving effects.
Ultrasound
Ultrasound is a specialized method of physical therapy that uses mechanical energy to support the healing process. It can be used as a way to manage or relieve pain, treat injuries, and improve your ability to perform daily activities. If you are suffering from pain or a recent injury, ultrasound treatments may benefit you.
How Does Ultrasound Work?
The technology behind ultrasound treatments involves the use of sound waves. These sound waves are used to treat conditions affecting the muscles, ligaments, and bones by creating vibrations that generate heat. When the tissues vibrate, friction is produced at the molecular level, which causes the temperature of the tissues to increase. While heating packs can be effective in warming up an affected area, they are unable to reach the tissues in the way that ultrasound technology can.
Therapeutic Exercise
Therapeutic exercise is a great way to restore function and live a pain-free life. Many people assume that anyone participating in physical therapy treatments is recovering from a recent surgery. However, that is not always the case. Physical therapy provides a multitude of benefits for anyone wishing to restore their strength, endurance, flexibility, or stability.
How Can Therapeutic Exercise Help Relieve My Pain?
It is a common misconception that one should constantly rest when they are in pain. However, this can actually cause your muscles to weaken during the healing process, which can lead to decreased functionality and more pain in the long run.
The Many Benefits Of Therapeutic Exercise:
Exercise programs are aimed at improving health, so you can feel better than you did beforehand. Therapeutic exercise is similar in this way; however, it also implements targeted activities that are aimed at relieving pain and restoring you to your optimum level of physical function.
Graston/IASTM
Instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM) is a manual physical therapy technique. If you have been living with a painful and/or limiting condition, IASTM will likely benefit you. The MOTIONFIT physical therapist uses special plastic or metal tools to gently move and scrape against the skin to relieve pain, decrease inflammation, and promote the healing process.
What Can I Expect with IASTM?
You may be wondering, “why is it necessary to use instruments in physical therapy?” Most manual physical therapy treatments are done performed with the hands, but there are many benefits that instruments can bring. For example, these special instruments can effectively break down fascial (connective tissue) restrictions and scar tissue across the body.
When using certain levels of pressure through IASM on the affected muscles, tendons, or ligaments, a mild inflammatory response is initiated. While this may seem counterintuitive, inflammation helps promote the body’s natural healing process, encouraging a speedy recovery.
Kinesio Taping
Kinesio Taping helps alleviate pain, promote healing, increase strength, range of motion, and most importantly, comfortably returning to your normal life.
How Exactly Does Kinesio Tape Work?
Kinesio taping works by doing a few important things for your body. It helps in resetting the circuitry in the affected part of your body by correcting any faulty interactions between the skin and muscles, joints, and tendons underneath. This results in improved muscle strength and activity.
Kinesio taping also works by blocking any pain receptors being sent to your brain. If those important messages aren’t being received, the muscles in the affected area will loosen up and the likelihood for spasms will significantly decrease. Pain constricts an affected area, but if the pain is taken away, a wider passageway forms for blood flow and movement.
Shockwave Therapy
How Does Shockwave Therapy Work?
Shockwave therapy is a non-invasive treatment that uses high-energy acoustic waves to deliver mechanical energy directly to injured tissues. These sound waves stimulate blood flow, trigger cellular repair, and promote the body’s natural healing response by breaking down scar tissue and encouraging tissue regeneration in muscles, tendons, and connective tissue.
Why Does Shockwave Therapy Require Treatment?
When soft tissues are injured or overused, the healing process can slow due to reduced circulation and tissue breakdown. Shockwave therapy helps restart and accelerate healing by increasing circulation and stimulating tissue repair, making it especially beneficial for chronic pain, tendon injuries, and stubborn musculoskeletal conditions.
Balance and Gait Training
Balance and gait training is designed to improve stability, coordination, posture, and walking mechanics to support safer and more confident movement during daily activities.
How Does Balance and Gait Training Work?
Balance and gait training uses targeted exercises, strength training, and neuromuscular re-education to improve postural control and movement efficiency. By strengthening key muscles and retraining the nervous system, this treatment helps enhance coordination, reduce fall risk, and restore proper walking patterns.
What Conditions Can Benefit from Balance and Gait Training?
Balance and gait training can benefit individuals experiencing balance issues, unsteady walking, frequent falls, or mobility challenges due to injury, surgery, aging, or neurological conditions. It is also helpful for patients recovering from orthopedic procedures or those seeking to improve coordination and overall functional mobility.