Balance & Gait Retraining

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Balance & Gait Retraining

Balance and Falls are a constant worry for seniors and others who have physical challenges. And those worries aren’t unfounded. Falls are the leading cause of injury-related deaths and serious health problems in the U.S.

Improving your walking skills — technically known as your “gait” — and your balance are interrelated challenges. At FYZICAL Therapy & Balance Centers, we help you master these skills to decrease your risk of injury, while at the same time increasing your confidence and independence.

What Causes Balance and Gait Disorders?

There are a lot of injuries that can trigger a balance or gait disorder, from foot and ankle injuries to concussions and head or neck injuries. In fact, the balance and gait systems both rely to some extent on a complex number of body systems that include the inner ear, the eyes, the joint-muscle-nerve system, and of course cognitive functions. Therapy that improves gait and balance works with all of these systems to keep them functioning in harmony.

An injury to one ankle could cause you to favor one foot, which may impact your balance even after the ankle injury is recovered. Often, the original injury has little to do with what is holding you back, but the lingering effects and the developed habit of depending on one side more than another can have a lasting impact long after the pain subsided. The goal of gait retraining is to improve leg or foot movement to increase stability, which directly improves your ability to balance. 

Because of the impact that your gait has on your ability to walk or run, your gait and ability to balance are frequently intertwined. Even if you don’t think you’re in danger of falling over, that “running out of steam” while walking that you’re attributing to aging muscles could be something else. The problem might actually be slowing reflexes, which make moving around seem more strenuous than it is. By the same token, poor posture and gait can throw off those reflexes. Although weakened muscles from injuries are one of the most common causes of gait disorders, there are plenty of other neurological causes that could disrupt your gait. 

Benefits of Balance and Gait Retraining

Balance and Gait Retraining has a range of benefits, with avoiding injuries being at the top of the list. Beyond lessening your chances of falling or feeling dizzy, you’re also more likely to feel confident with your footing. Whether impacted by a heart attack or stroke, affected by surgical complications, afflicted by illness or coping with the lingering pain following an injury, finding support for your balance and gait can improve your quality of life by allowing you peace of mind as you go about your day-to-day life. In addition, those aches and pains from poor posture are likely to decrease as well.

Physical Therapy for balance and gait disorders targets the problematic areas that are causing one or more bodily systems to disrupt your comfort and equilibrium. The goal of Physical Therapy is to evaluate the cause of the dysfunction and restore strength and functionality. By targeting weaker muscles or joints and using specialized techniques to improve muscle memory, it is possible to improve balance and restore a healthy gait.

How FYZICAL New Orleans Can Help Balance and Gait Disorders

While it may seem overwhelming to engage in therapy to alter the way that you walk or your ability to balance yourself, this is a very common form of Physical Therapy that is largely successful. After a series of diagnostic, imaging, and functioning tests, your Physical Therapist will develop a program that is suited perfectly to your body’s needs.

First, we’ll evaluate your gait to determine potential problems with strength and posture. Strength and flexibility movements can help counteract these problems along with simple movements to test balance as a part of the assessment. These are often as simple as leg lifts while seated in a chair, or “knee marching.” We may also practice standing on one leg, walking heel-to-toe, or tracking the movement of your thumb with your eyes as you move it in various positions. Together, these basic evaluations point us in the direction of what to focus on in terms of therapy. Additional strategies that are often employed with balance training include making changes to footwear, often incorporating custom orthotics to address underlying balance and gait concerns

Ready to “BALANCE” your life again?

FYZICAL’s revolutionary balance program incorporates a Safety Overhead Support (SOS) system. This system utilizes a harness and ceiling-mounted rails making it is impossible for you to fall and hit the ground, allowing you to exercise safely without the fear of falling!

At FYZICAL Therapy & Balance Centers, our therapists realize how important balance and walking is for independent living, as well as for work activities, exercise, sports and enjoying life in general.

That’s why we provide a range of programs and therapies to evaluate and treat balance disorders:

With our dedicated team of Physical Therapists behind you, it is possible to walk again without depending on a cane or walker and regain confidence in navigating challenging terrain with learning how to avoid dizzy spells. 

If you would like to schedule a tour or make an appointment for Physical Therapy, call (504) 861-4693.

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