Mobility in South County, MO. Our bodies are meant to be on the go. But sometimes, our mobility is impeded and it keeps us from the activities we love. While experiencing pain and other factors that affect mobility also have an impact on our emotional well-being, Axes Physical Therapy in South County, MO offers safe, effective, and evidence-backed treatment plans that are customized specifically to getting you back to the life you want to live. Regardless of whether your mobility limitations are the result of an injury, a chronic condition, or a musculoskeletal problem such as sciatica, begin your journey to optimal mobility and comfort as soon as possible by setting up an appointment with Axes today or calling the location nearest you.

The dictionary definition of mobility is, “the ability to move… freely and easily.” For some of us that is as simple as rolling over in bed without pain, while others have more active lifestyle desires like making a diving catch in their softball league. Whatever you need to improve your movement health for, if you can’t live the life you want pain-free speak with your doctor about professional physical therapy and movement health services.

Functional Mobility in South County, MO

Functional mobility is the capacity one has to complete daily tasks. This includes anything from moving around in bed or getting in and out of the shower safely. In general, functional mobility can be broken down into three categories:

1. Bed mobility — Whether or not you can to comfortably move around in bed, including rolling, scooting, sitting up, and lying down.
2. Transfers — Your ability to move from one surface to a different one, for example from a bed to a chair.
3. Ambulation — Whether or not you can walk, and can do so while carrying things.

While the injury or condition limiting your functional mobility may mean that you currently rely on assistance in order to operate in your daily life, the South County, MO physical and occupational therapists at Axes are dedicated to getting your freedom back. Whether the condition affecting you is an ACL tear, arthritis or other joint pain, or even a degenerative condition like Parkinson’s disease, we’ll guide you through your journey to the best possible mobility. Most treatment plans include strengthening, balance, and flexibility training. Our therapists are also specialists vestibular therapy to help with vestibular disorders that cause sensory dysfunction.

South County, MO physical therapists often use the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) of seven levels to assess someone’s functional mobility:

1. Complete independence, meaning you are able to move in a certain way without risk of injury and in a timely manner
2. Modified independence, meaning you can perform specific movements but only with an assistive device
3. Supervision, meaning you can complete the task independently but need someone next to you to prevent risk of injury
4. Minimal assistance, meaning you can do 75% or more while someone else helps you the rest of the way
5. Moderate assistance, meaning you can exert 50% of the effort necessary
6. Maximal assistance, meaning you can put in a quarter of the work of the task yourself
7. Total assistance or not testable, meaning you are unable to put in 25% of the work required, or that the activity is not safe to test

At Axes Physical Therapy in South County, MO, your tailor-made treatment plan may include safely taking you up through the seven levels, or at least to the highest level you are able to achieve. All of our treatment plans are proven to be safe and effective through extensive clinical studies, and your dedicated physical therapist will begin your mobility treatment with a thorough evaluation of your health to ensure that the treatment modalities we have in mind for you are safe for someone in your exact condition.

Beyond Functional Mobility in South County, MO

Needless to say, many of us desire a higher level of movement health than just being to move between furniture pain-free. There are pickleball leagues to dominate, your pets to play with, and the vocational tasks you need to perform every day in order to put food on the table for your South County, MO family. At Axes, our occupational and physical therapists can help any athlete, worker, or family member achieve the activity level they desire. We also offer:

• Occupational therapy — Our South County, MO occupational therapists are an essential part of getting you back to work after a work-related injury. We team up with you and your physician, insurance carrier, workers’ compensation lawyer and employer so you can get back to being an integral member of our South County, MO community and supporting your family the best way you can. Our advanced work rehabilitation includes Functional Capacity Evaluations to ascertain if you are ready to return to your job.
• Sports therapy — The last thing any athlete wants to experience is a sudden injury that keeps them off the field or court for anywhere from a couple weeks to a year. If you suffer an ACL tear, rotator cuff tear, or other sports injury, Axes Physical Therapy in South County, MO will help you regain your mobility and get you back on the field or court as soon as is safely possible. Our Certified Athletic Trainers are big believers in teaching injury prevention to help you stay off the sidelines.
• Pre/post surgical rehabilitation — Surgery and your recovery from it are delicate matters that make anyone nervous. Whether your surgery is a matter of choice or a strong recommendation from a physician, we’ll team up with the doctors recommending and performing your surgery to give you piece of mind, and develop a successful game plan to restore optimal mobility.

Whatever the current level of mobility, and the extent to wish you want to improve it, consult with your South County, MO doctor about whether they think getting you a prescription for physical therapy is right for you, or come see us for a free injury screening from a qualified physical or occupational therapist.

How a Physical Therapist in South County, MO Can Help Improve Your Mobility

The four tenets of mobility are our strength, flexibility, range of motion, and balance:

• Strength — While physical therapy is effective at rebuilding and maintaining strength, it also helps achieve muscle balance. Surrounding our joints with healthy and equally strong muscles is essential in preventing injury and reaching optimal movement health.
• Flexibility and range of motion — To reach the movement health and lifestyle we desire, not only do our muscles need to have the strength to control bones, but our muscles, ligaments, and other soft tissue need to be able to lengthen, and our joints need to be able to perform a wide variety of movements.
• Balance — Frequent causes of balance issues include:
  • Vision issues
  • A vestibular condition, or a problem in your inner ear
  • Your proprioceptive system, or the network between your sensory receptors and your nervous system

A professional physical therapist in South County, MO will find the root of your limitations in mobility and develop a safe and effective treatment plan to improve your movement health. Beyond therapeutic strength, flexibility, and core exercises, other evidence-backed techniques may include:

• Soft tissue mobilization
• Kinesio Taping®
• Trigger point dry needling
• Blood flow restriction training
• Posture correction and teaching good posture

If necessary, a physical therapist in South County, MO can also fit you for medically accepted assistive devices such as splints, braces, crutches, or canes in order to aid you in your mobility and reduce risk of injury.

How Physical Therapy in South County, MO Helps Beyond Mobility

Physical therapy does more than just increase strength and flexibility. As we work to reach optimal movement health, you’ll also see the following benefits:

• Pain relief for both acute and chronic conditions without the need of costly and potentially habit forming prescription drugs
• Depending on the nature of your mobility limitations, the potential to avoid surgery by motivating your body to heal on its own
• Patient education, including exercises you can safely do at home, injury prevention techniques, and correct posture
• Encouraging better physical health, which leads to enhanced energy, decreases your odds of developing cardiovascular disease, contributes to a healthy weight, makes you feel better, and promotes better sleep

Other services we offer in South County, MO include:

• Shin Splint Treatment
• Direct Access Physical Therapy
• Gait Analysis
• Pelvic Floor Therapy
• Dry Needling Near Me
• Tendonitis Treatment
• Manual Physical Therapy
• Orthopedic Rehab Near Me
• Beginner Running Program
• Chronic Pain Treatment

Mobility in South County, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

Whether you need hand therapy in order to make it easier for you to open jars, are in need of meaningful pain management for joint problems, or want to get back on the field after a sports injury, Axes’ team of licensed physical and occupational therapists will develop and implement the treatment plan that works best for you. We employ a an approach that focuses on personalized treatment. To restore the level of mobility you deserve, request an appointment with Axes Physical Therapy today or reach out to the location nearest for you.