Making your first appointment to see a physiotherapist is not an easy thing, since people do not know what is going to happen once you get inside. You might be suffering from lower back pain, have undergone surgery, or just want to understand what causes shoulder clicking. However, being aware of what takes place during your first appointment will help you relax a bit.
The following is a brief guide on how things work once you step into a physiotherapy clinic.
Prior to the Appointment
Before you sit down for the session, most clinics ask their clients to provide some paperwork in order to get acquainted with their situation. These papers are usually provided either before or right at the clinic. In any case, you should be ready to share your medical history, current medication, surgeries in the past, as well as describe the condition that makes you visit a physiotherapist. Though it may seem boring, the provided information is important for your physiotherapist.
Therefore, you should try arriving a few minutes earlier than the time of your appointment, wearing some comfortable clothes, and taking all the documents if you have any.
The Physiotherapy Assessment
This is really the crux of the matter during your first visit. The physiotherapist will interview you regarding your symptoms: onset, aggravating factors, relieving factors, impact on daily life and treatment objectives. Be as detailed as possible. Small aspects such as symptoms that occur after prolonged periods of sitting may actually help a lot.
The next step is the physical examination. Depending on your condition, the exam may include evaluation of posture, joint mobility, muscle strength and flexibility and palpation of the affected area. If your problem is related to some particular activity, such as walking, running, certain sport or occupational movement, you may be asked to perform the activity so that the therapist could evaluate how your body reacts.
In this case, as in most others, the physiotherapist aims not to localize the pain but rather to find out the cause of the problem, as different patients may have completely different causes of their symptoms.
Building Your Treatment Plan
After conducting the evaluation and testing of your physical state, the physiotherapist will tell you everything that he has discovered in comprehensible terms with no use of excessive terminology. Having done so, you will develop a treatment plan together.
The treatment plan usually includes information about the frequency of your sessions, types of treatments, or exercises, and a timeline of the rehabilitation process. In case of necessity, it might include such approaches as manual therapies, specific exercises, postural adjustment, or even modification of daily routines that might influence negatively on your condition.
There is nothing bad about asking questions at this stage. The treatment plan must be clear enough to be understood and all its components have to be explained by your physiotherapist.
Will You Receive the Treatment During Your First Visit?
Yes, most probably. Usually, physiotherapists start treating the patient immediately from the first visit either with hands-on treatment or with the exercise routine. However, in some complicated cases, the first visit might be devoted to the assessment and treatment plan only and the actual treatment will be started at the next one.
After Your Appointment
Prior to your departure, you are probably going to be prescribed a home exercise regime. Adherence to such regimes is far more important than one would imagine. It is crucial to realize that physiotherapy is most effective when approached as a partnership, wherein the advancements achieved in therapy are reinforced at home.
Conclusion The initial physiotherapy session is all about understanding your case and planning the further course of action. Honesty and openness during the consultation will ensure that your physiotherapist comes up with the right treatment plan for your body