As the population of seniors grow, the need for support and quality healthcare services increases, too. One of the services that seniors opt for includes occupational therapy. The best occupational therapist Auburn offers specialized care to help the elderly stay active and remain independent.
Understanding Occupational Therapy
It is a service, which assesses your everyday interests and needs. A therapy prescribes assistive devices, activities, and exercise to help seniors attain the goal of being independent. Through therapy and assessments, you can adjust to the mental and physical aging effects. Whether you find it difficult to bathe yourself every day or are struggling with budgeting or shopping, occupational therapy can help.
How the Therapy Helps Seniors
There are numerous ways occupational therapy (OT) helps seniors. Some of the common ways include the following:
1. Improving Strength and Motion Safely
Stroke, arthritis, or surgery may create a change in the movement of joints, including shoulder joints. An occupational therapist works with clients like you to improve their motion through proper body positioning and compensatory prevention strategies. Proper positioning of the body includes lying down on the side or back to make you independent, while compensatory prevention strategies entail techniques that help to bypass strength losses to build strength and allow some movement.
2. Reduce Health Risks
An occupational therapist works with individuals with different disabilities so they can help with their everyday functioning. Among the key tasks the therapy helps with is to assess health risks, like the potential of causing harm In addition, an occupational therapist can help to incorporate healthy routines and habits into everyday lives while motivating seniors to engage through social activities.
3. Minimize Chronic Pain
This kind of therapy is amazingly helpful for seniors suffering from chronic pain. Therapists teach seniors new methods of managing their pain, including relaxation techniques, stretches, and exercises. They work with patients, too, to identify as well as treat the underlying disorders or conditions, which might be contributing to chronic pain.
4. Boost Memory and Cognitive Skills
The deterioration of brain cells that aging causes is normal and often results in dementia and forgetfulness in severe situations. An OT can help the elderly to retain and sharpen their cognitive skills at different stages of memory loss. But the sooner the process begins, the better the results. A therapist will use two helpful mental exercises, including solving a crossword puzzle and reading books. And if the loss of memory advances, the therapist will do all they can to improve seniors’ quality of life through sensory stimulation and simplified activities.
5. Prevent Falls
According to research, 2 in 8 seniors fall each year, and there are serious health risks that are associated with falling down. However, an occupational therapist can help to prevent falls. A therapist can teach you special exercises and techniques that help to avoid future falls, strengthen your muscles, and improve your overall balance.
In conclusion, taking part in an occupational therapy program can help you a lot, especially if you are aging. With a professional OT’s help, you will not just avoid falls. You will improve your memory/cognitive skills, reduce health risks, increase your strength, and minimize chronic pain.
