Physical therapy is an essential course of treatment for anyone recovering from a musculoskeletal injury as well as for people recovering from heart and nerves related ailments. It is one of the essential requirements for many insurance covers in the market today. In as much as physical therapy is usually recommended by your personal doctor, a good understanding of what makes a good physical therapist will be quite essential.

Basically, a physical therapist is a medical professional who specializes in body movements and exercises to strengthen muscles and improve your body’s posture and stability. The major role of physical therapy is to enhance recovery by aiding your body to adapt to the normal muscle movements expected to enable the patient perform daily activities without limitations.

Physical therapy will be essential in treatment of back, knee, and neck injuries, as well as sprains and muscle pulls. The treatment is also quite helpful in the recovery of shoulder injuries. Physical therapy has also been known to help pregnant women cope with muscular discomforts of pregnancy. Aged persons who are recovering from strokes or heart conditions can greatly benefit from physical therapy in their efforts to regain use of dysfunctional muscles. You will need to consult a physical therapist if you have had an accident and your body fails to respond to the recovery process on its own.

There are many forms of physical therapy depending on the patients’ type of injury or ailment. For example, patients recovering from back, hip, and broken bones as well as those with sports related injuries will need the services of an orthopedic physical therapist. A geriatric physical therapist deals with older patients recovering from strokes or heart problems. Patients who have had brain and other neurological complications are assisted in their recovery by a neurological physical therapist. The decision to consult a physical therapist will be determined by your doctor after considering your treatment and recovery process.