Occupational Therapy
Are you looking for occupational therapy services near you? If you are in the DFW area, OneRehab is your go-to facility.
What is Occupational Therapy?
Occupational therapy is a healthcare branch responsible for helping patients of all ages with physical, cognitive, and sensory problems. Most importantly, OT helps patients attain independence in their lives.
An occupational therapist helps patients deal with barriers affecting emotions, physical, and social well-being. Occupational therapists use exercise and everyday activities to achieve treatment goals.
OT is useful to people of all ages as it helps them do daily living activities that they often struggle to do. Children can benefit from occupational therapy as they learn self-care routines. It is also helpful for children with attention and learning issues.
Occupational therapy for adults is crucial because it helps senior patients re-learn self-care activities and manage their homes to help them adapt. With occupational therapy, patients develop fundamental abilities useful in self-care. Occupational therapists can also help modify a patient’s environment allowing them to accomplish daily living activities.
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We provide professional and custom occupational therapy activities to improve your life.
What is the Objective of Physical Therapy?
| Occupational Therapy | Physical Therapy | |
| Similarities | ||
| 1 | Both improve the patient’s well being | |
| 2 | The two overlap in the conditions that they treat & activities involved | |
| 3 | PT & OT have a similar process: assessment, goal-setting & treatment. | |
| Differences | ||
| 4 | Focuses on activities of daily living | Focuses on mobility & body function |
| 5 | Environment adjustment to meet your needs | The focus is on the body, not the environment |
Occupational therapy and physical therapy are types of rehabilitative care, and they have several things in common.
Both forms of therapy aim to improve care while preventing the condition from worsening, leading to improved quality of life. OT and PT similarities include:
- They both share an overall purpose of improving your wellbeing, health, functioning, and quality of life.
- Both of these forms of care overlap in the health conditions they address.
- Sometimes the tasks the therapists perform can overlap. For example, both occupational and physical therapists can require you to do exercises to help you perform activities of daily living.
- An OT and a PT can provide hands-on care to address your needs.
- Finally, the two forms of care involve setting goals and assessing how well you are progressing with therapy.
Apart from these similarities, there is a difference between occupational and physical therapy.
- PT entails helping you with mobility, function, and movement. A therapist often uses exercises, physical activities, and stretches to achieve their goals.
- Occupational therapy will focus on helping you re-learn how to do daily tasks easily. The therapist will focus on improving fine and gross motor skills to help you with these activities.
- An occupational therapist also focuses on improving your environment, be it at home or school to help you do the activities of daily living.
Occupational Therapy for Adults
Since occupational therapy helps with cognitive functions, it is important for the elderly.Occupational therapy for adults helps patients improve these functions and adapt to their environment, which improves their way of life.
Developmental complications, neurological diseases, injuries or disorders, stress, and mental illnesses can lead to chronic fatigue and loss of cognitive functions.
Improved cognitive functions help with memory, attention, information processing, and execution of various functions, including planning, self-monitoring, or solving problems.
There is an increase in medical conditions that affect cognitive function among the elderly. Most of these are caused by traumatic brain injury, stroke, and other conditions. Occupational therapy plays a significant role in the rehabilitation of such cases.
However, before such cases happen, adults can engage occupational therapists to help in prevention.
Importance of Occupational Therapy for Adults
Boost Cognitive Function and Memory
Brain cells deteriorate as we age, which can lead to forgetfulness or dementia in extreme cases. Occupational therapy for dementia helps patients sharpen their memory and cognitive skills. Continued exercises help prevent memory loss keeping dementia at bay. The earlier therapy is started, the better.
Prevent Falls and Increase Movement Range
According to the World Health Organization, the most prevalent cause of injuries among the elderly is accidental falls. Though this can appear as a minor issue, falls among the elderly can result in severe injuries or limb breaking, affecting the quality of life. Occupational therapists work with adult patients and train them on ways to avoid falls. They engage in activities that keep them strong and alert.
Range of motion exercises also helps decrease stiffness and pain. Though the exercises may vary depending on the affected area and the extent of the underlying conditions, they can help stretch muscles, increasing flexibility.
Cope with Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is one that exceeds its usefulness, and it negatively affects one’s quality of life. What can an occupational therapist do? We work with you to help you adopt ways to perform tasks and avoid the pain. Occupational therapists can focus on ergonomics, safe body mechanics, and muscle tension reduction, offering proactive pain control.
Occupational Therapy Techniques for Adults
If you are looking for occupational therapy near me, we’ve got you covered. At OneRehab multispecialty center, we provide quality services to patients with injuries or degenerative diseases. When you visit our center, we use the following techniques to help you improve and learn how to do daily activities.
Home Visits and Lifestyle Adjustments
Sometimes some patients need a little more help. Visiting the home allows our therapists to assess your environment and help you make real-life adjustments to make your life better.
Changing your environment at home is an effective treatment technique. Some of the changes we can introduce are electric can openers or toothbrushes, making it possible to do these tasks. If you or your loved one had a stroke, therapists could recommend tools compensating for the loss of strength in the hands or body.
An occupational therapist can also recommend significant changes, such as installing a chair lift or a ramp in the house. They also assist with installing these tools by helping fill out the necessary paperwork for the insurance.
Physical Activities
Occupational therapy can also entail physical activity. These activities help you learn how you can manage your physical and mental limitations. When you go for occupational therapy, you can learn how to do activities of daily living despite your physical or mental disability.
An OT can introduce occupational therapy exercise program to do at home to get you out of your comfort zone. As a result, you can discover your ability and put in effort towards achieving them.
Medical Screening
Our professional occupational therapist can perform medical screenings to assess how well you are progressing with therapy. The goal of the screenings is to evaluate your progress and help the occupational therapists to know how to adjust the training program.
During the screenings, the OT can use specific tools. They include vision screeners to track your progress. These check various eye-related issues, which are good if you have structural damage to the eyes or muscular degeneration. Also in the occupational therapy screening checklist is the AMPS test. Its purpose is to measure motors skills.
An OT will administer this test before beginning the therapy. The occupational therapists can then do the test anytime as treatment progresses to check if you are achieving your goals.
Occupational Therapy Exercises for Adults
Occupational therapy exercises help you to improve the performance of everyday tasks like dressing, cooking, or cleaning. OTs can help you learn new skills and improve your ability to perform everyday tasks.
More Resources
- https://www.aota.org/about-occupational-therapy.aspx
- https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/occupational-rehab
- https://wfot.org/about/about-occupational-therapy
- https://www.nbcot.org/
Soft Tissue Occupational Therapy
Soft tissue OT is a type of therapy that helps improve the function and movement of muscles, tendons, ligaments, and other tissues in the body. It is often used to treat conditions such as sports injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, arthritis, and chronic pain.
Soft tissue OT can be done in a number of ways, depending on the needs of the patient. Often, doctors will use ultrasound therapy to help patients reduce inflammation and swelling in their joints. Occupational therapists can also use ice packs to relieve pain caused by edema (swelling) of muscles or tendons due to strenuous activity.
Massage therapy is another form of soft tissue occupational therapy that is often used for patients who have a history of repetitive strain injuries (RSIs).
When it comes to treating conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome or RSI, doctors will use TENS therapy. This is a type of electrical stimulation that uses small electrodes placed on the skin at specific points around your joints. The doctor then sends an electric current through these electrodes to stimulate sensory nerves in the affected area of your body.
By stimulating these nerve endings, it helps reduce pain and inflammation caused by repetitive strain injury (RSI). It also promotes healing by increasing blood flow and reducing swelling around damaged tissues.
Soft tissue OT can be done in a number of ways, depending on the needs of the patient. Often, doctors will use ultrasound therapy to help patients reduce inflammation and swelling in their joints. Occupational therapists can also use ice packs to relieve pain caused by edema (swelling) of muscles or tendons due to strenuous activity.
Massage therapy is another form of soft tissue occupational therapy that is often used for patients who have a history of repetitive strain injuries (RSIs).
When it comes to treating conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome or RSI, doctors will use TENS therapy. This is a type of electrical stimulation that uses small electrodes placed on the skin at specific points around your joints. The doctor then sends an electric current through these electrodes to stimulate sensory nerves in the affected area of your body.
By stimulating these nerve endings, it helps reduce pain and inflammation caused by repetitive strain injury (RSI). It also promotes healing by increasing blood flow and reducing swelling around damaged tissues.
Hand Exercises
OTs often use hand exercises to improve dexterity and range of motion. These exercises can help you to perform tasks like cooking or writing more easily. Examples include finger stretches, squeezes, and wiggles.
Arm Exercises
Arm exercises can help to improve strength and range of motion in the arms and shoulders. OTs may use various exercises, including weightlifting, stretching, and balancing activities.
Core Exercises
Core exercises help to strengthen the muscles in your midsection. These exercises can help improve your balance and stability, which can be helpful for tasks like walking or climbing stairs.
Balance Activities
There are various occupational therapy interventions to improve balance and coordination. These exercises can be helpful for activities like walking or dancing. Occupational therapists often use a variety of different balance exercises, including standing on one foot, walking heel-to-toe, and standing on a wobble board.
Leg Stretches
Leg exercises can help to improve strength, balance, and range of motion in the legs. OTs often use leg-strengthening activities like squats or lunges during treatment sessions for patients with mobility challenges due to lower body weakness.
Foot Exercises
Foot stretches and strengthening activities can also be helpful for improving mobility and range of motion in the feet. The therapists may recommend exercises like toe spreads, ankle circles, or heel raises to improve foot function.
Schedule an Appointment
Are you searching for occupational therapy services near Richardson, TX? OneRehab is the home to several highly trained and experienced OTs.
Our commitment to provision of quality therapy services is unmatched. Feel free to book an appointment with one of our therapists for specialized services.
Occupational Therapy FAQs
What can I expect during my first OT session?
You should wear comfortable clothing that allows you to move around freely. It is also helpful to bring along any mobility aids or assistive devices you regularly use.
What should I wear to my OT session?
During your first OT session, the therapist will assess to determine your needs and goals. They will then develop a treatment plan tailored specifically for you. Be sure to let the therapist know if you find any activities or tasks challenging.
What if I don't have any goals for OT?
That's perfectly okay! Some people choose to participate in OT for general wellness, while others have specific goals in mind. The therapist will work with you to develop achievable goals that fit your needs.
What is the difference between OT and PT?
Occupational therapy focuses on helping people improve their ability to perform daily tasks, while physical therapy focuses on improving mobility and strength. Some therapists specialize in both, while others focus exclusively on one.
How long will I need to continue going to OT?
The length of time needed will vary based on your needs and goals. Some people choose to do regular maintenance visits every few months, while others only need a few sessions before achieving their goals. Your therapist can help you develop an appropriate treatment plan for your situation.
Does Medicare cover OT visits?
Yes, Medicare does cover outpatient occupational therapy services with a doctor's referral. Check with your specific insurance plan to see if they cover OT visits. Some private insurers may also offer coverage for OT services.
