Cerebral Palsy and Aquatic Therapy

Cerebral palsy is a condition that is diagnosed at birth or during early childhood. It is a condition that permanently affects muscle coordination and the movement of the body, but doesn't worsen over time. Although you may think the illness would be located in the nerves or muscles, this isn't the case. Many people suffer from this illness and some research shows that aquatic therapy can help. Since there is no true cure, those that have been diagnosed find comfort in using aquatic therapy.

Benefits of Aquatic Therapy

Cerebral palsy is known to cause the body to become rigid, so gentle movement can help to stretch the muscles. Those that back this form of therapy see that patients are more relaxed than with other physical therapies. There are swim spas that offer water yoga called Ai Chi. Some patients with severe cases of cerebral palsy find this method to be the only way they can do muscular exercises. Even though all therapy types are good for people with this disease, most cause spasticity to decrease because they only teach specific motor functions.

With aquatic therapy, cerebral palsy patients have more freedom to move about as they wish, which allows them access to more motor functions. There is another water therapy that is used called Aquatic PNF (Propioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation); this is a compilation of different techniques that help patients to work out their limbs. You can find these techniques used at a rehab pool and are known to help greatly. You can likely find a rehab pool or swim spa near you that can help you or a loved one exercise their way through cerebral palsy.

Besides developing muscle coordination, a swim spa can be used to lose weight and build muscle strength.