Having Problems Doing At-Home Physiotherapy? Get Motivated with These Tips

Achieving your physiotherapy treatment goals and objectives often require you to do certain exercises at home in between visits. With the coronavirus pandemic and spending more time at home, it is easy to lose your motivation and want to just sit on the couch binge-watching TV.

One reason it is easy to make excuses to skip your at-home routine is because no one is holding you accountable, except yourself. Your physiotherapist is not there to motivate you and encourage you to do your exercises. It is easy to tell yourself it is okay to skip doing them today and you will just do them tomorrow.

Yet, tomorrow arrives and you then bargain with yourself again and make an excuse to get out of doing the exercises. Eventually, the whole week has gone by and you haven’t stuck to your at-home treatment plan at all.

You start to notice pain, discomfort, or other things you were recovering from flaring back up. Then, when you do go see your physiotherapist, they are surprised by the setback because you were doing so well.

Why does this happen? There are several things that can cause us to lost motivation. By taking a moment to do some self-reflection you can discover what went wrong and take steps to avoid it happening again in the future.

1. Find out what went wrong. Maybe you weren’t clear on how to do the exercises? Do you need access to equipment that you don’t have at home but in the office? Did you find the exercises too hard or challenging to do by yourself? Write down whatever your reasons are and let your physiotherapist know.
2. Schedule a telehealth appointment with your physiotherapist. In between office visits, telehealth appointments are great to help you maintain your motivation and get the encouragement you need to keep up with your at-home exercises and treatment plan. If you are struggling, let your physiotherapist know and what is causing your struggles.
3. Work at it gradually and take your time. You don’t have to rush through your exercises all at once. You can do part of them in the morning, and the rest later in the day. The goal is to make sure you are doing all of them each day. If it takes a little longer or you need to take a break that is okay if your physiotherapist agrees.
4. Request new exercises as you recover and get stronger. To keep from getting bored with the same exercises, ask your physiotherapist to mix things up a little. They could give you one a few different sets of exercises to do so that you can alternate them throughout the week.
5. Keep all in-office appointments. Part of your recovery and ongoing care is not cancelling or skipping in-office visits. During these visits, take time to review your current goals with your physiotherapist and if you have reached them. If you have, work with your physiotherapist to develop new goals.

By using these tips, you can find the motivation you need for your at-home exercise routines. To schedule an in-office or telehealth visit with a Brampton physiotherapist, please feel free to contact Physiotherapy First at 905-796-6662 today!