You can eat your vitamins, drive carefully, maintain a health weight and walk a mile every day. It may reduce your chances of disability, but many of us, one day, will become disabled, as a result of accident, illness or aging. Your goal at this point should be to maintain as much of your ability and mobility as possible.
RANGE OF MOTION
Range of motion is movement of each joint through its typical range of activity. Range of motion exercises mean exercising each joint of the patient’s body through its typical range of activity. The exercise can be either done by the patient themselves or with the assistance of another individual. Exercising the joints is essential to avoid complications of bed rest, like contractures and muscle wasting.
Range of motion (ROM) exercises are done to preserve as long as possible the use of the joints on which they are performed. These exercises reduce stiffness and will prevent or at least slow down the freezing of joints in patients with limited movement. Range of motion is the term that is used to describe the amount of movement you have at each joint. Every joint in the body has a "normal" range of motion. Joints maintain their normal range of motion by being moved. It is therefore very important to move all your joints every day. Stiff joints can cause pain and can make it hard for you to do your normal daily activities. That is why it is so important for you to continue to move your joints.
Each person with a mobility impairment or illness needs a program of exercise tailored to his or her individual needs and abilities. With a prescription your doctor can either send you to an outpatient clinic to see a Physical Therapist or have one come to your home to help you design a personalized exercise program. The therapist will see you until you or your caregiver are independent with a home exercise program that you can follow through with daily.
It is important to remember that some diseases and disorders are progressive – this means the person loses more abilities over time. The type of ROM exercises you will need will change. It is important to be hands-on when this occurs and ask your doctor to write you another prescription to see a therapist so your home exercise program can be modified.
