How Long Can Functional Rehabilitation Last?

After an injury, it may be necessary to continue to work on the area to regain full function and reduce the likelihood of long-term pain. Patients can do this via rehabilitation work, which are custom plans for exercise and other movements that help repair your body after an injury.

At BHFS Medical in Lewisville, TX, our team offers customized functional rehabilitation to men, women, and children to help restore strength, flexibility, and endurance.

Keep reading to learn how long functional rehabilitation may last following an injury.

How does functional rehabilitation improve injury recovery?

How you structure your recovery after an injury can affect how well your body regains full function in the long term. While some injuries require extended rest periods, others may benefit from specific movements and stretches to help them heal.

To avoid losing strength, flexibility, and endurance in injured areas, patients may benefit from going beyond simple physical therapy and partaking in functional rehabilitation. Functional rehabilitation involves working in phases to mimic the movements you use in your daily life so you can regain the ability to function the same way you did before your injury.

The highly trained sports medicine therapists at BHFS Medical will assess your injury to determine when it's safe to start therapy and how quickly you should move through the rehabilitation phases for optimal long-term results.

Unlike physical therapy, functional rehabilitation often begins much sooner after an injury occurs (sometimes as early as 72 hours after the primary inflammatory stage). That's why it's crucial to see one of our therapists once you start to notice pain. Ignoring pain or pushing through it can further aggravate injuries and make a full recovery more challenging.

How long can functional rehabilitation last after an injury?

At BHFS Medical, functional rehab involves gentle movement and is not designed to help you "push through the pain." Our experts customize your plan to meet your body where it is at the time and break down treatment phases based on your mobility.

During Phase 1, patients are encouraged to perform slow and gentle exercises that maintain blood flow without aggravating the area or causing more damage. It also involves knowing when and how long to rest the area to control inflammation. This phase may last anywhere from 24 hours to one week or more, depending on the location and severity of the injury.

Phase 2 begins after the acute symptoms of your injury (such as pain and immobility) start to subside, and you can tolerate nonathletic but progressively more rigorous activities without pain. You will perform simple tasks to regain control of muscles with the goal of recovering your full range of motion, endurance, strength, flexibility, and agility. This phase can last weeks if your injury is mild. However, more severe or complex injuries may require many months of rehab before you can get back to performing your routine daily tasks.

The third and final stage of functional rehabilitation integrates more movement patterns to ensure you have a full range of motion in the injured area without pain or the risk of re-injury. The goal is to ensure the injured area can handle stress or adapt to movements without failure. For athletes, decisions about when to return to sports will take place during this phase.

Functional rehabilitation in Lewisville, TX

If you've suffered from an injury and want to ensure recovery and restore strength to the affected area of your body, the highly-trained sports medicine therapists at BHFS Medical can help.

If you live in Lewisville, TX or the surrounding areas of Carrollton, Denton, Plano, Flower Mound, Irving, Little Elm, Frisco, Aubrey, or The Colony, TX, schedule an appointment with our team today.