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The Manual Touch Physical Therapy

Whole Body Approach

Reclaim movement, function and life
For information, call: 847-541-7600
or email: info@themanualtouch.com
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Fall Prevention Day at the Northbrook YMCA

June 24, 2019 By Denise Schwartz Leave a Comment

This past April I spent a morning at the Northbrook YMCA providing fall risk/balance screenings. I love offering this service, as I think improving balance and avoiding falls is extremely important.

My lovely assistant, my mom Anita, and I arrived at the Northbrook YMCA at 8:30 a.m. We set up the room and waited for the first person who had signed up to come in. Karen Brownlee, the adult education coordinator at the YMCA did a great job of signing people up ahead of time.  As people arrived, my mother checked them in and made sure their paperwork was filled out. I assessed each person briefly, providing feedback and a copy of my Balance ebook.

By the end of the morning I had assessed 12 people.  Fortunately many of the participants I saw that morning were already participating in an exercise class at the Northbrook Y to improve their balance. For the ones who were not, I recommended they follow up with me.

Falls are not a good thing

Two years ago, at age 53, I slipped on my wet kitchen floor, twisting my leg behind me and landing hard on my back and my knee.  My husband had to help me up from the floor, walk me to the couch where I laid down for 20 minutes to recover from the shock. My knee pain persisted for 3 months.

My 20-year-old son typically leaps and bounds up and down the stairs.  Last year, he missed a step and slid down on his back. Within seconds, he was up and moving about as if nothing had happened.

Ed, an 89-year-old man, walks with a cane and tripped over a rug.  He landed on his side and bruised his leg. Luckily, he didn’t break anything, but he now has to use a walker.

Falling can happen to anyone at any age, but the older we get, the greater the possibility of falling and getting a serious injury.  Older folks simply cannot bounce back from a fall like my 20-year-old son did.

Fall Statistics

As people age, the number of falls and the severity of injury resulting from falls increases.  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the leading cause of fatal and nonfatal injuries in people age 65 and older and one-third of falls occur in this age population.  As a child, when you fell, you usually picked yourself back up easily and went about your day without a thought of lasting injury. Now as an older adult, it is likely you have more of a fear of falling that could lead to serious injury, long-term limitations, lack of confidence, and loss of independence.

The most common reasons for falls in older adults include a combination of changes that are often a part of the normal aging process:

  • Vision loss—not seeing clearly enough to avoid falling
  • Hip and leg weakness—making it harder to walk and lift your feet while stepping
  • Posture and balance issues—making it harder to stand up straight
  • Painful feet, back, or legs.
  • Longer reaction time—taking you longer to react to something in your way
  • Increased drug use and drug interactions—may cause dizziness, affect balance
  • Chronic health problems—developing arthritis or weakness/loss of mobility issues following vascular events, e.g., clots, strokes, or heart attacks.
  • Fear of falling – being overly cautious can have its drawbacks

Older adults with more than 2 or more of the above issues have a greater risk of falling. Common injuries due to falls in older adults include head injuries, shoulder and forearm fractures, spine fractures, pelvic fractures, and hip fractures.  Sobering statistics show (National Hospital Discharge Survey) that more than 90% of these injuries are hip fractures and most (75%) occur in women. Approximately 25% of hip fracture patients will make a full recovery; 40% will require nursing home admission; 50% will be dependent upon a cane or a walker; and 20% will die within one year of the fall.

It’s best to be proactive by improving and maintaining your balance now, so you can prevent falls from happening. Like the people at the Northbook YMCA, it’s a good idea to get a physical therapy evaluation so you can prevent falls, get stronger, and improve your balance. For an assessment, you can email me or give me a call at  847-541-7600. I’d be happy to check you out.
For more information on balance, fall prevention, and exercises you can do at home to improve your balance, download my free ebook.

 

Filed Under: Aging, Balance, Health & Wellness, Physical Therapy Tagged With: balance, balance screening, fall risk, Northbook, YMCA

About Denise Schwartz

Denise Schwartz, PT, IMT, C is the owner of The Manual Touch Physical Therapy. For over 30 years, she has been helping patients reduce pain and improve quality of life using a whole body approach. Denise specializes in chronic pain, spinal conditions, running/triathlon injuries and prevention, balance/vestibular disorders, functional exercise, kinesiotaping, and various non-traditional and traditional & manual therapies. Contact Denise at denise@themanualtouch.com

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Denise gave me confidence that she knew what was wrong and what to do about it, and under her care I quickly felt better and am now on the road to better fitness. She has a feel for what’s causing what, and is good technically and also good at making you feel cared for.
Read More
I am especially grateful for the amazing positive effect Denise has on the days I take my mom to PT. Denise has helped my mom with her knee pain and one day, she noticed something was different. Mom had a misplaced left kneecap and Denise was able to use kinesiology tape to fix it. Denise does amazing work!
Read More
I felt much better after initial visit and even more so after the second.  I would not have believed I could see such an improvement in how I felt after only two sessions.
Read More
With improved balance by utilizing Denise’s exercises on a daily basis, I now have reduced the risk of falling and possibly fracturing a bone.  I am grateful for Denise’s expertise. If you have a balance issue I recommend a visit to Denise.
Read More
I can honestly say that Denise was the first physical therapist to listen to my story.   She has demonstrated more patience and compassion than any other therapist that I’ve ever met. For the past 8 years, I have been symptomatic with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a rare genetic condition which affects the connective tissue throughout my body. As a result of this disorder I deal with ongoing severe acute and chronic pain and a variety of other rare overlapping conditions such as thoracic outl… Read more
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I came to Denise with pain in my neck and upper back from a fall earlier this year.  In addition, I also have chronic low back pain. Denise evaluated me and went right to work giving me exercises and hands on therapy to help me. Today is my eighth session and I am happy to report that my back pain has been relieved and my neck pain is slight and so much better.
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I had several issues when I began therapy at The Manual Touch.  My sacrum had rotated;  there was stiffness in the right side of the neck; and pain in the left bicep. Denise did an excellent job resolving these issues.  Besides being very knowledgeable, she is also easy to work with.  I looked forward to, and enjoyed, my sessions with her. If I need physical therapy in the future, I will definitely return to The Manual Touch.
Read More
I came in with a frozen shoulder 2 months ago. I had trouble putting coats on and had a very limited range of motion, especially to the back. After the first session, I started feeling better, and now, I don’t feel pain any more and the range of motion to the back has improved a lot as well. Thanks, Denise, for a great work.
Read More
Denise Schwartz at The Manual Touch is A GREAT Physical Therapist!  I came to her with a torn ligament and tendonitis in my foot AFTER going to 2 other well know PT chains who actually made my injuries worse. Not only did she help me heal from those injuries but actually worked on other parts of my Body to help heal those areas too. I really appreciate that she works on the whole body – after all everything is connected. She is very knowledgeable in what she does.
Read More
Thank you for treating my back injury and helping me quickly return to comfort and the activities I enjoy!  When I last injured my back and tried P.T., I treated for 7 months with none of the results you helped me achieve in a fraction of that amount of time.  I really enjoyed your personal and customized approach, and the fact that you treated other issues that were plaguing me to help me improve my movement and function.  Every time I unload the dishwasher and use the proper posture to prot… Read more
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We believe all body systems and mental/emotional health are connected. We take a whole body approach to discover why patients are not healing and what were the initial causes of their current symptoms. 

Our mission is to use this whole body approach to help patients heal and overcome pain and limitations, resulting in improved quality of life. We also aim to promote wellness in our communities through ongoing education. 
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Testimonials

Denise gave me confidence that she knew what was wrong and what to do about it, and under her care I quickly felt better and am now on the road to better fitness. She has a feel for what’s causing what, and is good technically and also good at making… Read more
I am especially grateful for the amazing positive effect Denise has on the days I take my mom to PT. Denise has helped my mom with her knee pain and one day, she noticed something was different. Mom had a misplaced left kneecap and Denise was able to… Read more
I felt much better after initial visit and even more so after the second.  I would not have believed I could see such an improvement in how I felt after only two sessions.
With improved balance by utilizing Denise’s exercises on a daily basis, I now have reduced the risk of falling and possibly fracturing a bone.  I am grateful for Denise’s expertise. If you have a balance issue I recommend a visit to Denise.
I can honestly say that Denise was the first physical therapist to listen to my story.   She has demonstrated more patience and compassion than any other therapist that I’ve ever met. For the past 8 years, I have been symptomatic with Ehlers Danlo… Read more
I came to Denise with pain in my neck and upper back from a fall earlier this year.  In addition, I also have chronic low back pain. Denise evaluated me and went right to work giving me exercises and hands on therapy to help me. Today is my eight… Read more
I had several issues when I began therapy at The Manual Touch.  My sacrum had rotated;  there was stiffness in the right side of the neck; and pain in the left bicep. Denise did an excellent job resolving these issues.  Besides being very knowl… Read more
I came in with a frozen shoulder 2 months ago. I had trouble putting coats on and had a very limited range of motion, especially to the back. After the first session, I started feeling better, and now, I don’t feel pain any more and the range of m… Read more
Denise Schwartz at The Manual Touch is A GREAT Physical Therapist!  I came to her with a torn ligament and tendonitis in my foot AFTER going to 2 other well know PT chains who actually made my injuries worse. Not only did she help me heal from tho… Read more
Thank you for treating my back injury and helping me quickly return to comfort and the activities I enjoy!  When I last injured my back and tried P.T., I treated for 7 months with none of the results you helped me achieve in a fraction of that amoun… Read more
Read More

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