Physiotherapy, Post Breast Cancer
It’s tough being diagnosed with breast cancer and having to undergo a mastectomy, especially if you’re still young and have your whole life ahead of you. The surgical removal of either one or both your breasts has consequences that extend beyond cosmetic reasons. Physiotherapy plays a very important role in your post-operative care and treatment and helps you recover faster from the effects of the surgery. Here’s how physical therapy is valuable in helping to heal patients recovering after treatment for breast cancer:
By cutting down the risks of lymphoedema – If your lymph nodes have been removed or if you’ve undergone chemotherapy, lymphatic fluid that is prevented from flowing freely collects in your arms and tend to make it swollen. Physiotherapy helps in controlling the edema and bringing down the arm to its regular size.
By preventing infections: Your lymph nodes are instrumental in helping you fight infections; so when they’re removed, you’re at a higher risk of both injury and infection to your arm. A range of physical therapy exercises help you in taking care of your arm so that it does not get infected and in detecting infection at once if it does set in.
By controlling pain: New tissues that form post surgery tend to cause pain when they trap nerves in between them as they grow. In addition to this, the surgery weakens your muscles and leaves you feeling tired and in pain. The best form of pain management is through the right exercises.
By allowing you to move your hands normally: Surgery tends to affect the muscles and tissues in your chest, shoulders and arms and prevent them from moving as freely as you would like them to, and physiotherapy helps regain complete mobility as soon as possible.
By strengthening your muscles: Exercises specifically designed to help your muscles regain strength and tone are an important part of your physiotherapy schedule. These routines prevent pain and discomfort in your neck and back even if you maintain the wrong postures in an effort to protect the side that’s undergone surgery.
Yes, it’s difficult and extremely demanding to adhere to a grueling schedule especially when you’re in pain and are still feeling the aftereffects of the surgery, but physical therapy is a very important part of the recovery process because the exercises are explicitly designed to help regain flexibility, strength and movement to reach the level existent before the operation. Make sure that you don’t strain yourself or go overboard and end up causing more pain to yourself. Consult your therapist at all stages and follow instructions to the letter to gain the maximum benefit from your physical therapy schedule
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This entry was posted on Monday, October 6th, 2008 at 3:04 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
