Aquatic therapy in Towson MD can be a valuable alternative or complementary approach to land therapy. Being in the water offers unique opportunities for children to enhance their strength, coordination, endurance, walking, flexibility, and range of motion. A big reason is that water’s buoyancy enables kids to move in ways that are not possible on land. Children’s body weight is reduced, and they feel freer.
What Aquatic Therapy Entails
Aquatic therapy involves walking and moving your body in water. Moreover, water offers more than 10 times the resistance of regular walking on land. Children in the water get more support and resistance from the water when they move.
Another effect of aquatic therapy is muscle relaxation, especially in water temperatures of about 88 degrees Fahrenheit. Moving through warm water relaxes joints, ligaments, and muscles, reducing inflammation and enhancing circulation.
Why a Child Might Need Aquatic Therapy and the Benefits
Children might need aquatic therapy in the following situations.
- Speech issues: The therapy can help with respiration and breath control, for example, through children performing exercises while holding their breath underwater.
- Injuries or weakened muscles: Aquatic therapy offers a warm, supportive environment with water resistance for recovery, joint strengthening, and coordination improvement.
- Developmental milestones: Children with autism, cerebral palsy, and other conditions might need a little extra help to meet milestones related to mobility and balance. The water offers an accommodating environment for rolling and walking.
- Self-confidence and social skills: Children may have low self-esteem if they have problems with mobility and coordination. Aquatic therapy balances the playing field a little more and offers games and exercises. In group therapy, children even learn about sharing toys and can participate in competitive play.
- More results: A child might do just fine with land therapy but aquatic therapy offers the potential for more: More fun, a different environment, more challenges, and more results.
Looking For Aquatic Therapy in Towson MD?
If you seek aquatic therapy in Towson MD for your child, contact us at Comprehensive Spine and Sports Center. We can help children and adults dealing with confidence issues, developmental milestones, joint pain, fibromyalgia, back pain, muscle spasms, and more. Dr. Neil Cohen has over 35 years of experience successfully treating thousands of patients in need of aquatic therapy in Towson.
