Neuromuscular Re-education
Neuromuscular re-education is a physical therapy method that retrains the way your nerves and muscles work together so movement feels normal again. It is used after injury, surgery or other conditions that disrupt movement patterns. Western Slope Rehab and Performance offers it in Grand Junction to patients from Fruita, Palisade, Orchard Mesa, Appleton, Clifton and the Redlands.
How your nerves and muscles learn movement
Your nerves send signals between your brain and your muscles about where, when and how fast to move. Over time, those movement patterns are learned and stored.
Injury, surgery, swelling or pain can disrupt them. Joints may become tender and stiff, and muscles may stop working the way they should. If that is left alone, weakness and limits in movement can build over several weeks to months, and the timeline is different for each person.
What the treatment includes
Manual techniques
Hands-on methods such as proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, which cue the body toward better control.
- Done one-on-one with your therapist
Balance and core control
Activities that challenge stability and trunk control, so your body relearns where it is in space.
Therapeutic exercise
Exercises designed to rebuild normal, controlled movement patterns. See Therapeutic Exercise.
Why retraining comes before strength
Sense of position
To ease symptoms, we work on your sense of movement and joint position in the neck, mid back, low back, arms and legs.
Posture and muscle use
When this sense is off, holding good posture is harder and muscles around the area may not work as they should.
Full motion
A joint needs its full range of motion to work well. Without it, weakness and limits follow.
Less chance of a lasting problem
Using the right techniques early on an injured area may help keep an acute injury from turning into a chronic one.
Who it may help
People we see in Grand Junction often come to us after:
- A sports injury or sprain (Sports Injury Rehab)
- Surgery, when swelling and pain have changed how a body part moves (Post-Surgical Rehab)
- Balance problems or unsteady walking (Balance & Gait Disorders)
- Back or neck pain that has changed how you move (Back Pain, Neck Pain)
Part of a whole-body plan
We look at the whole person, not just the sore spot. Neuromuscular re-education is usually one piece of your plan alongside Manual Therapy and strengthening, and it may lead into work in our Gym Memberships. Your therapist will explain what to expect at your first visit and how many visits make sense for you.
Retrain your movement with a physical therapist
Ask about neuromuscular re-education at Western Slope Rehab and Performance in Grand Junction. You can start physical therapy without a referral from a doctor in most cases. Some insurance plans, including Medicare, still need a doctor's sign-off on the plan of care. If you are unsure, call us and we will check your plan. Call (970) 314-9822 to get started.
We see patients from Grand Junction and the surrounding Grand Valley: Fruita, Palisade, Orchard Mesa, Appleton, Clifton and the Redlands.