CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 At Fyzical Therapy and Balance Center in Mentor, people with balance problems set aside their walkers, and practice standing on one foot.<\/p>\n
Strapped into a special therapeutic harness suspended from tracks on the ceiling, they\u2019re perfectly safe doing exercises to strengthen their muscles and regain a sense of balance they may have lost due to a stroke, vertigo, or the loss of feeling in their feet.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you want to improve your balance, you have to challenge your balance,\u201d said Aaron Cook, a physical therapist and owner of the Mentor balance center. \u201cIf we want to challenge your balance, we have to do it safely.\u201d <\/p>\n
Little kids fall down and bounce back up a dozen times a day. But as we age, we\u2019re more likely to break than bounce.<\/p>\n
Falls can be serious for the elderly, and they often happen when individuals lose a good sense of balance. <\/p>\n
Older Americans are increasingly dying from unintentional falls, according to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. <\/a>Death rates have increased more than 75% for people 75 to 84, and more than doubled for seniors 85 and older, the report said.<\/p>\n In addition, falls can cause head injuries or broken bones that can lead to permanent disability and trigger a cascade of other health problems, according to health experts. <\/p>\n Often, the elderly are told to use a cane or walker after suffering a fall.<\/p>\n Cook\u2019s <\/b>goal is to get patients moving without using those devices unless they are absolutely necessary. Canes and walkers can make patients weaker, sedentary and more at risk for falls, poor cardiovascular health, bed sores and pneumonia, he said. <\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t love it when people go to their doctor (after a fall), and the doctor\u2019s solution is, just use a walker for the rest of your life,\u201d said Cook, 36, of Mentor. \u201cWe like to take away all of those things that people used to rely on, and we say, what can you do all naturally? What can you do by yourself?\u201d <\/p>\n He\u2019s also not a fan of expensive or custom-fit shoes that claim to improve balance. Simple exercises that promote balance are cheaper and more effective, he said.<\/p>\n Therapy sessions at Fyzical start with evaluations of what may be causing a patient\u2019s balance and mobility problems.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s an endless number of disorders that can contribute to losing your balance and falling,\u201d Cook said. \u201cWe say: \u2018Why is this a challenge for you, and what can you do to improve that?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n One of the leading causes of falls is diabetic neuropathy, or the loss of feeling in the bottom of the feet, he said. <\/p>\n Musculoskeletal or neurological balance problems, caused by weakness due to hip arthritis or other conditions, make it hard to walk.<\/p>\n People with inner ear <\/a>or vestibular disorders feel as if they\u2019re floating or spinning, and lose their sense of balance.<\/p>\n Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo <\/a>is a sensation of spinning or dizziness that happens when tiny crystals become dislodged from their normal location in the inner ear. The disorder disrupts balance and spatial orientation.<\/p>\n Balance therapy has helped people suffering from these and other conditions, when conventional therapy doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Fyzical client Kim Stenger, 46, of Kirtland, had given up on regular physical therapy. But after two years of working out at Fyzical, she has more endurance and muscle strength.<\/p>\n Stenger, who uses a wheelchair, has a disorder that causes a complete lack of sensation anywhere on her body. After doing leg strengthening exercises twice a week at Fyzical, she can use a walker to navigate her long driveway, get in and out of bed alone, and stand at the sink to wash her hands unaided. <\/p>\n \u201cWhen I heard that the clinic specifically focused on neurological conditions and how that really relates to balance and movement, I was very intrigued,\u201d Stenger said. \u201cI have made more progress in my own physical endurance and my own physical fitness at Fyzical than I probably ever have.\u201d<\/p>\n Another Fyzical client, Gail Stropkey, 76, of Painesville Township, has a progressive disorder that results in muscle weakness. Her goal is to keep her body strong for as long as she can.<\/p>\n Stropkey enjoys the warm atmosphere at Fyzical. \u201cYou feel like they get to know you as a person,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n Cook noted that while he generally tries to minimize long-term reliance on walkers, Stropkey and Stenger have severe neurologic conditions making the device essential for their safety and independence. <\/p>\n \u201cOur goal is always to preserve function and autonomy to the greatest extent possible,\u201d Cook said. \u201cFor some patients, that means helping them transition away from assistive devices; for others, it means optimizing their use to keep them active and engaged in life.\u201d<\/p>\n From Las Vegas to Mentor<\/b><\/p>\n Cook became passionate about helping elderly people avoid falls years ago while working as a physical therapist at a Las Vegas hospital. He often spoke out when he thought physicians were too quick to recommend walkers instead of physical therapy.<\/p>\n He and his wife moved back to the Cleveland area, where they both were raised, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cook decided he wanted to specialize in physical therapy for balance issues by opening a Fyzical franchise. His clinic is one of more than 500 in 46 states, according to the company\u2019s website. <\/a><\/p>\n There are also Fyzical locations in Strongsville, Beachwood, Westlake and across the state.<\/p>\n MetroHealth System,<\/a> University Hospitals<\/a> and the Cleveland Clinic<\/a> offer head and neck specialists, exercise programs and testing to help with balance and inner ear issues. There are also other balance therapy centers across the region.<\/p>\n About half of Cook\u2019s patients are referred by their physicians, and half seek help on their own. Many people think they need a doctor\u2019s referral, but Ohio\u2019s Direct Access law <\/a>allows patients to see a physical therapist without one, he said. <\/p>\n Most patients have balance therapy twice a week for two months, but people who have suffered massive strokes or have Parkinson\u2019s might work on their balance for six months to a year, he said. <\/p>\n Most private insurance will cover this type of physical therapy, but patients can pay $100 cash per visit. <\/p>\n Everyone can take measures to avoid falls and strengthen balance by getting rid of throw rugs, using night lights and practicing standing on one foot with eyes closed. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s helping rewire your brain and your vestibular system, and it\u2019ll train and strengthen those specific muscles that you need in order to maintain balance,\u201d Cook said. <\/p>\n If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 At Fyzical Therapy and Balance Center in Mentor, people with balance problems set aside their…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":33102,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[1198,210,1142,1083,26524,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-33101","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-fitness","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-healthcare","11":"tag-medical","12":"tag-physical","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-unitedstates","15":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114784748729092598","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33101"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33101\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}