When you begin any medical program for your health, progress doesn’t only happen during your visits with your doctor or therapist; it also happens during your daily life. You should also make lifestyle changes and implement strategies you learn in your treatment into your routine. This holds true for balance treatment. Here are some things you can add to your daily routine that will take your balance treatment to the next level.
Practice at Home
If your balance specialist has you doing any exercises or movements during your appointments, try doing them at home on your own time at least a couple of times a week. This might feel a bit like homework, but consistent practice makes the exercises more effective.
Stay Hydrated
Staying hydrated is vital for balance. How often have you felt a quick dizzy spell due to dehydration? Dehydration reduces the volume of your blood, lowering your blood pressure. This prevents adequate blood flow to the brain and can cause lightheadedness or dizziness. This effect is exacerbated by your existing balance disorder. Make sure you’re drinking enough water every day.
Take a Daily Walk
Check with your doctor about this one, but generally speaking, getting some mild exercise is incredibly beneficial for building balance. A simple daily 30-minute walk can help with leg and muscle strength, gait stability, coordination, gaze stabilization and joint health.
Take care to walk in an area with minimal tripping hazards. Loose items on the floor or slippery surfaces can pose a huge fall risk.
Maintain a Tidy Home
You don’t have to be a clean freak, but decluttering your home can help reduce your risk of losing your balance at home. Keep loose items off the floor, don’t let cords cross your pathways, make sure rugs don’t curl at the edges and don’t clog your walkways with furniture and other tchotchkes.
Wear Smart Footwear
Not all shoes are created equal, especially for people with balance issues. You’ll want to swap out flip-flops and other shoes that lack firm support for a pair with wide soles, high walls, good arch support and low heels.
Keep Going to Appointments
Of course, consistency is key. As said above, progress on balance treatment doesn’t only happen in the clinic, but these visits are critical for assessing how your treatment is progressing and developing new strategies and exercises that can strengthen your sense of balance. Make these appointments a high priority.
If you have any questions before your next balance appointment or need to discuss some element of your treatment, you can always call us at Audiology Associates of Redding. And if you’ve been waiting to start a balance treatment regimen, now is the time to do so.