What Is Prehab?: How Rehabilitation Therapy Helps You Prepare for Surgery

While you have likely heard of rehabilitation therapy – inpatient or outpatient therapy services to promote recovery from surgery, an injury, or an illness – the process of “prehab,” also known as preventive rehab, is less well-known. However, prehab facilitates healing as well – it helps you prepare your body for an upcoming surgery and the subsequent recovery by preemptively making you stronger, increasing your flexibility, and boosting your endurance.

Who Benefits from Prehab?

Prehab can encourage healthy and quick healing in anyone, but it is especially beneficial for:

• Those who anticipate a long recovery
• Those who are mostly sedentary
• Those with preexisting injuries or problems
• Those who need joint replacement, cardiac surgery, organ transplant, or cancer surgery

How Prehab Can Help

Being proactive about your recovery with prehab has many benefits. Some of the biggest ones include:

A shorter recovery time: After a surgery such as joint replacement surgery, it takes time and rest for your body to heal so that you can move comfortably and regain your strength. Performing presurgery exercises to prepare your muscles and increase flexibility and physical fitness will help contribute to a speedy recovery.

The ability to go home sooner: Preparing for the healing process ahead of time may decrease the amount of time you need to spend in inpatient rehabilitation after surgery so that you can return home sooner. In prehab, you may learn your postsurgery exercises or practice using any necessary assistive devices, like a walker or cane.

A reduced risk of injuries or chronic pain after surgery: Recovering from a surgery can be painful and physically limiting. Using a cane or crutches may be difficult at first and increase your risk of falling or further injuring yourself when your body is in an already vulnerable state. Using prehab will increase your strength, balance, and mobility so that you can better use any necessary assistive device, maintain good posture, and reduce your risk of falling or sustaining an injury.

A boost to your confidence: Increasing your physical fitness before surgery, especially if you were mostly inactive, will boost your confidence for your healing process. You can ask your rehab therapist questions about the recovery and practice different the daily living tasks you’ll need to do after surgery, such as getting dressed, showering, climbing stairs, and getting in and out of bed. Knowing what to expect after your surgery will alleviate your fears and help you feel assured about your recovery.

Prehab at Outpatient Rehabilitation

If you think prehab therapy services may be right for you, we would love to help you prepare for your upcoming surgery. At Christian Health Outpatient Rehabilitation, our highly skilled interdisciplinary team of professionals is dedicated to your successful recovery, using innovative prehab approaches to get you back to wellness and the life you love as soon as possible after surgery. Speak with your physician about writing you a prescription for a prehab routine and get more information about outpatient prehab therapy at Christian Health by calling (201) 848-5518 or visiting ChristianHealthNJ.info/ShortTermRehab.