The Power of Repetition: How Repetition of Specialized Exercises help improve Neuroplasticity in patients with Parkinson’s Disease

Living with Parkinson’s Disease presents numerous challenges, but with the right approach, individuals can enhance their quality of life and maintain functionality. Physical therapy plays a pivotal role in this journey, offering tailored exercises designed to alleviate symptoms and improve motor function. The principle of repetition stands out as a cornerstone in the management of Parkinson’s.

The Importance of Repetition: Consistent repetition helps reinforce neural pathways, facilitating smoother and more coordinated movements. In Parkinson’s, disruptions in the brain’s dopamine-producing cells impair motor function, leading to tremors, stiffness, and difficulties in movement initiation. By repeatedly practicing specific and tailored exercises, patients can strengthen alternative neural circuits, compensating for the dopamine deficiency and improving motor control over time.

Repetition promotes neuroplasticity, the brain’s remarkable ability to adapt and rewire itself in response to experiences and stimuli. Through consistent engagement in targeted exercises, individuals with Parkinson’s can stimulate neuroplastic changes, promoting the formation of new connections and enhancing motor skills. This adaptive process is crucial for mitigating the progressive nature of the disease and maximizing functional independence.

Here at Next Level Therapy we combine the power of repetition with tailored exercises to compliment each individual patient. This specificity of exercises helps promote homeostasis/balance in the body and improve coordination, movement, and proprioception. The right exercises matter! For example, if during the initial evaluation we determine that the patient is more grounded on the right side of the body we will implement strategies to get the body more grounded (more stable) on the left side of their body. During this exercise intervention process we might use things like the visual field, somatosensory (what you feel under your feet), and your bite sense (ability to feel molars touching equally on both sides) to improve overall movement and stability within the patient’s body. This unique approach and specific exercise selection reinforces neuroplasticity.

If this is your first time hearing of PRI (Postural Restoration Institute) physical therapy and you resonate with the brain’s ability to adapt and rewire itself, you might want to give it a try. PRI physical therapy acknowledges the close relationship between the neurological system and the musculoskeletal system. With PRI physical therapy we tap into the nervous system to help make changes in the musculoskeletal system.