Warm Water Therapy Program
Emily Follensbee School has an on-site warm water pool and offers a warm water therapy program to their students. There are many benefits to the warm water therapy program as water is a great equalizer, welcoming and forgiving, enabling the freedom of movement with joyfulness of play. It also provides an environment which reduces body weight by 95% by eliminating the effect of gravity on the body, pain and stress of muscles and joints are greatly reduced. Many of our students are able to weight bear and walk in the water which then allows for these skills to be transferred to land.
Due to the inherent viscosity and resistance of water, the student can move more gently. This in turn, enables the brain to process the signals from your muscles more thoroughly since it has more time, which is an excellent advantage to work on muscle memory. When our students are in the therapy pool their freedom of movement is increased. The warmth of our pool reduces spasticity and releases muscles. Blood vessels are dilated when you are in warm water which increases blood circulation to the muscles. Students are able to do movements in the water that they cannot do on land.
Our warm water therapy program:
- Provides vestibular, tactile, proprioceptive, visual and auditory sensory input;
- Provides desired motor learning; and
- Is linked to a functional outcome; and
- Is a great opportunity for students to have lots of fun!
Our therapy pool provides a safe fun environment to learn new skills.
November, December & January
Come and join the fun! Our students love their sessions in our warm water therapy pool. We would like to extend an invitation to Parents/Guardians to come and volunteer with their child. You will be amazed at the progress our students make in the water. Water provides an environment that reduces body weight by 95%, allowing students to do movements and skills in the water that they are not able to do on land. Because you are weightless, the water is supporting weight bearing and walking skills are achieved more easily. Many students have learned to walk in our therapy pool and then transferred this skill to land. Water immersion promotes neural plasticity and motor learning, this effect can last for up to 4 hours after getting out of the water. So not only is the student benefitting from being in the water but the effects can last hours after a therapy session. The warmth of our pool also increases muscle relaxation and reduces spasticity, increasing range of motion and flexibility. The constant resistance of the water strengthens any physical movements. Jean Piaget said "play is the work of a child" and when children are playing, they are in the best situation to accomplish what children are expected to accomplish – learning! A warm water, fun environment is a great place to play so come and join us in the fun!