Each and every physical therapy experience is unique, and several factors might affect how long it will take to achieve your goals. Someone recovering from an ankle sprain could have a treatment plan that wraps up in a few weeks. Something like back surgery will have a longer recovery period. Patients with chronic conditions like lower back pain or sciatica may need to come back for treatments if their pain worsens.

This article will provide a ballpark range of average treatment times to give you a general idea of what you can expect. We’ll also go over some of the factors that can affect how long your treatment will take.

How long does physical therapy take on average?

The main factors that affect the length of a physical therapy treatment plan are the severity of your condition or injury, how well you follow your treatment plan and how fast your body heals naturally. Each session will last 30 to 60 minutes. For a relatively simple condition that isn’t chronic, your treatment plan may span about four to 12 weeks. You may have sessions once or twice a week or more, and the frequency might change in different phases of your plan.

Depending on the type of insurance you have, your doctor may provide a physical therapy prescription or a referral with some recommendations for your length of treatment or number of sessions. However, you won’t really know how long your treatment program will take until you see your physical therapist for an assessment. Your personalized treatment plan might include a few phases with different treatments. Your physical therapist will include an estimate for how long each phase will take, but it may depend on how you’re healing and progressing.

What are your physical therapy goals? 

People go to physical therapy for many different reasons. Recovering after an injury or a surgery are just a couple of examples. Some people need it for pain management; some need rehabilitation to adapt to congenital conditions or prevent them from getting worse. And others with repetitive strain injuries need rehabilitation to change their patterns and learn how to avoid reinjury. For complex injuries like an amputation or a major surgery, patients may need PT to care for their body while it heals.

Each of these goals will take a different amount of time to achieve. Your PT should also take into account how your physical therapy goals fit into your life. You may have a goal to return to work after taking leave, or you may want to start practicing and playing a sport again.

To give you a more specific idea of what you can expect, here’s a breakdown of how long the average treatment plan is for different levels of injury:

• Minor injuries: two to three weeks
• Soft tissue injuries: six to eight weeks
• Severe or chronic conditions: two to three months or more

Are you following your PT’s instructions between sessions?

There’s a good chance your physical therapy treatment plan will include a home exercise program you’ll need to work on in between sessions. Your PT may show you therapeutic stretches and exercises targeted to help improve your condition. They may also give you instructions for general exercise and fitness as well as care instructions for healing and pain management. Finally, they might suggest lifestyle adjustments or things to avoid going forward (e.g., different footwear or dietary changes).

What was your health like before treatment?

Everyone’s body heals at a different pace. Your age, your level of fitness and your habits can all impact your body’s ability to heal. In general, younger people tend to have faster healing times than older adults. People who smoke usually need a longer recovery time for most conditions. If you eat a balanced diet with a lot of fruits and vegetables, you may heal a bit faster than someone who eats a lot of junk food. Your physical therapist can discuss your specific potential for healing during your assessment.

Work with us to achieve your physical therapy goals at Lattimore PT

It can be difficult to pinpoint exactly how long each individual physical therapy program will take. However, it’s important to get a good estimate so you can plan your life and make decisions that support your health and wellness.

At Lattimore Physical Therapy, we involve our new patients in their own treatment planning process. We recognize that you’ll be more likely to stick to a plan if you take part in creating it. And people heal faster when they’re enthusiastic about the process.

What physical therapy goals can we help you with? Let’s start planning your treatment so you can get back to your life. Contact our team today to schedule an initial appointment.