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Home   : Illness & disability   : Dealing with medical issues   : Rehabilitation

Rehabilitation

A physical therapist with a patient.

Recovery from a serious injury or illness can take a lot of time. If you have been hurt or sick, you may need to relearn old skills or find new ways of doing things. This process is called rehabilitation (say: REE-huh-bil-ih-TAY-shuhn). Different kinds of people, like doctors, therapists, and other professionals, work with patients in rehabilitation. There are different types of therapies used in rehabilitation. These therapies can also be useful for people who are born with certain disabilities.

Rehabilitation may include:

  • Physical therapy – helps you learn or relearn how to move parts of your body. Physical therapists also help you with assistive technologies like wheelchairs or prostheses, which are artificial body parts. Want to learn more about physical therapy?
  • Occupational therapy – helps you learn or relearn daily activities (like eating, dressing, or bathing) and things than can help you get back to school. Check out more information on occupational therapy.
  • Speech therapy – helps you learn or relearn how to talk clearly or how to understand others. Speech therapists also work on things like memory and planning activities. Learn more.

 

Content last reviewed February 16, 2011
Page last updated October 31, 2013

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