Conditions Treated
"Recreation therapy makes use of activity-based interventions that are rooted in functional performance, communication, behavior, adaptation and modification to physical conditions and cognitive processes.[...] recreation therapy also has another purpose – to enhance the ability of a child with Cerebral Palsy to plan, strategize and perform tasks in an effort to achieve improved physical functioning and encourage emotional well-being by facilitating inclusion into activities they benefit by and enjoy. " - CerebralPalsy.org
The highest-level wellness is gained when we exist in a "very favorable environment" and enjoy "peak wellness" (where illness and wellness are conceived along a continuum, with death on one end and peak wellness at the other). - David R. Austin, Ph.D.
View Educational Video on Recreational Therapy and Community Integration from UK Healthcare (Regional Hospital in Kentucky, USA):
View Educational Video about Recreational Therapy for
treating Autism from Children's Specialized Hospital (largest pediatric rehabilitation hospital in the USA):
- Abdominal Pain
- Alzheimer’s Disease
- Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Teens (ADHD in Adults)
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- Cancer Rehabilitation - "The optimal cancer rehabilitation team includes physiatry, nursing, physical and occupational therapy, speech and language pathology, recreational therapy, nutritionists, social workers, psychologists, orthotists, and prosthetists, among others."
- Cerebral Palsy
- Chronic Kidney Disease
- Chronic Lung Disease
- Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) - "Functional restoration [...] "[R]ecreational therapy effectively combats kinesiophobia and promotes increased movement."
- Dementia
- Developmental Delay
- Diabetes
- Down Syndrome
- Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders
- Headaches (Non-Pharmacological Treatment)
- Hearing Impairment
- Heart Disease
- Intellectual Disability
- Learning Disorders
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Muscular Dystrophy
- Pain
- Parkinson's Disease
- Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS)
- Tourette Syndrome
- Vision impairment
- and many other conditions.
"[W]hen therapeutic recreation was included as part of a social learning program, therapeutic recreation was found to increase appropriate behaviors over time for residents with severe and persistent schizophrenia (Pestle, Card & Menditto, 1998)" - American Psychological Association, Recovery to Practice (Page 231)
View Educational Video about how Recreational Therapy Treats Mental Health
from CHI Health (regional health care network in the USA in IL, Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota and North Dakota):
- Anxiety Disorders (including Generalized Anxiety Disorders)
- Bipolar disorder
- Compulsive Gambling
- Depression
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Entrepreneurship related stress & anxiety ("self‐employed people experience greater stress than employees")
- Men's Mental Health
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Panic Disorder
- Phobias
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Schizoaffective disorder
- Schizophrenia
- Self-harm
- Social Anxiety Disorder
- Stress
- Suicide
- and many other conditions.
"Recreation Therapists construct appropriate and evidence-based recreation therapy interventions for treating patients with complex medical or mental health issues such as Polytrauma, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI); Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); Spinal Cord Injury (SCI); Substance Use Disorder/ Addictions; Serious Mental Illness (SMI); and Hospice/Palliative Care"
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs"
View Educational Video about Recreational Therapy for Physical Rehabilitation from Madonna Rehabilitation Hospitals (USA):
View Educational Video from Craig Hospital in Denver, Colorado
(specializes exclusively in the Neurorehabilitation and research of patients with Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) and Brain Injury (BI)):
- Post injury, illness or surgery : "[R]ecreational therapy can promote mild activity, thereby increasing flexibility and range of motion."
- Accidents
- Cardiovascular disease
- Orthopedic and Spine Surgery
- Spinal Cord Injury (SCI)
- Sports Injuries
- Stroke
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Workplace Injuries
- and many other conditions...
