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Equilibrium Exercises & Stroke

Stroke survivors may be left with permanent damage in the part of the brain that helps them maintain equilibrium, or balance. If your vestibular system is damaged, it can no longer take in data from your peripheral muscles to determine equilibrium---leading to frequent falls, dizziness and a sense of spinning. If you are a stroke survivor, you can benefit from physical therapy, says the American Stroke Association (ASA).

  1. Balance Exercises

    • Balance exercises in physical therapy help you regain control of your balance. One of the most basic exercises is done standing, with a therapist or friend holding your hands or arms, to prevent you from falling. With that support, you raise one leg at a time, bringing your knee up and holding it. Your therapist will allow you to work through basic wobbles while you do this. Similar exercises are done with foam or sand pits, because they don't have a consistently level base for you to walk over. As you walk, you must constantly adapt and adjust. Do these exercises with a therapist or friend, too.

      According to acefitness.org, weight training can combat spasticity---involuntary muscle contractions that are common in stroke victims. Start exercises without weights, working through the movements and slowly increase weight as you feel comfortable. Try neck flexion and extension---looking up and down---and reaching upward to extend the length of your spine through your lower back, to improve posture. Acefitness.org recommends trunk rotations, which will increase core muscle strength while improving balance.

    Sensory Work

    • Balance problems after a stroke, reports the ASA, happen if your brain is not taking pressure readings from the bottom of your feet to determine if weight is being transferred to one side or another disproportionately. Since the damage in your brain may be permanent, learn to use the rest of your senses, such as sight, to help maintain balance. Vision therapy exercises improve your spatial recognition. By determining what is close versus what is farther away, you can develop a better sense of your position in relation to the world around you.

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