Stroke Rehabilitation
Stroke Physiotherapy in Tauranga, Papamoa & Mount Maunganui
A stroke can change the way you move and manage everyday activities — often suddenly and unexpectedly. Weakness, balance problems, changes in sensation, fatigue or difficulty walking can make previously simple activities feel challenging and can affect your confidence and independence.
The Rehab Team provides neurological physiotherapy for people recovering from stroke, with rehabilitation focused on improving movement, function, confidence and independence.
Neurological rehabilitation is what we do. The Rehab Team works with people living with neurological conditions every day. Our clinicians understand how changes in the brain and nervous system can affect movement, balance and function following a stroke.
We provide in-home stroke physiotherapy throughout Tauranga, Papamoa, Mount Maunganui and surrounding areas, allowing us to assess and practise movement where it matters, your home.
What happens after a stroke?
A stroke occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted or a blood vessel in the brain bleeds. The effects of a stroke depend on the area and extent of the brain affected, so every person's recovery is different.
Stroke can affect:
Strength and movement
Walking and balance
Sensation and body awareness
Arm and hand function
Vision and perception
Fatigue and physical endurance
Thinking, memory and concentration
Everyday activities and independence
Some people make significant improvements in the early stages following their stroke, while others experience ongoing difficulties requiring longer-term rehabilitation.
Recovery does not necessarily stop after the first few months. People can benefit from rehabilitation at different stages after stroke, with the focus changing according to their goals, abilities and stage of recovery.
How can physiotherapy help after a stroke?
Stroke rehabilitation is highly individualised. We assess how the stroke is affecting your movement and function, then use this to develop yout rehabilitation plan around the activities that matter to you. Rehabilitation may include:
Walking and mobility: If you are able to, we complete gait retraining to improve walking quality, speed, confidence and safety. This may include practising walking over different surfaces, stairs and community environments.
Balance and falls prevention: Assessment and training to improve standing balance, weight shifting, stepping and your ability to respond to changes in different environments.
Strength and movement: Targeted strengthening and repetitive, task-specific practice can help improve movement and functional ability. Rehabilitation is designed to challenge you at an appropriate level and progressively build your ability to perform meaningful tasks.
Arm and hand function: Where appropriate, rehabilitation involves the affected arm and hand, including reaching, grasping and using the arm during everyday activities.
Transfers and everyday activities: We practise activities such as getting in and out of bed, standing from a chair, moving around your home and getting in and out of a car.
Why does repetition matter after stroke?
Following a stroke, the brain can adapt in response to experience and practice. This ability to change is known as neuroplasticity.
Stroke rehabilitation uses principles of motor learning by giving you repeated opportunities to practise meaningful movements and activities. The aim is not simply to exercise a muscle, but to practise useful movements in a way that helps you transfer improvements into everyday life.
The amount and type of practice needed varies between people, so your programme will be adjusted according to your abilities, fatigue, goals and response to rehabilitation.
Stroke rehabilitation can continue long after your stroke
It is common to think that recovery from stroke happens mainly in the first few months. While the early stages can be an important time for rehabilitation, meaningful functional improvements can continue beyond this period.
Your rehabilitation needs can also change over time. You may initially need help with walking and transfers, while later rehabilitation may focus on improving endurance, community mobility, arm function, returning to hobbies or maintaining independence.
The goal is not simply to complete exercises. It is to help you use your improvements in real life.
How The Rehab Team can help
At The Rehab Team, neurological rehabilitation is what we do every day. Our Neurological Physiotherapists work with people following a stroke and other neurological conditions, giving us a strong understanding of how changes in the brain and nervous system can affect movement and function.
We work with people at different stages of stroke recovery — from those recently discharged home from hospital through to people who have been living with the effects of stroke for many years.
Our in-home approach allows us to work on the things that matter in your own environment, while collaborating with your GP, medical team, Occupational Therapist, Speech and Language Therapist or other health professionals where appropriate.
Contact The Rehab Team today to arrange a stroke physiotherapy assessment in Tauranga, Papamoa or Mount Maunganui.