#physicaltherapy #ACLrehab #recovery – CA Work Experience Program

Saying Goodbye to My Evil Twin (6/1/2022)

Today I had to say bye to Dan. It was a heartbreaking moment, but I knew it was coming. But before we said our goodbyes he let experiment with blood flow restriction rehab on my arms. Basically you restrict the blood flow to ones body parts (whether that be arms or legs) and it allows patients be able to lift lighter loads while still making gains. When I restricted the blood flow on my arms and then lifted 2 pound dumb bells in a circuit of 30 bicep curls rest for 30 seconds and then 15 bicep curls and I repeated the circuit 3 times. Safe to say I’m ripped now and my arms are aching. After that, Dan gave me a baseball glove and then let his patient hit tennis balls at me to help with his knee rehab. Gave me a chance to practice shortstop for softball, but there was also a hole in the glove and some of the balls would fly through the hole and hit me in the chest. It lowkey hurt but never let them see you cry. Then one of Jeffery’s patients was telling me how they killed a squirrel right by throwing a rock at it and how people used to poop on the wall at there old middle school. These public school kids be wild. Eventually I had to say bye to Dan as today was his last day in the office this week because his daughter is getting married this weekend. He gave me a hug and as I walked out the door “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by the Simple Minds began to play and I stuck up my fist and the credits started to roll. Actually he just gave me a hug and I walked out but it’s basically like the same thing. Overall this has been a wonderful experince and I’m glad Dan gave me the opportunity to see what it’s like to work in the Physical Therapy field. This has made such a large impact on my educational career and I’m truly thankful for the time I spent with Dan.

Don’t Eat the Boiled Eggs at Starbucks in Macgregor Village (5/31/2022)

Today was a pretty slow day at the office, my OG Karen wasn’t at the Cary location today so it was just me and the boys (Dan and Jeffery). I got to see a couple patients that I had seen last week and they recognized me which made me smile. Dan and Jeffery mainly worked with elderly patients today, a lot of them had torn rotator cuffs and bad knees. They were put through different exercises to help strengthen there muscles, and at the end Dan and Jeffery stretched out there muscles with them. At the end of one older mans session he told me to “have a good day Darling” and it made me really happy and it made me discovery how much I like the word “darling”. Maybe old people aren’t so bad after all. Then there was old lady with the thickest New York accent I’ve ever heard around these parts and I got to put her measurements down in the computer. Felt like a real working girl. I decided to go to Starbucks for my lunch break (because I had a gift card) and I got this snack pack with fruit, boiled eggs, cheese, and a scone. When I ate the boiled egg, I noticed half way through eating it that they didn’t take all of the shell off the egg. I kept eating the egg though because I was hungry, but now I know that the Starbucks employees are out to get me. But after that near death experince, I went back to the office and Fabian was there. I felt bad because I woke him up from his nap but it had to be done. I was pretty bored but he did a rainbow trick (hopefully he’ll teach me soon) and I found out he used to work at O’Reilly’s auto parts and the jingle gives him PTSD. All and all it was a pretty average day, I’d give it a 7/10.

#TheGrindNeverStops (5/27/2022)

Today I was at the Raleigh location and it was a slight day. The office was empty as the other shared business in the office was closed today. I saw 2 student athletes (one coming back from a sprained ankle injury and the other is getting ready for ACL repair surgery). The ACL repair patient was also in the office so it was really cool to see how much progress they had made in just 5 days. They have gained more stability and balance in the one leg (with the ACL injury) as a result of listening and completing the exercises Mr. Cyr gave them. This just goes to show the importance of listening to your doctors and putting in work outside of physical therapy in order to make a speedy recovery.

Space Jam isn’t as Easy as it Looks and Now I’m out $10 (5/26/2022)

Today I got to work with a patient regaining their strength after going through surgery to remove a brain tumor. Dan incorporated basketball into their rehab as this patient loves to play basketball, I got to play a game of PIG and HORSE and lost both times. Guess my middle school basketball career won’t take me that far. Often times when I thought of physical therapy, I just thought it was for athletes and old people coming back from an injury or breaking a bone. But after today I realized that it isn’t just for those types of injuries, it’s for illnesses as well. The main purpose of physical therapy is to help regain your strength until you are back to being 100% mentally and physically. Additionally, I saw a lot of older patients (senior citizens) and learned that a lot of older people suffer from arthritis and as you get older your body doesn’t work the way it used too and you are more susceptible to injuries. You don’t even have to do anything to have muscle and joint pain, a lot of times in older people the problem isn’t that they are over using their muscles, but they aren’t using them enough. So not only is it important to take it easy and not over exert yourself, but it’s important to make sure you don’t under use your muscles.

All Work No Play Makes Dan a Dull Boy (5/25/2022)

Today I got to see 2 soccer players coming back from an ACL tear and a knee injury in the late stages of rehab. First, they started off with some conditioning and then we moved to the turf area and the athletes did different ball handling drill and shooting drills. At the end of each session, Mr. Cyr played a little cross bar game with the athletes. It was a nice balance of work and play. Mr. Cyr also played soccer when he was younger and it’s really cool to see how a former athlete incorporates his old sport into his everyday adult life.

At What Point During ACL Rehab and Recovery Can You Start Doing the Stanky Leg Again? (5/23/2022)

Today was my first day at the Cary location of Response Physical Therapy and I got to witness a multitude of different patients come through the office varying in all sorts of injuries and ages. The most interesting thing I got to see were the different stages of ACL rehab. The morning started off with an athlete getting ready for their ACL repair surgery, they completed many different strengthening exercises just to make sure they were ready for surgery, and they could make a strong comeback. The second athlete that came in was 2 weeks post op from ACL repair surgery, they were given different agility exercises that helped them focus on bending their knee and attempting to walk normally (heel to toe). The third and final athlete that came in was working on getting back in shape and getting their knees ready to get back to soccer by completing different circuits and did a bit of running a couple months out of their second ACL repair surgery. It was really cool to see all the different stages of ACL rehab, because often times when we think of ACL rehab we only really think about what happens after the surgery and not what patients have to go through before surgery to make a successful comeback.