I am glad I worked as a therapist before I became a professor. School creates a false sense of security. If you do not know the answer, you can ask teachers what they think the right answer is. Book learning is a good place to start, but it does not tell you what to do when some clients do not respond to treatment that works well for many clients. Therapists are humbled when they have to say "I don't know" when information taught in school does not work. Therapists have to generate their own solution and watch carefully to see if it helps.
In school you learn information in one unit and then move on to the next unit. However, the right thing to do in the clinic is a moving target that keeps changing as the client improves. I was reminded of this when my in-patient PT said I was getting better. I complained that walking was not getting any easier. She said she was helping me less. I never thought to tell my clients this either. homeafterstroke.blogspot.com
Therapy is great, but then they stop after a while. That's why I go to the gym and work with a trainer once a week, too. I've been working with her nearly 3 years now, and last week we were talking about how much progress I've made, because I can now talk to her during my workout. When I first started, I couldn't talk at all while I was doing an exercise, I could only do one thing at a time, talk OR exercise. That's progress!
ReplyDeleteThis wonderful news. I amso happy for you.
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