Personal Narrative: A Career In Physical Therapy

Growing up in a campus town, sports were always an interest of mine. Whether it was watching the Fighting Illini or competing in sports in my junior high and high school. It seemed that every weekend of my childhood was spent running, playing soccer, swimming, or a combination of the three. It seems only fitting that sports would play a major role in finding my passion.
I swam a little when I was a child, but it wasn’t until I joined the swim team in high school that I really became a dedicated swimmer. Being familiar with the strokes and techniques to teach them, I decided to become a swim instructor for the summer. I worked as a swim instructor at that pool for the next four summers. I kept coming back because I loved teaching and the gratifying feelings that came with it. I really enjoyed teaching children and adults …show more content…
I had gotten a full time position as a Therapy Tech for the local hospital. If I had any doubt left that physical therapy was my dream profession, it was gone after my first day on the job. As a Therapy Tech, most of my duties lie in the Rehab unit. My main responsibility is to transfer patients from their beds to their speech therapy appointments. I am also responsible for executing assigned routine treatments, helping the therapists with two-assist treatments/transfers, and maintaining the cleanliness of the gym and equipment. I am generally very busy in Rehab but when I have spare time, I try to help out my fellow Therapy Tech in Acute Care. When I help in Acute, my duties are to assist patients with the use of Continuous Passive Motion (CPM) devices, as well as to assist the physical therapists with their treatments. While I had previous observation experience in a hospital, I never fully understood the variety of both patients and treatments that come with this setting. The hands on experience that I am able to receive through this position has truly been a