Goals.
A master plan.
Direction.
A level head.
Options.
These are some of the things that I felt I was expected to have coming out of physical therapy school because that is what society and those around me encouraged. But, as is the case with pretty much every new grad, I had NONE of these things, least of which was confidence. How do we live up to these expectations that we ourselves feel pressure to fulfill, and that no one around us is making an effort to challenge or say “hey, it’s okay if you don’t have everything figured out by graduation?”
[NOTE #1: I acknowledge that no one intentionally places this pressure upon us...it’s just “the way it is.”]
Let’s add on the second layer…
I completed an orthopedic manual residency, passed my OCS exam, and was off exploring the country doing travel PT. I had a plan and I was following it, I should be the happiest nerd in the world, right?!
I wasn’t...I was becoming increasingly discouraged by the stark contrast between what I learned in school/thought I would be doing and the actual day-to-day of hospital-based outpatient PT.
I was being reprimanded for not billing enough units.
I was expected to perform initial evaluations in 20 minutes.
I was double booked and unable to provide the care that my patients/clients deserved.
At first I thought that it must just be the clinics that I was being assigned to, but as the months went on, I realized that this way of practicing was more the norm than the exception. And then I thought, if I feel lost, I can only IMAGINE how my patients feel in such a system.
[NOTE #2: This is not to proclaim that all outpatient PT settings are the same or bad- there are many clinics and clinicians providing high quality care out there].
I felt like I got sucker punched. Like I had nowhere to turn and no one to turn to. I needed help.
I needed a GUIDE.
And the third and final layer…
I decided to start learning as much as I could about other ways of treating. I dove into strength and conditioning, as I believed that a basic knowledge in this area could be applied to ALL populations in some form. I dove into pain science literature because I was sick of not having any idea how to work with someone experiencing persistent pain. I read as much as I could, paid for formal mentoring, and was finally excited again about being a PT and incorporating this newly learned information with all of my patients. This was it! So I thought…
It was f!@#ing hard. I lost some patients due to going way too hard “explaining pain,” or chalking everything up to “needing to be a bit stronger.” Why were these people not getting better!? I was making it about them, having them be an active part of their plan of care, and they liked me! That should work!
Problem was...In my pursuit of knowledge, though a step in the right direction, I neglected to recognize that I work with HUMAN BEINGS. They are not constants in a math equation who, when you plug in the “right” variables, get better. They needed guidance just like I did.
I realized I needed to take a step back and spend time learning about human psychology, including my own. But, I didn’t know where to start. Again...I needed help.
I needed a GUIDE.
Fast forward to now, I have amassed several key mentors (mostly through the Level Up Initiative network) along the way and I have failed a LOT. But, I eventually found my “guides” in the phenomenal individuals I surrounded myself with.
This is why being a guide is cool, necessary and transformative.
This is part of my WHY for being a Level Up Mentor.
This is why we are working tirelessly to help all of YOU transform into guides for your patients and clients, as well as for future generations of clinicians.
THIS is how large scale, positive change is going to happen. First for ourselves, and then for the humans we serve, and ultimately in healthcare as a whole.
Find a guide, be a guide, and lead by example as an evangelist of positive change.
We are here to help you do just that.
Let’s go!
P.S. I want to mention a few of the individuals who have, do and will continue to serve as mentors (direct and indirect) for me so that hopefully you will check them out and learn from them as well: