PT Time!

It has been a full past couple of weeks.  The main news is I started my first internship--in-patient rehab in a hospital in Olympia, WA.  That's the capitol in case you need a refresher.  Despite being a shorter drive from T-town than Seattle, I really have spent about zero time there in the sevenish years I've been up here.  In fact, aside from knowing that the lightposts lining the freeway are tall and skinny, I really couldnt have told you much about the place prior to May 26th.  Thanks to my terrible sense of direction and the unfounded belief that, when I'm lost, I5--inevitably the road I'm looking for--is just a few blocks away meaning that stopping to ask for directions would be ridiculously unnecessary, I have actually managed to see much of the countryside surrounding the hospital.  The city is the type of green that reminds me of home.  It is not that Tacoma lacks trees, but there is something about the sprawling fields, greenery of all shades and openness of the land that is different from just 30 miles north.  I have a tendency to irrationally like or dislike people, and I think this applies to cities as well.  And I irrationally like Olympia.  I got a bike map today, and next week my goal is to do all my runs after work on the extensive trail system that, at least on paper, seems to weave itself around the city, extending to Mt. Rainier and beyond.  I also have tentative plans to visit their farmer's market during one of my lunch breaks and this morning I realized there is a co-op two blocks from my work!  I can't wait to explore it all next week!  

When it comes to patients, I have already learned so much.  The ages and diagnoses have ranged from 23-94, and included head injuries, cancer, multi-trauma and strokes to the left/right side of the brain and cerebellum.  I see the patients 2x a day, for about 45min at a time.  Every day is unique, and the different personalities of the patients and their family members makes the time pass quickly.  Progress is easy to see, as many of the patients come to us straight from acute care as soon as their vital signs/condition is stabilized.  Many of the stroke patients we see can hardly move the affected side of their body when they first arrive, so we are the ones who get to witness the muscles recover--meaning the patients often are giving us credit for movement that we are helping facilitate, yes, but really not responsible for.  In any event, they are excited, we are excited, and as they go home you really get to feel as if your work is making a difference.  Although this population is a far cry from the athlete that most people, including myself, enter the profession thinking they want to work with, as of right now in-patient rehab could definitely be in my future.  So You Think You Can Dance is limiting my ability to concentrate, so I will have to discuss patient stories at a later date....