angiepants [one pocket at a time]

A ‘happy’ bump in a rough clinical rotation

One of my patients is a 59 year old woman who got injured both her knees from a fall at work.  She also speaks only Spanish.  She had her 10^th visit today (so I’ve treated her 3 times a week, for just 4 weeks) and in the past, has had consistent knee pain, edema and range of deficits.  Her first week I made sure she was always wearing a knee stabilizer and using a single point cane.

Today, she reported to me having NO pain.  Her knee range of motion was back to normal limits, and she completed all her functional goals (treadmill, stairclimbing, box carries)!  We both think she’s ready for discharge tomorrow and I couldn’t be happy about her sudden improvement.  I’ve treated her all in Spanish on top of all this.  She’s a sweetheart and we’ve worked so hard (but well!) together.  I’m excited for her and grateful for moments like this where my job really means something.

I constantly struggle between:

• Loving what I’m learning and working towards as a profession
• Scared that I’m not good enough for it or putting enough into it

Goodbye being consistent with checking you, Tumblr.  I’m back to PT school.

On week 1 of Grad School and outlook for week 2 already (wow!)

Gross Lab: I actually have a good head start in it compared to others who took ‘basic’ Anatomy over a year ago?  Thank you Dr. H and thank you self for taking 6 months of 8am Advanced Anatomy classes in my precious senior spring and summer months.

Kinesiology: Welcome back vectors and angular acceleration.  This will probably be my toughest class because it takes lots of Free Body Diagrams and physics understanding (and everyone knows Physics was not my favorite class).  But needing ‘Scapula revealing clothes’ for Exercise Labs?  I actually bought a good Sports Bra and the idea of these Labs gets me nerdily excited.  My favorite quote by the professor: “we’re professionals of movement”

PT Exam and Intervention: This week’s topic of taking Patient Histories?  I like people, this should be pretty easy.  But the tall red professor is the Director of our Department and I’m not looking forward to his many pop quizzes he’s notorious for.

Clinical Correlations: Having a group of 9 and having deep discussions isn’t anything new for somebody who has been to 2 weeks of training and weekly meetings as an RA where you learn the skill of expressing opinions and emotions at the drop of a  dime.  The professor knows me well since Freshmen Undergrad and had to share that with the class.  She’s quite kooky but I think I’ll do okay.

Professional Development: Write resumes, cover letters, read articles about the physical therapy profession and keep updated with APTA’s Guide.

Clinical Practice: There’s three assigned sessions over the quarter at various PT practices in the area.  Mine’s at the Drexel PT Rehab Gym (already been as an undergrad) but I’m secretly hoping the 27 year old DPT Chris will be there for me to shadow (and stare) at.  Don’t forget to complete the skills checklist! (Obviously I’ve printed multiple copies already…)

Others:

• Who would of thought of being excited over ordering Nitrile Gloves, a voice recorder, and scalpels #10 and #22?
• PPL (Professional Practice Lab) is voluntary but I’m definitely going to be riding nerdy and attending on a pretty frequent basis
• There are SO many Ipod Touch Apps to download and use.  Taber’s medical Dictionary, Daily Arm Workout, ICD-9, and about 10 others.  Woo Technology!
• Clinical Rotations will happen in the FUTURE. Self, don’t even worry about that until you need to
• Lab Practicals, Midterms and Finals counting as 40-50% of a total grade are an overhead scary idea.
• There are minimum of 2 textbooks for each class and I’m just starting to remember which is for which

Normal College Students: Up in very late hours of the night.

Abnormal Angela Student: Up in very early hours of the morning.

My Thoughts on this different sleep schedule:

• My brain simply works better and I’m more productive the first half of the day.
• Early to bed, early to rise
• This is good routine for Graduate school 8am courses
• The average hospital has therapists arrive to work around 7:30am, more of a good routine

Life of a Physical Therapy Student

I’M SO EXCITED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE HIP JOINT (& the rest of lower extremity) TOMORROW.

On constant dirty dish work and the spice of life inbetween.

Let’s spit it out straight: I work with food.  A lot.

I’m constantly washing utensils, have recipes erupting out of cupboards, and wishlists filled with rolling pins, icing tips, standing mixers and more. 

This is unusual for the college campus student who may think boiling water is their biggest accomplishment of their independence or simply has no problem spending many dollars on pre-made foods or on tips at a bar.  For me, there’s something interesting about food.  Every part of it.  Where bought, who making with, the presentation, the enjoyment.  It has a narration passed down through culture and family yet it’s also constantly new and evolving alongside the times.

Currently in my kitchen there’s creamy cucumber soup, sweet potato pineapple salad, Greek Pasta salad, and on the counter is a platter of banana peanut butter cupcakes.  I’m on the path of making an organized collection cookbook of everything appetizers to drinks.

So please know if I share my eats with you, it’s an invitation to share something that exciting and enriching to me.  It’s also something I used to control too much.  Now, I’m okay with simply enjoying the scents with my oven and apron companions, but I’m learning to openly share it among friends and acquaintances.

See you later alligators.

Off to organize my Summer College Courseload (because Drexel and I have a serious long-term relationship).

Future Dates?

• Advanced Anatomy II
• Clinical Health Informatics
• Physics II
• Developmental Psychology
• Pharmacology II

Responsibilities

Can you just go away for my actual 21st birthday tommorrow and this coming Friday party?

Way to go timing of suite issues, boss slaps in the face, and upcoming exams.