But first, we moved to another Air BnB, with this gal who used to work in the music biz and now she does freelance marketing. Free spirit, a dog, and two cats, living in north Portland, almost to Vancouver (I could run over the bridge into Vancouver, which was sort of cool). We gelled pretty well with her and the animals, and got used to the area where the apartment was. It was a little industrial, but there were still a few different trails and areas to explore for running. It felt like we had known her for a while, even though we had just met her, and I feel like she included us in her life as though we were already friends. It was really nice.
My last rotation was an outpatient orthopedic place at a small clinic (but big company) where the my clinical instructor did orthopedic stuff as well as pelvic PT. Now, some of you may ask, “pelvic physical therapy?! What is that?!” Let me tell you! It’s exactly how it sounds – it’s physical therapy for your pelvic area. Anyone can get treated – men, women, children: pain doesn’t discriminate - and we ALL have the same muscles down there. I had observed a pelvic therapist during a summer between my first and second years and then had a baby clinical experience shadowing a women’s health therapist during my second year. I found that it intrigued and didn’t disgust me. I really liked the almost immediate impact that you could have on patients, and I like treating the hip. I feel like it affects so much – just like the pelvic floor. (And, I think everyone should be having good sex.) I realized that I could do this sort of therapy. It is a niche, as well, which would help me with job security. Before I get too off topic with soap box, the pelvic floor is the foundation of our core and issues with it can affect both up and down the chain. I took an introductory Herman & Wallace course with one of my classmates (hi Kendy!) months before so that we would be more prepared to treat patients during each of our last clinicals involving pelvic (Kendra had a full-time pelvic floor clinical during her last one).
This clinical was pretty nice. My supervisor’s hours were a little funky (since there’s only 2 therapists, she wanted diversity of coverage/appointment slots), which took some time to get used to, but the clinic was close to a multi-use trail as well as other neighborhoods that I could marathon train on during longer lunch breaks. Treating actual pelvic floor patients was tough, because it’s such a sensitive area and generally an involved case, patients may not feel comfortable letting a student do their exam or treatment. I expected this, and it was fine – it had to be, what was I going to do, yell at a patient to let me in?? – but it did start to get old after I while, just because I wanted to learn. Eventually, my supervisor and I got around it – we started just introducing ourselves as a unit, and that seemed to help – and patients seemed fine. I clicked well with this supervisor; we bounced ideas off one another a lot and practiced things. Which is what made leaving and ending this clinical difficult.
It got down to the wire with job things by the end of this one, and this clinic (the 2 PTs, front office gal, and aide) was there with me for all of it. (I also had a birthday and ran a marathon during this clinical, too. Ah, life.) It came down to moving to Washington or staying in Portland (so I guess I picked the west coast, ha), and I ended up picking a job in Portland (which, in hindsight…I feel like I’ve been noticing a lot in hindsight…makes the most logical sense – why do yet ANOTHER big move, when you can just do a smaller move, instead?).
The job application process is terrible. I wouldn’t suggest it to anyone (can’t I just be a student forever?! My student loans laugh as I type that)…it’s like dating. You don’t want to seem too eager, but you should seem interested. Or you should gently say, “I’m just not that into you.” However, it was nice to get the job thing out of the way before I had to deal with the looming raincloud that is the board exam. And, that means now I had friends! (Aka my old supervisor, the other PT in that office, the aide, etc. ha, small victories.)
So that was clinical year! Whew. After that was graduation, which was a wonderful time to see classmates I hadn’t seen for a year, catch-up and then say “peace” to the University of Rhode Island. All so I could actually be an adult for once…