Personal Statement: Physical Therapy
Even though the inclusion of the life quality concept in healthcare research is relatively new, and its interpretations are often variable, this idea is recognized as an important clinical outcome domain, especially when it comes to pain management therapies. If not effectively relieved or treated, pain can have detrimental effects on various aspects of individuals’ lives. Such negative impacts have been proven to span across all age groups irrespective of the type and source of pain. As a child, I was always excited by the idea of helping others. Consequently, I grew up harboring immense respect and admiration for clinical professionals due to their courageous and selfless acts of restoring peoples’ health devoid of any bias.
I have invariably been a self-driven and resilient individual since childhood. For example, I did not give up on my desire to learn how to swim, despite the phobia that I had in the past for large water bodies. My determination and unwavering commitment towards realizing my dream helped me to overcome the aforementioned psychological issue. Having conquered my water phobia, I became a professional swimmer and eventually an excellent coach in this particular sport. Working as an instructor, I have witnessed the fear and despair that most of my trainees experienced when they get injuries while learning to swim. One particular situation that helped me to patently confirm my decision to pursue a career in physical therapy involved a youngster who had acquired a knee injury while swimming breaststroke.
Whereas breaststroke can be a relatively relaxed and comfortable swimming style, this technique often predisposes people to injuries, especially in highly competitive environment. By raising her feet above the water to execute a breaststroke, the teenager inadvertently strained two knee ligaments. Consequently, her knees got swollen and inflamed, which caused her great pain. I witnessed how these abrasions eventually started having catastrophic effects on the girl’s psychological health. The trainee begun harboring negative thoughts since being unable to swim for weeks made her feel as if she had lost a vital part of herself.
The injury drastically lowered the young girl’s self-esteem, causing her to develop anxiety and depression. The scenario explicated above made me more cognizant of the fact that young sportspersons undoubtedly need professional help not only to recuperate from their physical contusions but also to holistically recover from the mental traumas engendered by such injuries. Resultantly, I sturdily believe that by embracing a career path in physical therapy, I will be able to utilize the knowledge and aptitudes that I have to gain during my studies. All the skills and knowledge acquired will allow me to formulate and effectively execute evidence-centric rehabilitation aimed at helping my trainees to return to their typical pre-injury fitness. Besides, I will be able to actively assist youngsters to overcome deleterious lesion-induced psychological traumas by providing them solid and positive support, primarily during the healing process.
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