How could one doctor’s appointment be so pivotal? My plans for the future had completely shifted. I just went to check on my fractured foot and they questioned the abnormal x-rays. Abnormal x-rays were not concerning having Osteoporosis so young. They asked me to walk up and down the bright sterile hallway. I thought I would be cleared to exercise, to my disbelief he recommended surgery to correct my “knock knees”. I was devastated just as I was becoming less cautious and playing sports that was going to stop.
It was a few weeks before surgery and I had spent a long time of contemplating and imagining all the possibilities. I decided it was not going to be as bad as I was expecting. I thought I would bounce back. Back to the rush of making a basket or the runner's high only experienced after a long
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exhilarating run in a few weeks with physical therapy. Finally, the day came my fear was limited. When I woke up groggy, tasting the continuous anesthetic gas radiating from each breath. It was terrifying seeing the gigantic beige wrappings that overtook both legs. I was still hopeful sitting there thinking my recovery will only take a little while longer than I thought. After several days of not being able to even stand I had lost that desire to return to the way I was before. I thought it would be too painful to recover. I went for the post-operation checkup the encouragement I received helped me to recover quicker and realize the progress I had made. Finally, after several months of intense rehab I had returned to where I was before the operation.
It was just in time for another surgery to remove the screws and plates that were correcting my knees. I went through the exact same process of healing and pain as before. This time the surgeon becoming more and more encouraging than the time before. After a year of healing, I returned to the same place I was a year before. However, a sudden growth spurt caused my knees to revert. The doctor was just as baffled as I was; he seemed to cringe at the thought at putting me through the excruciating operation once more.
The time came again I went through the exact same thing; it was becoming a monotonous task. I would have surgery recover, go through rehab, train, and it would start all over again. After the fourth surgery, it seemed to be all over. The surgeon said “It will be wonderful to not see you again” in a joking manner.This time my recovery was going to last. I went from barely walking to jogging , and ultimately running several miles a day. I finally was experiencing normal tween things such as riding bikes with friends on a bright and windy summers
day. Going in for another appointment the thought never came through my mind of having another surgery. At this appointment, I found out my left knee had over corrected. Leaving my knees in a worse state than we had ever imagined. The surgeon said “We will have to perform surgery” . I had to have yet again another surgery, leaving me devastated. I suddenly began to weep; the surgeon gave me hug apologizing for all that I had gone through. He explained that he had a sports injury and he had experienced devastation as I was experiencing. By showing compassion and understanding this doctor had done more than just comforting me. It was at that moment I realized I wanted to become an orthopedic surgeon. I wanted to make an impact in children's life as he had mine. I realized my personal experiences could help understanding the patient's side of care. One doctor’s appointment had turned to years of appointments and ultimately a new life ambition.
“Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Everything will be all right.” My doctor was there. That reassured me. I felt that in his presence, nothing serious could happen to me. Every one of his words was healing and every glance of his carried a message of hope. “It will hurt a little,” he said, “but it will pass. Be brave.” (79)
forward. Two months after I had surgery on my meniscus, I went snowboarding and crashed into a tree. My right leg was stuck in my binding and the board twisted and I felt a sharp pain and fell to the ground, but I got up and kept going. After the season was over I went to the doctor and got an MRI scan, it showed that I had torn my ALC.
“The purpose of a doctor or any human in general should not be to simply delay the death of a patient, but to increase the person’s quality of life.” Orthopedic surgeons treat a number of conditions that affect the bones, joints, muscles, tendons, and nerves. The training to become an orthopedic surgeon requires multiple years of hard work and studying, but in the end, the success is worth all the stress and struggle experienced on the way. Most doctors must dedicate every fiber of their being, countless hours of work, and years of stress in their chosen profession. Medicine is only for those who can’t imagine doing anything else.
In January of 2012, I was playing in the first volleyball tournament of the club season. In the second game of the day, I dove to get a ball and landed wrong on my right wrist. My wrist was constantly popping and hurting when I needed to lift something. In May of 2012, my mother took me to the orthopedic doctor at Athens Orthopedic Clinic. I underwent physical therapy, took pain medicine, and played no volleyball for a month. When the month was up and there was still no improvement, I went to get a MRI. The radiologist said that there was nothing wrong, but my orthopedic referred me to an orthopedic surgeon for a second opinion. It only took a minute for my orthopedic surgeon to see what the problem was: a tear in my TFCC (a cartilage structure located on the small finger side of the wrist that, cushions and supports the small carpal bones in the wrist (Midwest). On August 8, 2013, I had surgery on my wrist. Ever since I’ve had surgery I’ve wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon. Although becoming an orthopedic surgeon takes years of education, hours of training, and hours of on-call work, orthopedic surgery’s advantages outnumber the disadvantages.
I think that is why I was humbled because my situation could be worse. I became more and more appreciative and learned that my world wasn’t ending; my world was just changing. I learned that I had to adjust to change in order to position myself for future success. I had to see different perspectives and open myself up to new ideas. Also, I had to fully accept the fact that things were changing for me. I now realize that change is good sometimes because it introduces you to new opportunities and experiences. Instead of playing basketball 24/7, my injury gave me exposure to different interests that I would have never experienced before and will never
Overcoming an addiction to alcohol can be a long and bumpy road. Many people feel that it is impossible to overcome an alcohol addiction. Many people feel that is it easier to be an addict than to be a recovering addict. However, recovering from alcoholism is possible if one is ready to seek the help and support they need on their road to recovery. Recovery is taking the time to regain one’s normal mind, health and strength. Recovery is process. It takes time to stop the alcohol cravings and pressure to drink. For most, rehab and professional help is needed, while others can stop drinking on their own. Recovery never ends. After rehab, professional help or quitting on your own, many people still need help staying sober. A lot of time, recovering
He told me it may be possible for me to skate again. He asked me if I was prepared to work even harder than I had before to continue my skating career, to which I said “I know no other option”. A value instilled in me by my parents at a young age; if you want something you have to work as hard as possible to get it. I did countless weeks of intense physical therapy. I reduced work load at my job which supported my skating in order to focus on my recovery since my labor intensive job would impede the recovery process. During my slow return to skating I had a reoccurrence of my bulging disc to which the doctor told me the impact forces of jumping were too much for muscular strength to overcome. We discussed my options and he agreed that I could compete in ice dance, my second love in skating. He reiterated to me that picking up and individual to perform lifts might not put the same impact forces but I still needed to work as hard as before to be able to compete safely. I rehabilitated again and begun my trek down the path of ice dancing. I competed in ice dance for the next six years without a flair up in my back. I was a national competitor and at the end of my career I was ranked 11th in the country, competing against those who would become our Olympic team
He told me that I should not have any problem bouncing back since I am young and active. I cannot believe that I had to let me back up mascot take care of the last few games for me. I am uncomfortable when I sit; the pain goes down the back of my leg almost to the middle of my knee. I feel okay when I have been laying around, but am still not liking keeping weight on it. If you asked what bothered me the most, it would definitely be while sitting. The physical therapist told me that you would be showing me some stretches and strengthening exercises that will help with numerous things. I would like to be able to continue my signature cartwheel/splits routine, go to the group workout at the gym, and not act like my grandma when I go home for the holidays in a couple of months! Oh and fix me fast, please; I have finals coming
Mobility grants opportunity and lifelong experiences through the gift of exploration and independence. Without autonomy of movement in one’s life, there are struggles accompanied by frustration do to the lack of freedom and ability. It is an orthopedic surgeon’s job to bring function to one’s life even if they have never been granted movement without restraint before. Orthopedic surgeons receive patients whose freedom of movement have been compromised and then return it back to them. Orthopedic surgeons give immeasurable opportunities and life experiences back to their patients because of their perseverance and commitment to their patients and careers.
During the ninth grade, I injured my knee playing soccer. The initial MRI did not show any tears, but the orthapedic surgeon did notice I was weak medially and that my patella was tracking laterally. He sent me to therapy to strengthen the inside of my leg and hopefully pull my kneecap medially. I started going to therapy and I adored my therapist, Kelley. Even though the exercises weren’t always fun or pain free I looked forward to therapy. She made things fun, and since I was interested in the field, would explain why I was doing certain exercises compared to others. The pain didn’t go away and she worked to help figure ...
These interactions continued fuel my dedication to one day become a medical professional as thoughtful, empathetic, and passionate as the medical professionals I have observed and learned from. I had my first professional encounter with the field of Podiatry when I began shadowing a foot and ankle surgeon. Through the encounters with patients and observations of the clinical and surgical aspects of the field, I developed a passion for the significance of Podiatric care and a desire for the opportunity to pursue a career as Doctor of Podiatric Medicine. Through my passion and determination to contribute to the treatment and care of others, as well as the lessons I have learned from those who I have worked with and observed, I have realized what a career medicine means to me: inspiration. Medicine is about inspiring strength in others through the exceptional care that it provides. It is about inspiring hope in the most hopeless of situations. That is why I have chosen to pursue not only a degree, but a lifetime of passion, learning, and caring for my community as a Doctor of Podiatric
Instead of wallowing in my misery, I took initiative and made the most of my situation. One should never worry about what they can’t control. Aside from the social life issues due to my injury, I had to attend therapy for my rehabilitation. When I first started putting pressure on my ankle and flexing, I was as white as a ghost, deathly afraid that I might hurt it again. But eventually, as time went on and my physical therapist provided words of encouragement, I was able to trust my body again and have faith that my ankle would allow me to do what I was able to do before the injury. Since I had never dealt with having an action or movement temporarily taken from me, it was hard to take that first step again. Imagine standing at the edge of a cliff and staring down at an abyss. What’s down there is unknown to you and so you are unsure if you should jump or not. This was the predicament I found myself in when I had to walk to my physical therapist who stood a couple of feet away. I had to reach down inside myself and find the courage and bravery that I knew was in
One Wednesday morning in September of 2015, I slept in until 8 a.m. I was not going to school that day. Instead, I was going to Phoenix Children’s Hospital to get an MRI on my hip to see if there was a tear in my tissues and also receive a cortisone shot to relieve pain. I dressed in comfy clothes, drove to the hospital, and anxiously waited in the waiting room. When the doctor took me back into a room, he had me undress into a gown so all of my skin was exposed below the waist. Carefully, the nurse sanitized my hip and groin with alcohol swabs. Next, she injected me with a numbing medicine so I would not feel the doctor moving the long needle inside of me. After the local anesthetic kicked in, the doctor set up a fluoroscopy that would show
This time, however, was different and that it was just darkness. I suddenly woke up and I had this grogginess feeling and everything around me seemed so odd. It was mostly for the fact that I was in a completely different room, but to my right was my mom and to my left was my surgeon. The surgeon started talking while smiling at me, “Hello Ryan, everything worked out completely fine, you 'll be OK from now on, you will feel some discomfort in the next few months as recovery for your surgery but after that you 'll be good as new.” I replied back a bit slowly, “ OK, thank you doctor.” After that my parents helped me back into my clothes and carried me to the car. We drove back home and along the way all I could feel was sleepiness and how slow I was moving. It wasn 't until I got home that the pain started kicking in and it was a pain that I would have to get used to for about a month. During that month though, everything was so relaxing, All I did was stay in bed all day and watch T.V. Other than the pain it was very nice time for me. That surgery changed my body and how I would think of how surgeries are done. Thankfully everything turned out great and now I feel completely
leading up to the surgery I was quite stressed out due to pain and other sorts of emotional distress in terms of hockey. Despite the fact that there was still the opportunity to play for the Texas team next year, I finished off my youth hockey career with broken collarbone. The recovery extended over a 5 month period full of icing, heating, therapy, and trying to cope with stress mentally. Thoughts flew through my head constantly making me all twisted up emotionally that I had