Many see rehab as something that only PT’s do, but they are very wrong. Athletic trainers play a vital role in the rehabilitation process of the athletes that they are treating. These athletes are the patients that the AT’s see on a regular basis, and they know the norms of the athlete before the injury. As an athletic trainer, my role is to get my patient, the athlete, back to their norm or better than their norm post-injury. I must follow the protocol set by the physician in order to do this. My role is also to keep them motivated and ensure their mental health through the process of rehab. Many times when athletes are injured and going through rehab they can become depressed/down. This affects the progress they have made and can stunt the advancing of the progress. I, as an athletic trainer, need to be aware of the signs so that I can help and encourage my patient to keep their head up and maintain a positive attitude. This can be done by setting small, short-term goals that can help them to reach long term goals. The short term goals can be daily, realistic goals that can motivate the athlete by them seeing their daily progress with little (but big) achievements. I progress my patient by their protocol, but also by their abilities. If exercises are being completed with ease, pain free, with full ROM (or ROM where it should be) then a patient should be able to progress with an exercise. Some exercises must wait, for example, if a patient is to be non-weight bearing for a specific amount of time, I will not progress to weight bearing exercises unless the doctor releases them to that. However, if an athlete is allowed to be weight bearing, say with a knee injury, and has been showing steady progress with goblet squats and have had no pain with the full ROM, I can then begin to progress to squats with a barbell. If the exercise is attempted in the next session but causes pain or form is compromised, I would not allow the patient to continue and would return to the previous exercise they had just progressed from (the goblet squats). Now, there is a difference between discomfort and pain. If the patient reports discomfort such as tightness, the exercise can still be performed as long as there is no pain. Discomfort is a normal part of returning from an injury. Not everything will necessarily feel great, but it should not be extremely painful.
This week I was unable to get any attempts or masteries due to working on administrative duties in the clinic with Melissa. I have not had time to sit down and work through my PBLS and book to see if any line up, but plan on sitting down tomorrow since I will have time. WORD COUNT: 480
1 Comment
This past year and a half in the program has been a whirlwind. I’ve had highs, I’ve had lows, I’ve had victories, and I’ve had failures. With each and every up and down, came a lesson. I learned that fear of failure will cause you to never reach your full potential. I realized that yes, I may have a sleeping issue, but I cannot blame all of my failures on that one problem. I am learning the importance of being proactive in not just clinical work and school work, but also the importance of it in every aspect of life. I know that my past cannot define me or confine me. Dwelling on my past mistakes and failures will be no help in advancing in my future. I have to ask for help when I need it and I need to take advantage of the resources I am given. I want to make a complete change as a student during this course. That goal is something I plan to accomplish. It will not be easy, it will require discipline and perseverance, and it may even require a few breakdowns. Nevertheless, it will be well worth it in the long run.
I am setting little goals for myself along the way:
In order to complete my clinical packet I am going to have to buckle down and bust out attempts. I want to get a minimum of twenty attempts per week, and I want to get as many as soon as I can to allow adequate time for masteries. I’m not sure you could say I approached this in a logical process considering I have a shortened time to complete my packet in. I believe this goal is very achievable, but it will be very challenging and I am really going to have to time manage in order to accomplish this goal. WORD COUNT: 405 |