There aren’t many things that quickly connect people together in a genuine way. A fast-paced academic environment, however, will definitely do that for a group of people. Such was the case this past week. Our class is largely a group of strangers but after a few cadaver labs, a potluck and a series of lectures that doesn’t seem to end–we persisted as a group. New friends are a plenty and later on in all of our careers, that will probably lead to business partnerships and a group of people that just ‘get it’ the way you do. I’m sure by the end of this program that these people won’t just be classmates, but something akin to family.
Thus far, we’ve had an incredibly supportive and collaborative group. I’m sure that’ll change a bit as we get more comfortable with the pace of things and the inevitable cliques begin to form themselves. Over multiple days, though, I’ve had both the opportunity to have healthy academic recourse with my peers but also the space to work on my own.
There haven’t been many negatives to my experience so far. Mostly just trivial things like the fact that because our building is so new, we are only allowed to eat food in (not very large) designated areas. Or the fact that our building closes pretty early and isn’t open on weekends. Most of these ‘negative’s are totally excusable, anyways.
PT school is no joke. Maybe this is the case for all graduate-level studies but I can’t recall the last time I have encountered such a breadth and depth of material. This kind of program will take a consistent mental fortitude, a willingness to collaborate, and a ton of flexibility. Despite the amount of busy work, I love how relevant all the material is to what I will be doing. After almost two years as a rehabilitation technician, I am finally connecting the dots that I only ever previewed as a tech. It’s a shame how little being a tech has helped me so far. Don’t get me wrong, teching was a great experience, but it’s only relevant clinically, and not at all in the study of gross anatomy. I can’t wait until some of the more clinical classes.
Anyways, I’m proud to say that I survived my first week in PT school. ‘Survive’ really is the right word since I feel like I’m barely keeping up. Even now as I write this post, my anxiety for my first quiz grows and it demands that I go back to studying. And I will, but not before I finish writing this post. The best part, though, is how excited I am to get back at it.
Until next time!
First Wealth Health 