Introduction to a Future Physical Therapist
Howdy y’all, my name is Ethan Rafferty, a 3rd year student at the University of Oklahoma. I’ve been a sooner fan since I was born, because my Dad attended the university, so I was raised around the culture. One could say that I was brainwashed to go here, but I truly do love the school, from the academics, to the campus, to the sports. I am 21 years old, and I am from Flower Mound, Texas, a suburb just north of Dallas. There, I was raised by my mother and father with my two sisters. I am the middle child, and also the only boy, so it was quite the experience growing up with my siblings.
My major is Health Exercise Science. I did not initially come to OU with that as my plan, but after my first semester, I realized that natural sciences and exercise physiology interested me way more than any business degree. I believe the best part about my major is that it can allow me to help others once I graduate, including rehabbing those who suffered an injury or improving someone’s overall health. After I graduate, I plan to attend more school, specifically, physical therapy school. Physical therapy is the ideal job for me because I enjoy the aspects of seeing patients and using noninvasive procedures to rehabilitate them back to good health. Hopefully, I can attend physical therapy school somewhere in Texas, like the University of North Texas, or UT Southwestern, so I can be closer to my family.
Some of my goals include finishing college with a Health Exercise Science degree, graduating with a GPA of 3.5 or higher, going to physical therapy school, and becoming a physical therapist by the time I am 30 years old. After I have established my career, I hope to buy a house in Texas near my family in the Dallas metroplex. Personally, I don’t need a grand and luxurious home to be satisfied in life, so anything simple will do fine. Eventually, I may one day decide to start a family, but I want to make sure my life is secure and stable before I do that. These are the goals, both short term and long term, that I have planned for myself.
Picture of myself in Breckenridge, Colorado
Hi Ethan, nice to meet you! I think your blog design is really cool.
ReplyDeleteI'm also from out of state but I didn't have any previous connections at OU, so it was an interesting transition for sure. My brother was also the only boy and he had three sisters, which is definitely 'quite the experience'. I think it's great that you realised what you wanted to do and switched majors early on in your college career, as all too often people try to wait it out and get stuck in a major or career that they hate.
Physical therapists are miracle-workers, Ethan! I think it's great that you are going to follow that path. My cousin did her PT degree at Denton and really liked that a lot (now she lives in Colorado). And something I always mention in conjunction with this class for people who are into health and PT etc. is the great yoga connection; everybody has heard of yoga, of course, but often people don't know the epic stories that go with the different asanas, like the association between the heroine of the Ramayana, Sita, and the pose called the Tree-Pose: The Mythology Behind Vrikshasana (Tree Pose). That's just one example... other asanas have some great legends and stories associated with them too! So if that's something you'd be interested in, keep it in mind as something to explore this semester. :-)
ReplyDeleteHowdy Ethan, glad to see you’re interested in Health Exercise Science; that’s not my major, but due to my inability to prevent injuries, I’ve had lots of dealings with physical therapists. That’s an awesome, stable, and very beneficial career path. I do have to say, being from Fort Worth, I’m biased, but you should probably move to FW rather than Dallas. Godspeed and good luck, boss.
ReplyDeleteHi Ethan! I now believe that we should have more physical therapists in this world as I have discovered a new respect for the profession. Late last year I have started going to the physical therapist on our campus for my back and it would never fail that I would feel better after. Even after just three visits, my back greatly improved and I am very thankful for my physical therapist. I am happy to see that you are interested in entering this field of work and continue to impact clients' lives to make them feel better or sleep easier. Good luck with the continuation of pursuing your career! You got this!
ReplyDeleteHi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteI like that you have your whole life planned out, even to age 30. I’m just 19, and I’ve only really planned to age 22. It think it’s great that you want to be a physical therapist. So many of my family members have been in accidents where physical therapy often had better long lasting effects than the medicines. I think your goals are great, and I hope you are successful.
Hello Ethan!
ReplyDeleteI love meeting people with similar interests as my own, and you and I both have in common the fact that we want to help people progress towards and maintain a healthy lifestyle. I also always have this small internal victory when I find out someone from Texas came to OU to attend college, and the fact that you say you love it here is even better! It's like Oklahoma beat Texas by winning one of their potential students over... lol. But then again Texas is huge not everyone from Texas is a Texas fan... right?
Hi Ethan! I think it is awesome that you want to be a physical therapist. When I dislocated my shoulder, I went through physical therapy and it truly helped my shoulder feel better. I hope you can do the same for your future patients. The fact that you are going after a degree you want and love rather than something that will pay a certain salary is something I respect highly - good luck with your goals!
ReplyDeleteHi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteIt is always nice to meet another person from the DFW metroplex in Texas. I think you sound like you have it all figured out and that's great. I think your plans for the future will definitely work out. It is sweet you want to move back to be by your family and also just enjoy the simple life. Good luck in the rest of class!
Hi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you were able to switch to a major that you enjoy. it's a whole different perspective when you think about going to more school after college. Also, it's nice that you want to stay around your family once you're ready to start you own. Good luck!
Hi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely liking this blog theme and layout, I think it looks so much cleaner and easier to read than mine. I'm going to have to go do some redesigning after seeing this one.
Nice choice of major, I have been to physical therapy enough throughout the years due to sports injuries (broken tibia/fibia and various tendon stress) to know how important of a profession it is. Most of the ones I have worked with also seem to really enjoy their choice, so good luck on your journey!
Hello Ethan! I think it’s great that you developed a plan and have stuck with it. I always preach that it’s hard to know what you want to do for the rest of your life at the ripe old age of 18, but it seems you were able to figure it out quickly. I know what it’s like being brainwashed as I was raised to root against OU at all cost. EVENTUALLY, I was able to grow out of it and here I am! Best of luck going forward!
ReplyDeleteHey Ethan! It's pretty cool that you grew up with a sooner culture in your household. I had a pretty similar experience with both of my parents attending OU! We have always been avid OU football fans. My brother was a health and exercise major as well, and he just got accepted into physical therapy school! I like that you have a plan of your short and long term goals. Best of luck in achieving those goals. Make sure to enjoy your last year at OU! It goes by so fast. I can't wait to read your stories throughout the semester.
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you Ethan. You have some really great goals and I completely understand not needing any kind of grand house. I've always thought a simple design (but with my own personal touches) is better and as long as I've got some room to myself I'm good. I wish you the best of luck in getting into the school you want and in your classes.
ReplyDeleteHi Ethan!
ReplyDeleteI too am from great state of Texas and hope to move back after I graduate. I think it's really cool that you want to help people in your career and are interested in physical therapy. I know a lot of people who currently applying to PT school and I wish you the best of luck during that process and with your career goals in general. Enjoy the rest of your semester!
HI Ethan,
ReplyDeleteWow, you have a plan for life. Please tell me how you did that lol I feel stress when I think of the future, but you have amazing goals and ideas for your life! I'm jealous:)
I think that PT would be such a great field to work in, so it's very cool that you seem to be excited about it! Maybe you can add that to some of your future stories. One of the characters get injured and goes to a PT to heal and get back in the game lol. Good luck with everything!
Hello Ethan!
ReplyDeleteIt was great learning more about you. I wish I could’ve been a Health and Exercise major instead of a Biochemistry major. I love chemistry so I thought Biochem would be a good choice but now I’m taking classes that I do not care about; its gotten difficult to continue and I’m a third year as well. It always makes me happy to read about other people’s goals. It’s great to see a student have a plan for their future. Anyways, I hope everything works out in your favor Ethan!
Hi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteI think it is very fun how you are continuing your families legacy of going to OU and that while you are here you have high expectations for yourself. I also like your picture of yourself in Breckenridge Colorado. I went to Colorado for this spring break and it is a beautiful place to visit. Although we were not in Breckenridge I'm sure the terrain is pretty similar.
Hi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteGlad to see that you have a plan for your future. I know for myself that I wish I had as much foresight as you to try and have these checkpoints that I aspire to reach by a certain age. I was also raised a sooner fan, I would not call it brainwashed as much I would call it brought to the good side of things early! Good luck the rest of the semester.
Hi Ethan,
ReplyDeleteI always find it so interesting how many people at OU come from Texas! I have been in Oklahoma all of my life, and never really saw the appeal of living here until I moved to Norman. I have noticed that there are a lot of people in this class who are doing Health and Exercise Science as their major, which is great to me because I usually only have classes with people who are in a similar program as I am (either English or education). I really love that you laid out your goals for us to read, that is a great way to manifest those ideas and make them happen!