The human experience can be summarized and many ways.

Human movement covers a

broad spectrum that spreads from learning how to walk, to performing athletics at the elite
level. However, there are many things that all people have in common when it comes to
moving. Walking up and down stairs, holding children, picking up around the house, etc… these
are all things that, if not able to be performed comfortably, can diminish the human experience.
Not everyone is an Olympic level athlete, but we certainly all perform daily tasks. In the field of
Physical Therapy, our goal is to “transform society by optimizing movement to improve the
human experience.” Our goal is to make certain that people across the board can move
comfortably and enjoy their everyday lives through movement. (quote needs citation)
Per the vision statement, the main goal of the field of physical therapy is to transform
society. While it may seem like a vast and overwhelming task, we must realize that bringing
about positive change starts at the individual level. We transform society by transforming
individual lives every day in the clinic. By helping patients improve their mobility, helping
athletes rehab an injury, and by inspiring all patients to fall in love with movement, we can
improve society person by person every single day. Movement is at the very core of human
existence and experience and is often the key to improving lives. My goal is to use movement to
face any challenge presented to me by any patient on any given day. Old or young, sedentary or
athlete, I will utilize movement to better the lives of everybody I come across.
While movement can be key in transforming society, we must look at how we can
optimize that movement. If a patient comes into the clinic post-knee surgery, we can’t just
prescribe movement and send them on their way. We must look at how the leg and knee
function daily, choose suitable exercise to fit not only those functions, but the patient’s body
itself, and be there to guide the patient through these rehabilitation exercise progressions. For
the patient who is struggling to walk after surgery, we must do everything we can to make sure
we work towards making walking as easy, efficient, and as comfortable as we possibly can. My
goal as a therapist is to make any and all movement as efficient as possible for any patient who
walks through my door.
As stated above, the human experience can, essentially, be broken down into how we
experience and move through our everyday lives. I believe that, in order to improve the human
experience, patients must be both comfortable and confident in all movement patterns they go
through daily, as well as all the extra movements that they hold dear. For example, if we have
an older patient who struggles with constant back pain and can’t pick up their grandchildren
anymore, my goal as a physical therapist would be to make it so that not only is their constant
pain gone, but that they can also bend down and lift things up comfortably and confidently all
while enjoying themselves. The joy of holding their grandchildren once again would be second
to none, and I would be more than honored to be a part of that experience.
While the human experience differs greatly from person to person, we can all agree that
we share the same basic movement and, if that basic movement is compromised for any
reason, it can greatly diminish that experience. Everybody deserves to move through their life
with comfort and ease. As a physical therapist, I am ready to put the physical needs of others
above my own and work day in and day out to make sure that every person experiences their
life to the fullest through movement.