My intended goal is to become a Physical Therapist, serving the Central Oregon community. I thoroughly enjoyed the education I received while obtaining my Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology at OSU-Cascades. In my role as a group exercise instructor and teacher trainer, I was able to apply my education directly to my classes right away - gaining hands-on experience with the concepts in the moment, as well as developing safe and effective programming for both my students and for future instructors in training - and I absolutely loved it. I have seen - and personally experienced - so many injuries in the world of fitness. Often, injured members of the community have to take extended breaks, lose momentum, feel discouraged, and occasionally never return to the activities they love for fear of re-injury. Being able to help my students and fellow trainers understand how to train in a way that helps to prevent injury is especially important to me. Last year, I also began working directly with patients as an Exercise Specialist (PT Aide) in the clinical setting and came to realize that through a career as a Physical Therapist, I will be able to provide 1:1 help to those people looking to recover from injury and/or surgery, so they can get back to doing the things they enjoy the most. Not every injury is preventable, but with this future career path ahead, I hope to be able to make an even deeper impact on those members of my local community that need a little extra support to stay on track, heal, and continue moving. In addition, I have had the opportunity to experience the incredible impact Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy can have on someone’s everyday life. I know so many people who have dealt with pelvic floor symptoms like urinary urgency and incontinence for years, often under the impression that it’s just a normal part of everyday life. During my time working in the clinic, I’ve been able to witness the joy and satisfaction these patients experience when their symptoms can finally be reduced or eliminated, sometimes even after just a few visits. The combination of these experiences is what makes me feel invigorated to begin the DPT program. I am excited to continue my education both to further develop my existing role in group fitness, as well as bring on the new and exciting challenge of patient recovery.