Coaching A Community Part 2

"Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble." 1 Peter 3:8

"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." 1 John 4:11

This is now my fourth season coaching the CBC women's flag football team and each year we try to build on the next. Josh and I have focused on building a community centered around God's love using football as a platform. Each year the season seems to go by so fast and before we know it, the tournament is over. This season, we were fortunate enough to take home the championship and I could not be more proud of the time. I am proud of them because they played the game the right away, played with good integrity, showed love to one another and came together as a community.

This team genuinely cares for one another and I thoroughly enjoy watching them come together as a team to play on tournament day. I was overfilled with joy when the team started cheering after the final game. I honestly can't put into words how I felt but I do know God's love was present with this team. This team has spent countless hours practicing, spent time time getting to know one another, caring for one another and praying for one another. We grew as a community as the season went on and will look to continue to build on this season. It's always bittersweet once the season comes to an end after spending 12 weeks practicing every Sunday.

While I am far from a perfect coach, I am blessed by the love this team shows to me. They overlook my flaws and my moments of temper and allow me to coach them. I may not be the most knowledgeable but I genuinely care for each member of this team. Sports played a role in me coming to know Jesus which is why I care so much about this ministry. I look forward to more seasons to come and to continue to build on these past seasons.

PC: Tim Ho Photgraphy

The Offense

PC: Tim Ho Photgraphy

PC: Tim Ho Photgraphy

How To Grow As a Physical Therapist: A New Grad's Perspective

          I'm writing this to evaluate myself as a therapist and to hopefully encourage/help new grads. A quick background on myself,  my name is Wesley and I have been a physical therapist for a little over two years and I still consider myself a new grad.

          I worked at two different physician owned outpatient clinics my first two years and recently switched over to a cash based sports rehab facility. I went into PT school knowing I wanted to work with athletes. My previous jobs at the physician owned clinics allowed me to occasionally work with athletes but I knew I didn't want to be there permanently.

          I would have never imagined I'd be in this type of facility only two years out of PT school. None of this is my doing and I attribute where I am today 100% to God. God has opened up doors for me and allowed me to meet people to get to where I am today. I get to work with athletes everyday and many of the high school athletes I work with have aspirations of playing sports in college. Below is a picture of the facility I currently work at.

Here is a list of things I've done the past couple of years that has helped me grow as a therapist:

1. Don't stop learning - This is the most important one on this list. 
• This includes several things but my own list includes, PT books, exercise/strengthening books, research articles and blogposts.
• Take courses that you believe will benefit your patients and help you grow. Once you're out of school, there's no set curriculum and you're free to choose  whatever classes you want. 
• Additionally, I use instagram a lot for finding exercises. There are lot of smart professionals in the field who pass along great information. My boss/coworker Dr.Teddy Willsey @strengthcoachtherapy has been a great influence to me and I've learned a lot from his videos.
2. Network
• I personally believe the PT community is unique because we want to help one another. I've built relationships with many PTs and enjoy learning from others.
• I reached out to Teddy to shadow him at his clinic in March of this year and ended up building a relationship with him which led to me working there. Teddy mentioned that he appreciated the fact I showed initiative in reaching out and going to visit the facility.
3. Step outside your comfort zone
• This is more of a personal one for myself as I tend to like to be comfortable.
• Earlier this year, I made a PT instagram to push myself outside my comfort zone. I personally never liked putting myself out there and was afraid of what people might think/say. I've been encouraged by several friends and classmates and am thankful I decided to do it. If you would like to follow me, you can find me @WesleyWang.PT. 
• Challenge yourself to learn and grow as a therapist.
4. Come up with your own style of treatment
• In school you're taught to think/treat a certain way based on the curriculum. I went into PT school thinking I would became a manual therapist and use my hands to fix everyone. Two years later, I minimally use manual treatments and use it more as a facilitation and supplement as opposed to my primary means of treatment. 
• There are many schools of treatment out there including Mckenzie, Maitland, PRI, etc. Sometimes it scares me when I hear a therapist say one school of thought is the end all. In my opinion, if that were the case, that method would become the gold standard and be taught across schools. 
• Develop your own school of thought, take pieces of different treatment styles and make it your own. Look at research, track your own patients progress and think about what works and what doesn't.
• My style of treatment now is completely different than it was two years ago. My treatment foundations centers around patient education, exercise and movement. I strive to empower my patients so they recognize the work that needs to be put in to get back to their respective sports.

If you have any questions or would just like to start a discussion, feel free to e-mail me at WesleyWang.DPT@gmail.com.