Working as a physio - physical fitness

[physiothom]

Apologies if this is the wrong place for this question, but I am applying to do a Masters in physio. I am physically fit but recently had serious tendonitis in one wrist. It's healing, but slowly.

I'd appreciate some advice from working physios in a couple of areas:

1. It's possible I may have trouble with my wrist long-term, mostly for repetitive tasks such as long periods of typing and writing, and I'm worried about it affecting my ability to massage patients. Just how physical a job is it in terms of repetitive actions?

2. Are there any areas within the physio field that I could consider taking into account my current injury. Any less physical fields?

3. Any good tendonitis rehab resources/advice? I'm told I have poor circulation which isn't helping.

Hopefully, the injury will clear up completely, but I'd appreciate some advice. Thanks

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[physio.smith]

Obviously I can not advise whether or not you should do physio, delay starting etc

As an outpatient specialist I would say that at times your hands do work hard...this does depend often on the type of patient you are seeing. As a student in my first year I was having problems with hypermobile thumbs and saw a specialist who advised me to avoid outpatients as a career choice...this went down like a lead balloon with me, I ingnored him and carried on. I have tried splints...find them difficult to get on with. There is a book for physios on how to protect your hands (can't remember the title) it may help. I have personnally found that if you are careful and watch that you don't over do it then you can manage a lot of these things. Depend though on your individual problem.

If you haven't already try and get some work experience (if you can...I know it is hard to get into) in the NHS so that you can assess a variety of areas of physio and try and gauge whether or not you think that your wrist is up to it.

Good luck

[physiothom]

Thanks for that. I'll try to find the book you mentioned.

[Yarok]

hi

doing massage uoy have to learn how to do it employing fists, heels, forearms, elbows, mixing with mobs/manps, M-energy techniques, exercises etc, useing tools, equipment to avoid repetetive long activities.

all the best

[Judith Mollet]

Hi there. It's really difficult to predict what will happen to you in the next ?40 years. I've been a physio since 1976 and there's no way I'd do full time. My thumbs, fingers, shoulders and back wouldn't take it in outpatients with strokes and loads of manual therapie. Having said that, and thinking of my peers and we are all pushing 55, very few have given up physio alltogether. The one with 2 laminectomies before her finals had 4 kids and works much harder than me! There's enough opportunity for changing direction I think. Keep up CPD, pay for more courses yourself if you must (here in CH I've paid for everything for years), you can change to advisory functions, teaching, whatever. Some of us will never have big problems, some will. Hope your tendons hold out for as long as possible and good luck!
regards JM