Reason 147: Love what you do.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011.

"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life."-Confucius

Life is so crazy.  I wonder how many posts I have said that in?  There is not really time to blog.  Half of the problem is that I can't really blog about much.  When your job deals with medical care and people can easily narrow down your list of possible patient's, you can't really talk vaguely about injuries either.

Soo.... in general, track and cross country are wonderful :).  I have seen some very cool injuries, learned a lot from everyone I work with, and I really enjoy all of the athletes I work with.  It's amazing how much you can learn from people when you spend so much time with them.

We have traveled to...

Park City

Utah State

Minneapolis, Minnesota
Roy Griak Invitational

(Photo from Flo Track)

South Bend, Indiana
Notre Dame Invitational

Madison, Wisconsin

Wisconsin Invitational

Traveling with the cross country team has been awesome.  Nice hotels, nice restaurants, plenty of time to explore the cities we were in. In South Bend, I got to spend time with Uncle Joe and Aunt Carol and eat a delicious dinner with them!  I also got to tour Notre Dame Athletics complex.  Super cool, I love that school. 

This weekend- San Francisco.  West Coast Conference Championships.  

Reason 133: The Brachial Plexus

Wednesday, May 11, 2011.

Oh, brachial plexus, how you concern me.

See this?  I have to memorize this.  Be able to draw this.  Know what connects to what.  Know what is damaged/weakened when a certain portion is cut.  How do you memorize something like this? In the summer?

Then....how do you find this business on a cadaver?  My TA would lift up a little piece of insides and call it a nerve.  My jaw would have dropped to the floor, but I was afraid of inhaling too much formaldehyde ;-)

Today I also read an extremely long position statement on cervical spine injuries.  I basically highlighted the whole position.  That stuff is SO important.  And as of right now, my worst fear is handling a C-spine injury.  But I totally feel more prepared after position statement. 

I also read about environmental conditions in the Arnheim Principles of Athletic Training text book (yes, I am reading the entire 1000 page text book in six weeks). 

BOC. Functional Anatomy. BOC. Functional Anatomy.

Off to open lab!

Reason 134: Great West Track and Field Championships

Saturday, May 14, 2011.

This weekend was the Great West Conference Track and Field Championship track meet at UVU!  I usually dislike working track meets, but this weekend was exceptionally fun!

The Great West Conference has some random teams such as: Utah Valley University, Seattle University, University of Texas Pan America, University of North Dakota, University of South Dakota, Houston Baptist University, Chicago University, and the New Jersey Institute of Technology.  It was really fun to meet these track and field athletes from all over the country and talk to them.  I met some fascinating people, including the athletic trainer from HBU who is from Israel.  So cool!  

And this is me and and Jen Terry with the most intense golf cart ever.  It was LIFTED. 

Congrats to UVU on winning the Great West Conference Championship!

Reason 130: Triathlon Training

Friday, May 6, 2011.

I am training for a triathlon.  To be honest, I am not sure my knee can handle a triathlon.  Mile 1.5 of my run tonight I felt this horrible clicking so I had to slow down and head home.  But regardless- it is the goal. Right now I am lifting weights for an hour, four to five days a week.  I run only once or twice, swim twice a week, and bike whenever I can.  It's already been a successful two weeks (well, not the running)... but I'd love to do a sprint triathlon in the next twelve months.  Kokopelli is in September in St. George- that is the tri that Jason is training for right now.  That feels REALLY soon to me- but we'll see!

Spring term is looking something like this- study for anatomy, study for the BOC, workout, play the piano. Those are the main four things that fill my days.  It's actually quite wonderful- it leaves plenty of time to be with Jason, watch movies, and attempt new recipes.  And I keep trying to convince myself that studying anatomy with "House" on will help.  I will let you know how that goes.

The BOC, to clarify, is the "Board of Certification" exam to become a Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC).  Basically, it tests everything I've worked for for the past 2 years.  It's a big deal.  An EXPENSIVE big deal.  And I MUST pass it in June so I can work as a graduate assistant in August.  No pressure, right?  If you want to read more about what an Athletic Trainer actually does, click on the underlined text.  Yep- I am shamelessly promoting my profession.  And so is your local legislature.  Athletic Trainers are a necessity in organized sports- especially high schools, colleges, and professional sports.  More and more cities are requiring a full-time Athletic Trainer in their schools.  That is GOOD news for me and the job outlook!

And finally- today we bought the wood to build our bookshelves and tv stand!  I am SO excited that Jason wants to build them.  I think it will be absolutely wonderful.  The wood is gorgeous.

Tomorrows agenda?  Bike ride, study for the BOC, BYU Rugby game with the Hepworth's, stain the end tables, and swim.

Reason 124: Life in General

Friday, April 15, 2011.

Life sure does change a lot.  

February 2011

Knee surgery

Great-Grandma Lena Bartholomew passed away

Jason's uncle passed away

Apartment flooded

Had to move out and back into said apartment

Andrew starred in "The Foreigner" at DHHS

Gosh I love my family. 

Hard drive with 13,000 pictures was water damaged

March 2011

Moved to Springville (*Cheers*)

These are deer in our backyard.  Quite common.

Covered a BYU Golf tourney in StG at Entrada

Froze to death

Hannah turned 10 (tear)

Festival of Colors with my girls

April 2011

Got accepted in Grad school at BYU!
Jason fixed our hard drive.  Pictures=recovered

Renter's insurance flood return funded a pretty, new TV

General conference was amazing

Maren threw Jocelyn a lovely bridal shower

Bubble gum game. Jocelyn=fail. Just kidding :)

Cleared to exercise on this blasted knee of mine

Succeeded on a chemistry test

Classes ended

About to tackle a relatively manageable finals schedule

HOME for Easter

This has been an insanely crazy semester.  So many highs and lows but ALWAYS a silver lining.  

Me. Graduation:  3 months and 26 days away.

August 11 and 12.

BS in Athletic Training

BS in Exercise Science

Awarded "Outstanding Senior Athletic Training Student" last week

That came with a lovely Tucano's gift card!

Dr. Allsen says, "It's not bragging if you got it." So, I  promise I'm not bragging.

Just super stoked.

Jason: Cancer Research Fellow for summer 2011.

Working with BYU, U of U, National Institute of Health, Huntsman Cancer Center, and Harvard University.

Doing animal trials on a couple of drugs that may be able to
*Slow down the metastasis of cancer*
Woah.   

Now I am bragging.

This kid is super smart.
How did I get so lucky?

Current plans:
Jason graduates in April 2013 with a
BS in Biophysics 

Minor in Music
I graduate in April 2013 with a 

MS in Exercise Science

Emphasis in Athletic Training

Drive off into the sunset,

a.k.a higher education for Jake.

Possibly an M.D./Ph.D program.

Life is the 

Craziest. Adventure. Ever.

Reason 119: Volleyball

Saturday, January 29, 2011.

Last night BYU Men's Volleyball kicked off in the first home match of the season!  I am one of two student athletic trainer's assigned to the team which has been a blast so far!

The Fieldhouse is a super fun atmosphere.  I realized this is the first indoor sport that I have worked.  It's different, but nice to have a more relaxed assignment!

Volleyball beat UC Irvine 3-0 last night and will play again tonight at 7 pm!

Reason 105: Trip to Air Force Academy

Friday, September 10, 2010

Okay- so this trip didn't end so well.  We all know that by now so we will merely disregard that portion because everything else was AWESOME!

We had a walk-through on Friday afternoon before we went to the Provo Airport.  We flew on Virgin American which was sweet because we each had our own personal TV that had games, movies, satellite tv, music videos, and the ability to chat with people in other seats.  True story.  So we got to Colorado Springs and checked into our hotel and it was INCREDIBLE.  It's called the Broadmoor- a legit, 5-star hotel.  We got really lucky.

Our amazing room that only two of us had to share!

The swimming pool that turns into a "lake" in between all the sections of this hotel.  They had water slides, hot tubs, and paddle boats you could ride around.  

Cousin Linda picked me up and we went to dinner at this super quaint Mexican Restaurant.
This is PJ and Julia- so glad they could come!

Sean, Liam, Kaitlyn, and me.  I look exhausted.

Flying over the Rocky Mountains on a relatively small plane with high winds can make you VERY ill.

Linda and I :)
So glad I got to be with them!  Love you guys!

Saturday morning we got up and went to the stadium to get ready for the game.  

This is the sign we were met with as we walked into the stadium.

Me, Chels, and Shandi before the game

Their stadium was pretty awesome.

Uncle Jared was there!  

The American flag on the field at halftime

The this trip was awesome :).  I am SO grateful for the opportunity I have to work with the BYU Football team and it was so fun to travel with them.  This weekend Jason and I are flying to the Florida State game!  We are hoping for the beach on Friday, game on Saturday, and we want to go to the Cowboys- Bears game at the fancy new Cowboys stadium on Sunday!  

Reason 102: Rise and Shout

Tuesday, August 17, 2010.

Today was- to date- my favorite moment of football.  Practice was called a bit early and we met with the team in the center of the field.  Apparently, all the players are required to know the fight song and all the freshmen and transfers were asked to pass it off today.   And if they didn't know it?  They'd have to sprint 200 yards (haha).

So, they tentatively began.  There was one or two guys of the twenty that could actually carry a tune so it sounded pretty bad, but they did know the words.  Everyone got real excited and started clapping and cheering.  Soon the whole team joined in on the chorus.  They weren't just standing there singing- they were WAY into it!  They were dancing around, clapping, cheering- oh baby. I love football.

It gave me chills.  GO COUGS.

See you soon, Washington.

Reason 101: Life Currently

Tuesday, August 10, 2010.

I had to look up the date and day of the week.  I have spent more time on campus working with the BYU Football team than I ever thought possible.  Days, weeks, and months are running together (it's only been a week though- haha).  But seriously- working with the football team is the most awesome thing in the world.  I love every single second of it!  Today afforded a sweet tennis shoe tan line, a very prominent wedding ring tan line, and (unfortunately) a smoking hot sunglasses tan line. Maybe tomorrow I should go with the hat?

I was assigned to work with the inside linebackers.  I have never spent much time learning defenses, so I am super excited to be working with them. Practices are insane but so fun.  There is never a dull moment and until we learn exactly how practices run, it's a slight mad scramble to stay with our position groups when the drills change.  Check out this article that Deseret News ran:

BYU football: Y. gridders know pickle juice means sweet success against cramps

Awesome stuff. We all have a bottle of pickle juice with us and I have already used it- a lot.  Can't wait for the Washington game to get here- this semester is going to be A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

On a separate note, we are MOVING tomorrow!  We found a contract at Cambridge Court in Provo- very close to the stadium :).  We will be there until the end of January when we can finally move to Springville.

And on a final note- I have the wedding pictures and they look stunning.  Many thanks to Spencer Burton for all of his work and time.  I will start posting those soon!  If you were at the wedding, there is a very high chance that there is a picture of you :)

Reason 56: Muscles

Muscles are pretty cool.  The past two exercise physiology lectures we have been talking about muscles. It never ceases to amaze me how intricate, precise, and well-designed they are.  I really enjoy learning about the fiber types- Type I, Type IIa, and Type IIx.  Each person has a different amount of each of these fibers. A good portion of the determination is genetics, but these fibers are also highly effected by training.

Type I fibers are typically seen in endurance athletes because they are able to get oxygen to the muscle and prolong activity and continue to respond to stimulation for an action potential.

Type IIa fibers are known as intermediate fibers.  They have more of a power aspect and are seen in football players, weight lifters, and sprinters.

Type IIx fibers are fast twitch fibers and aren't overly common in humans.  These are seen in elite, world-class power athletes.

We watched this sweet video about a world champion sprinter from England.  He had a muscle biopsy done and was found to have a large amount of type IIx fibers.  Genetically endowed?  Yes.  Watch this video.  It's super cool and it is NOT dull and boring with big words.  Just very interesting.

BBC Making of Me- Colin Jackson

I am also grateful for muscles today because my Yoga/Zumba/Power Cardio endeavors have left intense pain in muscles I did not realize you could adequately work out.  And general soreness everywhere else.

This is the life :) So excited for my Bridal Shower tomorrow!  Thanks to Maren for all her hard work and to Jocelyn for assisting in the "grunt work" (that is a direct quote).  I don't know what I would do without such one-in-a-million friends!

Reason 38: Fulfilling Days

Monday was a fantastic day.  This will require a list to adequately describe what occurred to make this day so good.

1- Jason was here.  Win.
2- I got my take home final essays done for Upper Extremities.
3- The discussion in rehab about facets of the lumbar spine being stuck open or stuck closed was really great.
4- We finished our wedding registry at Target and Bed, Bath, and Beyond!
5- We finally found a set of dishes that we are in love with at Target.  They are blue and the plates are school.  Can I just tell you how excited I am?  Weird reason, I know.  Such is life.
6- We also found silverware that we love, love, love at BB&B.  And believe me, we thoroughly tested the silverware.
7- We also found a bedding set at BB&B!  It is chocolate brown and B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L!
8- We split a Cafe Rio burrito for lunch. YUM.
9- I had the best day at UVU.  Seriously.  It was doc day so my ACI was busy with the doctors and sick/recently injured athletes.  The other athletic trainer was at the baseball stadium.  The other students were gone.  So basically-  I was in charge of the training room.  And even better?  I was confident and got a lot done.  And gave about a million treatments.
10- I got my back worked on.  And it felt so good.
11- We had a yummy dinner.
12- I took my Athletic Training Clinical Education practical final.  It went really well.
13- We made poppyseed cake and experimented with frostings.
14- I thoroughly studied for my Upper Extremities test and I think it was successful.

Monday was a good day.

Reason 35: Experience.

Tonight, I am a bit melancholy.

It's a strange thing for me really- to be attached to something so repetitive. I like change and spontaneity and unpredictability... but only to a certain extent.  I also get really comfortable in monotony and have a hard to leaving it.  So the end of the semester is hitting me kind of funny.

I have been extremely lucky.  I found the perfect program at BYU- the Athletic Training program.  Four semesters of long hours and extremely specialized classes.  I honestly cannot believe we are already half way done.  I have made some extraordinary friends and had some really cool classes.  Best of all, I am three for three on outstanding clinical assignments.  And I am planning on making it four of four in the fall.

My first assignment at American Fork High School was the best confidence builder I could have asked for.  As a brand new student I was thrown into the world of acute injuries, emergency care, and fast ankle taping.

My next assignment was with BYU Men's Rugby.  This was more laid back since it was off-season, but a great opportunity to learn how to rehab post-op athletes.  I also made some great friends and found my own little corner of culture shock at BYU.

Now, I am (sadly) finishing up with Utah Valley University Track and Cross Country.  It was a hard assignment at first- a fifty minute round trip drive, long hours (20-25 a week), we weren't allowed to wear BYU gear, a huge team, mostly overuse injuries-- I thought I was going to die.  But alas, here we are.  Words cannot express how grateful I am for this assignment.  First reason?  The athletes.  They were so great.  Humble, kind, friendly, and talented.  I support UVU Track (sorry BYU).  Second reason?  My ACI.  He was so great.  My fiance just asked what the best thing I learned from Spencer was.  I would say, without question, the way he dealt with his athletes.  That is a BIG team, but he still took time to develop relationships, show genuine care and concern, and work as a mentor- not just an athletic trainer.  So many people sought him out for help with problems other than injuries.  He just really, really cares.  That is a big part of this profession- and often overlooked.

I am grateful for my experience at UVU and as a student athletic trainer.  It's amazing to be a part of something bigger than yourself- to see someone regain ability and confidence following injury because YOU helped them achieve that.   UVU has, by far, been my most rewarding experience as a student athletic trainer.  I can't wait to see what the future holds.

BYU Football- here I come.

"I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle-victorious." - Vince Lombardi

Reason 27: Michael Buble

Good news, blog-reading world.

I am going to the MICHAEL BUBLE concert tomorrow!

I love Michael Buble PASSIONATELY and my awesome mother gave me two tickets for my 20th birthday!  So cool, right?  I know :).  It's his "Crazy Love" tour.  My favorite song from this CD is "Haven't Met You Yet".  Go ahead, click the link and watch the music video.  I also love his rendition of "Georgia on my Mind" and "Cry Me a River."  Awesome, huh?   Tomorrow night is the concert- 8 pm at the E Center in West Valley, Utah.  I can't wait!  And I'm so excited for another adventure with Kelsi!

Second great thing that happened today- I have been assigned to BYU Football for fall semester as the Student Athletic Trainer!  HOORAY!  It's a very time intensive assignment but it will be so worth it.  Working with an NCAA Division 1 Elite football team?  So. Cool.

Third great thing about today?  I showed up to my clinical education class to find a whole breakfast set up.  Krispy Kreme donuts,  Costco muffins, and Einstein Bagels- all compliments of the BYU Athletic Department.  Reason?  National Athletic Training month.  They had big signs, thanking all of the athletic trainers and students for their work.  Once again- coolest major ever.

Reason 20: Ankles

Ankles keep athletic trainers in business.  And I had a seriously cool experience with one today.

As the track student athletic trainer at UVU, we see about 98% chronic injuries.  This-- is a tragedy.  Of course it'd be better if no one got injured, but acute injuries are so much more fun to evaluate and treat.  I am SO SICK of shin splits, stress fractures, and IT Band tendonitis.  And then- lo and behold- AN ANKLE INJURY!  It was a thrower who was playing basketball.  I got to do the evaluation.

Anterior drawer- positive.
Talar tilt- negative.
Manual muscle- positive.
Kleigers- VERY positive.

My diagnosis?  Grade 1+ ankle sprain- partial tear of the anterior talofibular ligament.

The doctor happened to be there and I gave her my report- she agreed.  By now I am guess that zero people reading this (out of my vast, sturdy readership) even care.  But it was SO, SO cool!  This is what you work for, wait for, train for... and to get to evaluate the most studied joint in the body and know exactly what was wrong? SO COOL. After my diagnosis I was able to talk to the athlete about their injury and treatment plan.  It was a very fulfilling day.

To cap off an awesome day of athletic training, we had two wrestlers come in that were involved in a collision.  We had a chin and a cheek that needed stitches.  The doctor is so awesome and let us watch and help out- explaining as she went along the kind of stitches she was using and how she learned it.

So today I am grateful for ankles.  And lacerations.  And athletic training.  I have the coolest major EVER.