My anxiety has been out of control, daily panic attacks, incessant eye twitching for a month, feeling nauseas and lightheaded, random crying, easily distracted…. I’m going to ask my MD to put me on leave for a couple of weeks to get my shit together because I’m worried about making a mistake with patients or break down in front of my staff. Has anyone taken a mental health leave before? I feel soft. But I need to take care of myself.

I have worked in outpatient physical therapy for the past 14 years. Last summer, I opened a cash based physical therapy practice out of a gym and thought that was going to be my ticket to happiness and cure my burnout.

Turns out, it just made me worse, and I heavily regret ever leaving my stable job. I had great coworkers, a great salary, and pretty much free reign to do whatever I want as I was the most senior therapist there.

Regretting my decision to leave, I’m pretty miserable where I stand now. I’m thinking of getting out of the professional altogether. I have thought about going back to my previous employer, but to be 100% honest, I think a little bit of pride stops me from doing that. And I don’t know if the owner would take me back anyway.

I have a passion for working with my hands and doing projects, fixing things, renovating homes, and I’m seriously thinking of starting a handyman business. Maybe even something that blends my PT knowledge and handyman services like installing safety grab bars, providing services for the aging population who can’t or won’t do it themselves.

Has anyone gotten out of the profession to go completely different direction? It’s scary, but if done right, I almost feel I could make more than I did as a Physical therapist…

How do you think being a physical therapist affects your dating life?

Does anyone here have experience or know anyone who changed career paths and went to school for PT at 30 years old? Is it considered too late to get into the program? Is it worth it and would there still be enough time to build a good career out of it?

Unfortunately, I am very late to learning what I want to do with my life. When I was injured three years ago and started going to PT myself, I realized how perfect this job would have been for me. I’m at a breaking point with my “career” in life (I work in insurance) and I want to finally do something I could be proud of, but I feel like I’m too old to start over. I also don’t know how I could afford an apartment/house payment while paying for school since I live alone. Anyone relate or have any advice? tyia

DPT 3 years out of school now. I’ve worked outpatient and acute care since graduating, currently doing PRN work for different hospitals around my home town. I enjoy acute care, it’s less mentally challenging for me, I like my work crew, and no taking work home. However outpatient care is where I thrive. But I can’t keep up with the fast paced, assembly line atmosphere most OP clinics have these days. It’s too stressful for me personally and I feel like I can’t fully address my patients issues with the small amount of time I have to spend with them. It’s too rushed. And I end up taking work home with me to finish notes that I don’t have time to do while at work. I would love to work in an OP setting where I have more control over my schedule and am able to spend more 1 on 1 time with my patients. I know cash-based practice is an option, but part of me feels I’m not experienced enough to charge cash for my skills at this point. Any other PTs out there experiencing similar feelings? Any advice or suggestions where to look for work? Thanks in advance for any input

Clinic owner has set up a demo for our company on Wednesday for the stemwave. I have watched some videos and seen ads on instagram in passing but never looked into the device much.

For reference, I rarely use modalities ever. No ultrasound. Rare e-stim. Rarely a heat or ice pack. Occasional dry needle with stem.

What can I expect from this thing. Are there questions I should ask or things I should look out for. I want to be kind and professional to the rep that is there but in all honesty I may rarely use this device.

I get snake oil vibes. Just curious what to expect

Hi, I'm exploring the idea of eventually starting my own physical therapy practice, and I’m trying to understand what the main challenges are—both on the clinical and business sides.

One idea I’ve been considering is starting with home health instead of going straight into a brick-and-mortar clinic or full virtual setup. It seems like it might be a more flexible and lower-cost way to get started, but I’m not sure if that’s actually realistic.

For anyone who’s started their own PT practice (or seriously thought about it), I’d love your thoughts. Thanks

Hey guys, I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post this here because I'm not a PT, Pt student, etc (feel free to delete this if not). I'm a first year OT student in Australia. It's been half a semester and I have been enjoying OT so far, albeit I only have one class that is specific to OT and there hasn't really been a whole lot to do in it.

However, there is a part of me that wants to do physiotherapy. The main reasons are:

1. Connection to sports I'm interested in sports and although I wouldn't necessarily deadset on working as a sports physio (if I were to do physio), I enjoy the connection with my personal life if that makes sense.

2. Generally better respected, understood, and promoted A lot of people I talk to have an idea of what a PT does, but not of what an OT does. This includes my friends, family, and other people doing allied health disciplines.

I have been maintaining a pretty good GPA, and assuming I am able to continue that and hopefully get the chance to transfer, should I do it? I know there isn't a set yes or no answer to this question. Any advice will be appreciated

Thanks :)

Has any clinic hired a business development/outreach coordinator to get more referrals from doctors. We are thinking about hiring someone but wanted to see if anyone had any insight or experience.

What is everyone's experience with ATI PT? I need to complete prehab before my ACL surgery. I will also need rehab for after surgery too.

Curious if anyone here can shed some light on how to find experienced physical therapists for outpatient work. I have tried all the larger platforms: Indeed, ZipR, messaging LinkedIN, etc without much luck and lots of money wasted. I know so many amazing PTs are burntout, underpaid and have left the profession so I feel like I'm looking for a needle in a haystack! Hoping someone on this thread can share some solid advice for a growing business owner who needs GOOD help. TYSM in advance.

Hey everyone.

I’m slowly ramping up a private practice. I am in network with Part B of Medicare and I will be taking on my first patient later this month. I’m trying to figure out how to submit a claim with Medicare and I am certainly confused. Do I have to use a service or can I do it myself?

I am in NJ so it is through Novitas Solutions and I am in the MAC JL region.

Any insight will be beneficial.

Thanks!

Thinking about doing some PRN weekend work, specifically in home health. If you work in Sacramento or the Bay Area, do you work PRN at all? If so, what is a reasonable expectation for pay? Just trying to figure out if it would be worth it for me. We have financial goals we are wanting to meet as a family and I think doing this for a couple years could really speed up the process. TIA!

Hi! I am a recruiter and I work for an outpatient ortho PT company (not a staffing agency) & I am looking to understand what PT’s really value from the company they work for. New grads and seasoned therapist. I can do all the competitor research and market analysis I want to find this information but I want to hear from actual PT’s. This is the kind of data I can use to make changes.

Does anyone have any experience using a new EMR called Ocean Friends AI. It’s in Beta Testing with current users so finding reviews is not happening and I want to know others honest experiences before signing a 2 year contract. TIA!

I've been looking for ways to maintain better productivity and avoid distraction and fatigue during long days at my desk. I've already got a standing desk and recently came across the idea of "active/dynamic sitting," with stools without a back, that promote subtle "micro" movements. It's supposed tokeep muscles engaged and boost concentration. MOWO, Aeris and Varier chairs caught my eye—ergonomic wooden seats that supposedly improve posture and reduce back pain (also an issue i'm struggling with, especially with heavy weightlifting).

Has anyone here tried active sitting or the ones I mentioned specifically? I'd love to hear your insights or experiences regarding comfort, health benefits, or any potential drawbacks you've encountered. Thanks!

In your experience, does a patient's ferritin level play a role in physical therapy progress? I am reading online that ferritin is important for muscle growth, people with low ferritin have less muscle mass and strength etc, but I am wondering if that only plays a role at the level of fit individuals trying to bulk up, or also people like me just trying to stay stable doing their bird-dogs. I just discovered I am iron deficient (but normal hemoglobin) and I was wondering if that might explain why I haven't gotten much stronger in spite of daily PT exercises for 3-4 months.

I am physical Therapist in NY since 2016 and my main area of experience is home health. I am thinking to relocate to Allentown PA as my wife got a good offer there . Can any PT there guide me about opportunities there and avaerage salary for home health. Thanks