Seven Questions for a Physical Therapist

Interviewer: All right, it's time for "Seven Questions for a Specialist". Today it is physical therapist Randy Carson. Are you ready? I'm going to ask you seven questions. Just answer them as quickly as you can.

Randy: Yeah.

#1: What's the Best Thing I Can Do for Optimal Body Function?

Randy: Exercise.

#2: What's the Worst Thing I Can Do?

Randy: Eat poorly.

#3: Why Is Physical Therapy So Awesome?

Randy: I think it's so awesome because we still have a lot of one-on-one time with patients, where that's pretty rare in the healthcare industry.

#4: What Can Physical Therapy Do That Most People Are Unaware Of?

Randy: That's a good question. In my area, there's probably not a lot. I will say a misconception is that we give a lot of massages.

Interviewer: It's not the case?

Randy: I'm going to turn your question around. That's not the case.

#5: What Exercise Should Everyone Do? Is There Some Exercise That Everybody Should Do?

Randy: Absolutely. Everyone should walk and walk a lot.

#6: What's the Most Common Question You Get Asked When Somebody Finds Out What You Do?

Randy: It usually has to do with shoulder or knee pain and a lot of knee pain when I run.

Interviewer: And they want to know what you can do about it.

Randy: Yes.

Interviewer: What can you do about it, by the way?

Randy: Well, you should definitely get in shape so that you can run instead of trying to run to get in shape.

#7: Why Did You Specialize In Physical Therapy?

Randy: It's kind of a funny story. Way back when I was in 7th grade, I decided I wanted to be a PT after watching a news special on someone with a spinal cord injury who learned how to walk again. I decided way back then to do it, and I never turned back. That's the area of the field that I work in 23 years later.

_{updated: December 3, 2024
originally published: July 11, 2017}