I Don't Like Doctors...

This is Sofia. She is an active girl. She likes to rock climb and is an amazing aerialist.

Her first words to us... I don't like doctors.

Geat! Neither do we!

You see, when most people say they don't like doctors its really that they actually didn't like an experience with a specific doctor, and Sofia was no different.

Sofia was struggling shoulder pain. It was on and off and would fluctuate in intensity. A lot of times she would just push through because ... well she could. After all she is an athlete. Athletes push through all sorts of discomfort all the time. Shoulder pain was no different.

And that worked... until it didn't. Pain is funny like that. Everyone has a different threshold but eventually the intensity, length in time its hurting, or limitations it causes becomes too much. We start second guessing. Will this get better on its own like all my other injuries have or am I going to be like this forever?

That's when Sofia went to the doctor. She waited for about a month to get an appointment. Another hour in the waiting room and, when she finally saw the doctor he was dismissive, said well stop dangling from ropes and sent her home with a PT script.

She was upset, frustrated and still didn't really know what was wrong with her shoulder or if she would ever be able to aerial acrobatics without pain ever again. But she went to physical therapy because what else was she going to do.

4 months in physical therapy did not improve her opionion of doctors. She spent the majority of the time doing things that she "could do from watching youtube." She felt better doing everyday life activities but still had pain when rock climbing or doing aerial.

Finally, stopped going....

We met her a short time later.

Now, to reference her first sentance to us... "I don't like doctors."

We pried a bit and found out the following:

What did you not like about your last doctor?

1. It took a month to get in and by the time I saw him the symptoms changed.

2. He was (to be nice) out of shape. Like I am going to listen to someone who can't even take care of themselves.

3. Basically told me what I was doing was stupid and if I wanted to get better I just needed to stop doing what I was doing.

What did you not like about your rehab?

1. The stuff they gave me was dumb. I could get the same exercises from youtube. It just seemed like a waste of time and money.

2. I was doing the same exercises as the 4 other people in the room.

3. I never new the why i was doing what I was doing.

Sofia's experience might be unique to her but we hear this story every single week. Sofia doesn't hate doctors. She hates not being understood, not feeling important, and not knowing what the heck is going on.

This story echoed over and over is why BIRP exists in the first place. I am an individual who also "doesn't like doctors." My experiances were subpar. BIRP was opened with the expeciation of providing care I would want to be given to myself.

We answer every question. We treat every individual according to their unique problems, limitation and goals. And we educate so you know exactly what is wrong, why you are doing what you are doing, and how it will help you get better.