Audrey Johnson, DPT

If you have spoken to me at any point over the past 2 years, you know my life has been chaotic and fun and stressful all at the same time. Choosing an accelerated physical therapy program was a bold decision, but I truly am so thankful for it. It has challenged me and pushed me and forced me to grow in ways I could have never expected. But anytime you are in the midst or approaching the end of an academic journey, there is one prominent question that is asked over and over again: “so what are you going to do after school?” And honestly one month ago, my answer was very simply “I don’t know! It’s a surprise!” However, the last 3 weeks have finally presented an answer to that very question.

Some back story: last summer after I completed an internship at a hospital in Arkansas, I had pretty much decided I was going to end up in an acute care setting. I love the pace. I love the diversity. It was a great experience! So when given the option to complete either a 6 month outpatient internship or 3 months at OP followed by another 3 months in a hospital, the decision was obvious. I wanted to get back into the hospital asap! Then my professor called me one day to tell me she had secured me a spot at Vanderbilt! Vanderbilt!! The plan was for me to do 3 months at a Benchmark PT clinic and then finish out my internship hours in the hospital (Did I mention Vanderbilt?) So I found a roommate via a group on Facebook, packed my stuff, and headed to Nashville!

My first 2 months in Nashville were great! I mean, they were freezing. But they were great! I had found a crazy awesome roommate with an insane passion for life and Jesus, and I was actually enjoying the outpatient PT world way more than I thought I would. I’m not lying when I say I thought it was going to be a severe struggle for me during those first 3 months. I enjoyed the clinic I was at and got along amazingly with the staff there. Things were literally so great! Then March happened… And things took a real turn.

Vanderbilt emailed me and said they had decided to discontinue allowing students to come to try to limit the number of people coming in and out of the hospital to protect their patients. A fair decision! But Vanderbilt was literally the whole reason why I was in Nashville to begin with! Fortunately, my clinical instructor at Benchmark offered to let me stay with them the whole 6 months to not fall behind on my hours. But that’s not what I thought I wanted. On top of that, my dad found out some bummer health news (he’s good now! Because God and doctors are wonderful!), but I hated the fact I was so far away from my family during this. Why would God trick me into coming to Nashville only to be away from my family and have my plans drastically change in the midst of a national pandemic?!

Well, the answer to that is very simple: because He is a lot smarter than me and He was not surprised by any of these events.

Fast forward a few months to June. I am wrapping up my 6 month internship at Benchmark and literally loving every second! I was starting to feel like a real physical therapist. Like I might actually be ready for this! I was still open to an acute care position, but I had realized how much I loved getting patients to their return to work/ sport goals and building relationships with them during their time at our clinic. The only thing standing in my way was the unfortunate state of the job market. It definitely looked different with less opportunities than I thought I would get presented with upon graduating. One day when I was looking over job listings, I saw a posting for a Benchmark Physical Therapy position in Knoxville, TN. I have been to Knoxville several times over the past couple years for school and love the area. Plus, I have family there so I wouldn’t be all alone as I started this new adventure. So I went for it!

One Monday, I met the regional director for coffee and then the two of us drove out to meet the clinic director and office coordinator. We toured the clinic, chatted for a little bit, went to lunch, and chatted for a little bit more. We decided it would be a good idea for me to come back and shadow the next day to spend more time with them. Then the regional director and I headed back to where we had met that morning. When we got in the car, he looked at me and asked, “So before I say anything, what do you think?” I told him I thought it went well, but I really didn’t have a lot to compare it too. He casually responded with “yeah I think so too! So why don’t we meet in the morning before you head out to shadow so we can talk salary and benefits.”

Me being the awkward human that I am: “Wait, so are you saying things are going well for me?” (Way to go, Audrey. Very professional sounding.)

He laughed and responded, “Um yeah, things are going really well for you”

So I am moving to Knoxville! Well technically Jefferson City. I am literally so excited about this opportunity. The clinic director and office coordinator are energetic and kind women who I am confident will make work fun while also encouraging me as I begin this journey of being a new practicing physical therapist!

Here are my conclusions about this whole situation:

1. God is good, even when things seem bad. I did not understand why all this had to happen. But being able to work as an intern for 6 months for a company like Benchmark was a great experience! And certainly give me an in during this application process. Benchmark and this clinic provide so much opportunity for personal and professional growth and I’m so thankful to be able to start my career there.

2.  It is so important to surround yourself with people who can support you when things get hard. That stranger that I met on the internet and moved in with in Nashville turned out to be one of the biggest blessings over the last 6 months. She allowed me to be sad when things were hard and celebrated with me when things were good! She has quickly become a lifelong friend and I literally love her so much!

3.  Just to reiterate, God is still good even when things are bad. There is so much hurt and pain, both physically and relationally, in our world right now. This is Satan’s attempt to divide God’s creation against itself and damage our relationships with each other and with Him. But there is also so much opportunity for good. This could be an amazing time to allow for us to focus on loving one another during a time when many are not as busy as we normal are because there isn’t as much going on. That is where God is.

4.  And finally, God is still good even when things are bad. I am fully aware that His level of goodness was not dependent on how quickly I got a job. With the status of the job market, I was totally prepaid to start working PRN somewhere and slowly work my way up once things in the healthcare world started returning to normal. Also, He could have very much used this time of uncertainty to teach me patience and trusting His timing. But He let me off easy this time! And I am so excited to see where this next step of my journey leads me!