Patricia Thom knows the restorative power of physical therapy.
After undergoing reconstructive surgery for a back fracture more than a decade ago, it took her months to rebuild her strength to stay active and independent.
“I felt my freedom of independence was compromised but after the surgery, I literally couldn’t get out of bed unless somebody helped put my brace on,” said Thom, 65.
She started doing more activities and tried different forms of physical therapy. This led to a desire to become an instructor herself and teach others what she had learned. She is now a personal trainer and operator of Vintage Athletics in 100 Mile House.
“I knew that the less I did the harder it was for me but the more I did the easier it became,” Thom said. “As that kind of bore itself out I really felt a calling that I needed to share this with people. They needed to know that there were safe ways for them to become more physically active and increase or maintain their independence.”
Thom took several courses to become a certified active aging specialist with pain-free mobility training. She received her training from the B.C. Women’s Hospital and Fraser Health and learned how to offer the Osteofit, Get Up and Go, and Carefit programs.
She said she prefers to do one-on-one before group sessions as it is important to get to know who she’s working with. That way she can better set goals to meet their expectations and abilities. One of the most rewarding parts of her work is watching her clients grow in confidence and improve physically.
“A lot of people when they get to a certain age, especially if they’ve had some skeletal issues, they kind of start to lose hope and they think ‘well maybe this is it,’” Thom said. “My goal is to help them be as strong and healthy as they can be.”
Thom said she faced a few hurdles when she moved her business from the coast to the South Cariboo four years ago. She found an affordable space to rent at the South Cariboo Business Centre but then found her programs were not endorsed by Interior Health - the health authority in this region. As a result, local doctors weren’t recommending her services which made it difficult to connect with people who needed them.
“That was a bit of a battle, not gonna lie. It wasn’t until Donna Barnett and MLA Lorne Doerkson took up my cause that finally we broke through and have been welcomed into the fold,” Thom said. “These programs down on the coast are always full and most of them have waiting lists. The reason for that is because the doctors and physiotherapists are well aware of these programs and promote them to their clients and patients.”
Thom said she is eager to start offering her services to seniors. She said that keeping your body strong and healthy is key to staying out of the hospital. With the health system under so much stress, she said her courses will help.
“This is part of the solution. We need to keep people active and out of the system,” Thom said.
“The cost to the Canadian public for falls every year is in the billions of dollars. What’s even more tragic than that is that people who reach a certain age - 70 or 80 - a serious fall that causes breakage can very well spell the end of their independence. Once they go into hospital they never come home again.”
Thom is offering Get Up and Go classes every Wednesday and Friday mornings starting March 1. She plans to offer an Osteofit program in the spring if enough people sign up. She invites the community to contact her at pthom3000@gmail.com or 250-397-2891 for more information.
patrick.davies@100milefreepress.net
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.