After missing school because of my fractured mandible, I had to make up the exams I missed. This past week I made up three exams. Botanical Medicine, Neurological Systems, and Evaluation and Management (E&M) of the Musculoskeletal System. In addition to those three exams, I also had two regularly scheduled exams in E&M of the Gastrointestinal and Genitourinary Systems, as well as E&M of the Cardiovascular System. I did well on all of the exams but still have an exam in Pharmacology today. I am thankful for the opportunity to make up the exams I missed though it was a tad overwhelming. Besides the Pharmacology exam, I don’t have any exams this week! I am going to use my time to start working on my final presentation for E&M of the Extremities.

An example of functional taping for severe bruising

The last two weeks we have been working on functional taping in soft tissue manipulation. Functional taping is a modality used by DCs and DPTs for pain management and movement training. Taping is an easy and effective way to help treat patients with edema, bruising, pain, poor posture, and instability. It works for pain by giving neurological feedback other than nociception. It lifts the skin to allow for swelling and bruising to decrease more rapidly than without tape. It also gives proprioceptive feedback to help with positioning of the taped joint, which can help with posture and instability. We learned some basic taping techniques for pain, posture, and stability from Dr. Mark Wieland, a diplomate in rehabilitation.

As always, I try to maintain a balance of school and leisure. My friend offered me free tickets to a concert in downtown St. Petersburg at the outdoor venue, Jannus Live. We saw AWOLNATION with special guests New Beat Fund. I wasn’t very familiar with either band but loved the concert. It was a lot of fun; both bands were from southern California and had a groovy yet high-energy stage presence. I still can’t believe I live in such a great entertainment hub. There is always something fun to do in this area.

New Beat Fund live in downtown St. Pete

Thank you for reading my blog! If you have any questions about life as a student at NUHS in the greater Tampa area, please email me at [email protected]