I was looking at a bunch of old posts and I realized that what I’m doing is crazy! Going back to school in a completely different profession with some pretty severe impairments is pretty ambitious. I’m still testing my limitations but figuring out how to address them. I always have intentions to blog, but I routinely get side tracked. I got lost last semester in academic work. I feel like it is an uphill battle learning new material/concepts with short term memory impairments.  Academically, new concepts are stored in short term memory unless they are applied. This is part of the reason why I’m having difficulty returning to school. I need to apply what I read or see. In physical therapy school, labs were very useful to me to experience direct application of techniques and concepts. I’m more of an experiential learner. Reading puts things in my short term memory, but now my short term memory is impaired. Studying for quizzes and exams is now more time consuming.  I’m taking 2 web based classes this summer semester which are self paced, but we will see how that goes.
It has gotten harder to meet new people in Houston because when people meet me for the first time, they see the scooter and all my physical impairments. “All-the-things-I-can’t-do” is now the first impression me. I have learned that in order for people to see past my impairments, I need to look past them myself. It is much tougher to meet new people because I’m limited by my mobility, it takes me a long time to get anywhere via public transportation so it is much harder to drop in on somebody. Most of the time, I get to hangout with old friends in Houston. Hanging out with new people is much tougher than I anticipated.
Physical/Cognitive impairments have surfaced as major challenges in a new academic environment. I’m definitely re-creating myself again, but this time it is much more challenging because at least last time I had an idea of how to address challenges/obstacles as a PT. The social sciences is completely different from what I am used to. I’m learning more about myself on the fly. Addressing new physical barriers (sidewalks/extreme rain/extreme heat), unfamiliar academic challenges, and being “the new guy” has made things interesting. This “kick in the head” is exactly the challenge I was looking for. It’s all about adapting to the new challenges… stay tuned.
Hurricane Harvey came and left a lot of flooding in Houston. I was very fortunate to get out of Houston when I did! I would have been extremely bored sitting in an empty apartment all by myself with no TV, nothing to do, and the high potential for flooding/losing power. I live close to Bray’s Bayou, so I was a little nervous about the potential for flooding. With that in mind, I hopped on a bus to Dallas the day before the hurricane. I was like “Class 4 Hurricane… I’m outta here!” Dealing with a big storm alone, no furniture/TV/entertainment, in a new city, with a physical disability… didn’t make sense for me to stay in Houston.  The bus ride to Dallas wasn’t that bad… I wasn’t in a hurry (took 4 hours) AND I got to experience downtown Houston for the first time! Very different from San Diego! My friends picked me up in Dallas from the bus station and we went straight to a Mexican restaurant to get Tex-Mex Food. Thus began my Dallas “Eating Quest.” Dave’s parents from the Houston area were also in Dallas to escape Hurricane Harvey. Mrs Chen is a phenomenal cook, so I was definitely well fed in Dallas! I realized very quickly, that if I don’t check myself here, there is very large potential to gain a lot of weight! Anyways, I finally returned to Houston the Friday after the hurricane flooding. I was very lucky to come home to a dry apartment, but my furniture was still not there.  Thanks again Becca, Dave, lil Ethan, Mr. (now Uncle) Chen and Mrs. (now Auntie) Chen. I feel like I have “family” now in an unfamiliar place. I rode back to Houston with Uncle and Auntie and we stopped at this incredible BBQ restaurant Woody’s Smokehouse at a rest stop off the freeway! A rest stop! The BBQ Chicken, brisket, and smoked sausage were AWESOME! I couldn’t believe how crowded this rest stop was! As we drove through Houston, we could see the devastation pilled up outside of homes in the form of ruined furniture/personal items. It is sad to think that many of those items were probably not covered by flood insurance… total loses! I have been very impressed with the response and hospitality of the community in Houston post Hurricane Harvey. Complete strangers offered me help, water/food, and assistance. I definitely experienced the “Southern Hospitality”. It is very easy to reciprocate the hospitality, but at the same time it is necessary to keep your guard up!  I’ve always been a quiet guy, but in the past few years I’ve been reborn as a patient advocate and nonprofit professional. This rebirth has spurred my desire to become an advocate for those who are underserved or taken advantage of.
My first month in Texas has been full of curveballs, but over the past decade I’ve learned how to adapt to new challenges. Just need a clear head to make solid decisions. I came back to the apartment in Houston WITHOUT flooding (which was a big relief), but I was powerless to do anything about my lack of furniture. I came back to a dry but empty apartment. I still didn’t have any furniture or extra clothes.  I was starting to get frustrated by the delays, and posted something on social media about it. Apparently someone called the movers and was extremely rude to them. I appreciated the support, but the fact remained that they still held my stuff. The first thing I did when I returned to Houston was buy a nice rug and borrow an air mattress. Hurricane Harvey was so severe that the start of school at UTHSC in Houston was delayed one week. There was flooding at MD Anderson Center Cancer, and the roads were flooded to the hospital!  This was very important because how were people who needed medical attention supposed to access it? How would the medical staff still at the hospital return to their families with all the flooding? I’ve already heard stories of staying at the hospital and working extra shifts. I also heard a story of a physician canoeing to work! Crazy… It was an adventure in itself trying to move my things from San Diego to Houston, but having no control on the delivery of my things amidst a natural disaster was extremely stressful! My furniture finally arrived in Houston last week after almost 4 weeks and numerous delays!  This was very frustrating because the office would tell me that they would arrive on one day, but the movers would tell me something completely different In addition, I was charged for storage, unloading/ re-storage at the holding facility, and redelivery to Houston! The price of the move was already inflated, so more unexpected fees made things more expensive! I will definitely go through a BBB moving company, not a broker next time! Lesson learned. However I still don’t understand why I was charged an extra $500 for storage, unloading/reloading, and redelivery due to a natural disaster that no one had control over.  No one could get into Houston the Wed after the hurricane… that’s part of the reason I wasn’t there!  I’m happy my stuff finally arrived and I can finally start focusing on school!  I can already forsee challenges with returning to school in a different academic discipline and a physical disability. Mix in the unpredictable weather and mobility issues and things will be very interesting! Rain and thunderstorms are in the forcast this week… I’m gonna get wet! Bring it on! LET’S ROCK THESE NEW CHALLENGE
It has been a while since I last blogged. There is some very exciting stuff in the works. Earlier this year I was accepted into a PhD program at University of Texas Health and Science Center in Houston School of Public Health – Health Promotion & Behavioral Science. I’m very interested in the role of exercise/physical activity in tumor/cancer survivorship. It will be a very interesting transition back into school mode. “PT school Galvez” was a super nerd. “Young Doctor Galvez” was always on the move. “Post brain surgery Galvez” is a smart ass. The next transformation will create a more focused and mature version of myself! hee hee… not sure about the second part of that statement… The 10 years after treatment and surgery have redefined me and refocused my goals. I’m still interested in healthcare delivery, but now from a new perspective. I’m now very in tune with the issues of survivorship. I want to make a scientific contribution to “post-treatment thrivership” involving exercise/physical activity .
The return to school will bring many new challenges. Transitioning back into the world of academia will be interesting. I really enjoyed getting my DPT, but there were few distractions because I was very focused on school. I think Myspace and Friendster were just getting started when I was in PT school… I’m probably going to have to close a few of my social media accounts to avoid distractions! Last week I mapped out my route to UCSD for a couple classes I need to take. It takes an hour + 10 mins via bus just to get there! I have 8AM classes on Tuesday and Thursday. That means I have to LEAVE my place at 630AM! WHOA!I haven’t gotten up that early in a while! I figure I can blog my thoughts this early cause I can do everything on my phone/ on the go.
Anyways, I had a meeting today with disability services at UCSD. This will be very interesting returning to school with a disability. This will be a good test run before moving to Houston. I’m looking forward to the new challenges. We will see how things go next week! It would be cool to hear from you if you have any advice on how to deal with the issues with returning to school. I will probably keep blogging, but close my social media accounts to avoid distractions… Its gonna be a busy July cleaning out my place and packing my stuff up!
