Three Years a “Lab Rat”: Why I Keep Going Back to MUSC to Help Train the Next Generation of Physical Therapists

Every year, I make the familiar drive to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston to take part in one of my favorite annual traditions: serving as a “lab rat” for physical therapy students learning to work with amputees. This year marks my third year of volunteering, and each time I leave the campus, I’m reminded why this experience is so meaningful—not just for the students, but for me too.

And yes… I call myself a “lab rat” with pride.

Why I Do It: The Benefits for Me

Volunteering as an amputee model gives me far more than a few hours of stretching, balance testing, or gait analysis. It gives me purpose. Here’s what I walk away with each year:

1. I Get to Share My Journey

Losing a limb changes more than your physical abilities; it changes how I see the world, navigate challenges, and approach life. By sharing my experiences openly with future physical therapists, I get to turn my story into something that helps others. That’s powerful.

2. I Learn Too

Every session exposes me to new techniques, approaches, and even technologies that students are learning. In a way, I get a free yearly tune-up—tips on movement, posture, muscle balance, and little insights that help me improve my own mobility.

3. It Gives Me a Chance to Advocate

Amputees are often misunderstood, even unintentionally. Misconceptions about mobility, pain, prosthetics, and limitations come up all the time in the real world. By participating, I get the chance to break down those myths early in these students’ careers.

4. Laughter Is Good Medicine

I always come armed with jokes. Call it stress relief, call it emotional bonding—either way, humor lifts the room. I tell stories, crack lines about “missing parts,” and use laughter to erase the awkwardness students sometimes feel when working with an amputee for the first time. Humor builds trust, and trust builds better clinicians.

Benefits for the Students

This isn’t just helpful for me—this is hands-on experience that physical therapy programs can’t replicate with mannequins or textbooks.

1. Real-World Complexity

Every amputee is different. Limb length, tissue sensitivity, gait, balance, and muscle compensation can’t be entirely taught in a lecture. Students get to assess a real person with real adaptations and challenges.

2. Communication Skills They Can’t Learn from a Book

They quickly learn that working with patients isn’t just about anatomy, it’s about empathy, conversation, body language, and listening. When I share what helps and what doesn’t, they get practical insights they’ll carry throughout their careers.

3. Exposure to Lived Experience

I talk openly about my own process—what physical therapy did for me, the frustrations, the breakthroughs, the hilarious moments no one warns you about, and the best practices I’ve learned along the way. Students always tell me how valuable that honesty is.

4. Building Confidence

For many students, I’m the first amputee they’ve ever worked with. That initial uncertainty disappears quickly once we start talking, laughing, and working through the exercises. I watch them grow more confident right in front of me.

The Power of Shared Humanity

Each visit to MUSC is a reminder that education is not a one-way street. I show up to help them learn, but I also walk out feeling stronger, more connected, and more grounded in my own journey.

Through jokes, demonstrations, practice drills, and honest conversations, we build a bridge between lived experience and clinical understanding. These future physical therapists will go on to help thousands of patients over their careers—and knowing I played even a small role in shaping their skills feels incredibly rewarding.

So yes, I may be the “lab rat,” but this annual tradition is one of the most human, meaningful, and empowering things I do. And as long as MUSC keeps inviting me back, I’ll keep showing up—with my prosthetic, my story, and my sense of humor in tow.