To start, let’s rewind back to fall of 2018 when my wife, Christi, and I first found our love for watching Fixer Upper. I was inspired by the fact that Chip and Joanna were just normal people like you and me, but they decided to take a chance and do something they loved, and they became a part of something much bigger than themselves. Now they have created an empire in Waco and have built a brand that is focused on helping people create and enjoy the space they come home to. On TV, they seem to truly love what they are doing, and this, I believe, is what gave me the desire to start my own practice.
I used to think that starting a healthcare business would be too much work and that I wasn’t skilled or savvy enough to make it work. Not to mention, life didn’t exactly give me the clearest and easiest path to being a business owner.
Fast forward to 2020 and we now have 2 kids with another on the way, and we decided to leave what we thought would be our jobs we would have until retirement in Greenville, SC. We did this to be closer to family in Richmond, VA in the middle of a pandemic and to keep some sanity while we both juggle careers and 3 young children. We had been physical therapists for 6+ years now and gained a wealth of experience in how to manage and help patients as well as developing our own unique treatment philosophies and approaches.
Christi mentioned repeatedly that she could tell that I was not feeling satisfied with my current job. I felt stuck – I felt like I didn’t have an escape plan. Was there really anything better out there?
I didn’t want to go back to the clinical setting I had previously worked in, but I really missed the patients I used to work with. In the outpatient clinical setting, I would see 18 patients per day while constantly juggling 2-3 patients at once. I never felt like I was able to give each patient my best because I knew I needed to conserve the mental energy for my numerous other patients. On top of that, insurance companies frequently limit the number of visits a patient is allowed to use per year, which frustrated me when I was forced to practice in a way that did not take the patient’s best interest into account. The pressure from upper management to meet certain metrics to increase the clinic’s bottom line often seemed to be more important than if the patients were having a great experience and getting the outcomes they desired. There was also pressure to give my existing patients to other clinicians so that I could keep my schedule open for new patients, which totally disrupted my ability to build relationships with my patients. After all that, I found myself getting home at the end of the day with nothing left to give my family. Meanwhile, my wife needed help with the kids after she had been working her full-time job and she was equally exhausted.
I finally reached a breaking point, and I decided to start my own practice so that I would be able to do whatever it took to get my patients better while giving them my best and being more present for my family.
I am an athlete at heart and I enjoy being active. I have played golf for over 10 years now and I absolutely enjoy the game (when I play well)! So I thought to myself – “What if I created a physical therapy practice where I meet people where they are at and provide the best care I know how, with my full undivided attention, using all the tools I have acquired over the years? What if I could do specialized work with golfers and help my patients get their lives back?” Although this seemed too good to be true, the fire that burned inside me to make this happen overcame all of my doubts and fears. Thus, The Royal Treatment Therapy and Performance began. I know the road ahead will not be easy, but I am driven by the goal of reaching as many people as possible in my community and making a difference in their lives by being that light to help them reach their dreams they never thought were possible.