Meet Dr. Ryan Smith

Hi. I’m Dr. Ryan Smith.

You can call me Ryan.

I get the opportunity to talk about myself a bit here, so I’ll keep it short and tell you all of a story that I believe summarizes up myself as a person.

I must have been 19 at the time, back home for summer from college. We had a garage with a storage area up above and there was some project I was working on outside around the house that I needed something from above.

When I get started on something I tend to dive head first and then come up for air later to see where I’m at and how far I’ve come. This same mindset, which may be looked at as beneficial, also has a tendency to allow myself to do… for lack of a better phrase… stupid things.

Instead of using the ladder, which sole purpose in our garage was to climb up safely to the storage area, I decided to climb onto first, the hood of my two door Saturn, and then onto the WINDSHIELD of it.

From this description you may be thinking a few things.

One, what the hell is he thinking?

Two, what happens next?

Well lo and behold, the windshield shattered but in a way that made it a huge spider web like image of cracks. I didn’t fall through. Jumped off the car and thought…

“Oh shit. My dad is going to be pissed”

I felt like I was a six year old again. I called five different people within 30 minutes of our little community, getting quotes on a windshield replacement from our local shops and friends of friends. Googling what insurance benefits might be utilized for an “accident.” (There was no category for stupidity).

Yet, each and every person I called has a way to help me out if need be.

The worst part. My parents came home and the explanations began flying out of my mouth a mile a minute.

My mom started first, “I’m just glad you’re okay! Could you imagine if you would have fallen through?”

I was 19.

I didn’t imagine that, because it didn’t happen and naturally I was invincible. At that moment it occurred to me after having taken one semester of human anatomy of all the valuable arteries and tissues that may get injured if one were to have one leg fall through a windshield…

My dad started in second with his patented “What the heck are you doing?!”

Followed by smiling and laughter which I can assume was only groomed from being the father of four kids.

Why do I tell you this?

I think you learn a lot about someone from their upbringing. This is mine. My mother and father both have taught me invaluable lessons that make me the person I am today. A few of those lessons being empathy, compassion, humility, and a sense of humor.

My upbringing also provided me with an amazing community that was willing to help me at any point, even for something as ridiculous as stepping onto my car windshield.

Those qualities, the sense of community is what I want to provide at Recharge. What we WILL provide at Recharge.

As a physiotherapist and as a coach I understand that the relationships we create is the most important aspect of what I do. Those relationships within the space of Recharge, where we are cultivating a culture of acceptance, trust, and empowerment is what drives me.

When you come to Recharge you will see the upbringing and life experiences that have shaped me into who I am today.

-Ryan