Athletes at my school say you have to go to the doctor to get a physical. I don’t know what I would have to do. I heard you might have to take off some layers of clothes for the doctor, and that makes me uncomfortable. What is a physical and should I be nervous?

Hey girly! It’s totally normal to feel a li’l nervous about your first physical. After all, who really likes going to the doc anyways? But the truth is, there’s no need to fret!
 

Physicals sound a bit scarier than they really are. A physical is actually just a check-up.  Usually, teens have an annual physical just so the doc can make sure you’re healthy and everything is developing right on schedule. When you go in, they’ll prob measure your height and weight, check your senses and breathing and see if you’ve had any recent health issues. No biggie!


To join sports teams, a lot of athletes need to get physicals so the coaches can know they’re in tip-top health and OK to play. If a person’s having problems breathing, the coaches need to know about it…pronto! It’s all a matter of precaution. It may seem a tad overboard, but no one---the athletes, the doctors and the coaches--wants any serious health-related problemos.


As you’ve heard, sometimes the doctor will ask you to remove some clothing to make sure you’re developing normally. It can be kinda awk, but the doc usually just takes a quick peek and it’s over. Now even though it would NEVER be OK for someone else to ask you to do that, this is an exception. Your doc is just checking up on you and making sure you’re healthy. If it makes you feel better, your mom can stay in the room with you. While you may feel a bit awk about it, there’s no reason to feel really nervous.  It’s just another part of the check-up, and it’ll be over before you know it ☺

You’ll be just fine, girl, no worries. Best wishes and good luck with sports!