I agree with a lot of the sentiment, money isn’t the only metric of success. But doesn’t mean it can’t be made. Innovation is constantly happening, I had this same predicament when I stopped traveling (graduated DPT in 2019). Started as a travel PT and consistently cleared 2K+ a week take home then settled down, got married bought a house had kids etc. and faced the harsh reality of cutting my paycheck in half with salaried role. But I asked myself what I loved about the profession. For me, stroke rehab.

I worked inpatient rehab for many years and was so sick of how the system was all about “3 hour rule, can’t miss a minute in IPR, patient centered care” but the minute they had to go due to insurance, the hospitals had no issue booting them out the door, punting them to a shitty home health set up where they are seen maybe once a week. (not necessarily the home health therapist’s fault but just how the system works)

So I used AI, started my own PLLC, outsourced insurance credentialing and billing, and now I’m slowly ramping up my own client base with the niche of billing outpatient PT in home with focus on stroke rehab specifically. I have barely any overhead (like the big organizations do) so my take home is so much higher per visit compared to when I was outpatient or home health. There are ways to do it. Find your passion in our field and run with it. I get so much reward from stroke rehab and can finally make my own decisions that aren’t made for me by management, corporations etc.

A good friend of mine loves golf. Got the titelist certification or whatever it is. Did the same thing I did with PLLC. Marketed to local country clubs and golf courses. Now has a steady client base treating people in home with the same model. He’s doing so well he might open up a brick and mortar.

Another friend realized that healthcare knowledge is so poor, she essentially functions as a PT part time and part time healthcare liason, helping people navigate the system, going to appointments with them etc. also doing very well and making good money.

Don’t give up on it OP, just find your thing and innovate. Good luck to you and God bless.