When people think of doctors, they probably think about going in for a checkup at the local doctor’s office or at a hospital. Not many people think about a therapist being a doctor too.

Therapy encompasses physical issues and mental issues. Therapists try to help their patients by giving them advice on how they can fix their problems and get better from whatever is ailing them.

Ka’iulani Kawamoto is a sophomore with dreams of becoming a therapist one day. She has always wanted to help people and thinks that this is the ideal way to do this. Ka’iulani has been in the same shoes as the people she wants to help, which is another reason for her wanting to be a therapist.

The best and, frankly, only class at Rocklin High that helps Ka’iulani on this career path is AP Psychology, which almost every student that has taken it or is currently taken the course, loves. However, Ka’iulani’s mother isn’t a fan of her taking the class. Ka’iulani’s mother feels that it would be better if Ka’iulani learns from a professor at a college, rather than a high school teacher. She thinks Ka’iulani would get more out of it than taking the class at RHS.

“I honestly don’t understand the reasoning,” Ka’iulani said. “I feel that it would be best that I at least get a small taste of it, just so I know what I’m getting into instead of spending a large amount of money in college and realizing I hate it.”

And Ka’iulani isn’t wrong; AP classes are modeled after college courses and help students to figure out their career, whether it be deciding they don’t want to take that class after all or strengthening the idea that they do want to take it. An AP test is much less expensive than a college class, so it’s usually a good idea to take AP courses in a subject you like to get a taste of what college will be like.

Ka’iulani is sure that therapy is the route she wants to go down, knowing that she’ll be able to help people that have gone through the similar rough patches that she has. She would have well-thought out advice to preach to those in need of her help, especially to the those she can relate with, which all in all will aid her in being a great therapist.