Takeaways from Nature-Based Therapy Podcast

Hello friends! We are back on the ride. You get to hear me discuss what I learned on a podcast that I listened to. The podcast I chose was "Nature-Based Therapy" with the guest speaker Amy Seymore. I had never heard of nature-based therapy until listening to this podcast. But it makes so much sense because you are just taking therapy outside. I learned that you can use things such as a sandbox, trapeze bars, or even going to the beach. She mentioned how nature-based therapy helps to bring in sensory processing that may not be achieved if receiving therapy indoors.

I learned that nature-therapy could be more engaging and fun for that client. Nature-therapy provides you with more options for manipulation of activities. Some of the populations that can greatly benefit from this type of therapy are those with sensory processing trouble, handwriting skills, and attention deficit problems. She mentioned how if you have a child hang on monkey bars with their thumb facing down, it helps with thumb opposition which in turns helps with handwriting. I am happy that I was able to gain this knowledge, because it has opened my eyes to see that there is nothing occupational therapists cannot do and cannot work with. I hope that you were able to learn something on this ride. See you next time!

Misconception GIF

"Blissful Ordinariness"

Hello! Welcome back on the ride! Today I will be discussing "blissful ordinariness". You may wonder what that phrase means. To me, it means the things that we do on a regular basis without any thought being put into doing them. Those things that we can take for granted because we may not realize how important they are, simply because it is a part of our every day routine. What happens when you can no longer do your "blissful ordinariness" due to an injury, illness, or other unforeseen circumstance? One of your options may be to see an occupational therapist.  "Blissful ordinariness" relates to therapeutic relationship of the occupational therapy profession in terms of the focus being placed on helping individuals get back to meaningful activities of their daily life. It relates to the holistic nature by way that we are not just focusing on a person's illness or injury, but rather at everything that makes that person who they are. "Blissful ordinariness" is a part of one's daily life, and occupational therapists create interventions to help individuals return to those things to the best of their ability. 

Thank you for joining my ride! See you at the next stop! 

Where Would I Work as an OT Practitioner

The question of "What setting do you want to work in as an occupational therapist?" is something that I still go back and forth on. As of right now, I believe that I want to work with pediatrics in a hospital setting. I have a special place in my heart for children, especially those with disabilities.I have seen work with pediatrics in the school setting, but not in the hospital setting. The school-based therapy was mainly focused on handwriting, although it is important, but I found myself getting bored. I feel as if working in the hospital setting will allow me to encounter various diagnoses and provide a wider scope of services to the clients.

OT Over Time...

I must say that the Era Presentations were a great and interactive way for my classmates and I to learn about history throughout the decades, especially occupational therapy. I believe that it also allowed us to have fun and loosen up, especially after a stressful week of anatomy. One piece of information I found interesting was from the 1940s, and it was the background information on Rosie the Riveter. I have always seen the picture but never just knew the story. It was showing that women can work and be great at what they do. With the men going to war, it opened up many jobs that women filled. Another thing I found interesting from the 1940s was that there were OT-War Emergency courses that lasted for only two weeks, due to the high demand of occupational therapists during the war. If only it was still that easy! The last thing I found interesting was the publication of the OT Practice Magazine, first published in 1995. I had no clue that it even existed. I believe that it is a great way to ensure that all occupational therapists are able to have access to the current trends and keep up with the news of the profession. Overall, I truly enjoyed this week and all of the knowledge I gained.

Dr. Keisling's Lecture

Where do I start? Dr. Keisling's lecture had me in a whirlwind of emotions. In the beginning, I was sad, angry, and just completely disappointed at the treatment of individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities in the early/mid 1900s. Just to think that people with disabilities were placed into the same categories with criminals is a disgrace. The institutionalizations put in place by governments seemed inhumane to me, regarding the conditions they were in. I could not imagine being separated from society because I am not considered a "normal" individual. I was also very shocked that the government saw people as a burden to the community and told families to leave their child and go have other children. The timeline of information really helped me to see how far we have really come.

I had my first encounter of working with people with special needs in high school. I spent my study hall period in the classroom reading to the students, helping with schoolwork, various household activities, and just spending time with them. I knew that people were unaware when my classmates would ask me, "Why are you in that classroom? What's wrong with him? She's slow! Why are you walking with him?" That is when I realized they needed extra love because there were people who knew nothing and judged them based on things they could not control. My heart grew a special place for people with special needs during this time.

I feel like I am apart of the history with the development of disabilities. I have had the pleasure of being a peer mentor with Mosaic at UTC, which is a program dedicated to students with autism to help them navigate their way through college and life after. About 100 years ago, this program would not have been created nor even thought of. It probably would have been looked at as insane. I also helped campaign for "Spread the Word to End the Word." I have been so much more conscious and aware when people say the R-word, and a lot of my family and friends have joined me in not saying the word. I am ready to see what additional changes are to come in the future years and how I will contribute to them.