Master of Occupational Therapy - My Student Blog

THANK YOU! for supporting my blog

2011-06-20T22:08:00.003-05:00

You guys (dear readers) are so awesome. I really appreciate all the emails and comments and encouraging words. I know I'm terrible with getting back to you in a timely manner and I AM SO SORRY. I try to work on that, I really do, but so far, I fail every time. lol. But thank you for supporting my blog and continuing to check in, ask questions and encourage me. I really appreciate it.

Hugs and kisses!

Glioblastoma Multiforme

2011-06-20T21:46:00.003-05:00

GBM in the right hemisphere (the left side of this picture)
source of photo

Otherwise known as GBM, is a tumor I've been seeing quite a bit lately. The sad part about this tumor is that the prognosis is very poor. People diagnosed with this tumor usually have from 3 months to 2 years to live. What bothers me about this is that when we see patients and discharge them, we're basically sending them home to die. Many of them need acute rehab care but some of them refuse, stating that they'd rather spend their remaining time with their family. I don't blame them, really. But seeing this diagnosis really bothers me because these patients know they are going to die and their families know this as well. I just can't imagine.

GBM is treated the same as most other tumors--surgery (which is popular where I am), radiation, chemotherapy, steroids, etc. But let me back up and bit and give you a bit of info on this tumor. GBM is a very aggressive brain tumor of the glial cells. Glial cells are cells that support neurons by protecting neurons from foreign invaders, providing nourishment to neurons and destroying old neurons. Glial cells also hold neurons in place, assist with neuroplasticity and help repair neurons when they are injured. What I find interesting is that glial cells are not neurons themselves, they only serve as bodyguards.

As you can probably infer, glial cells are very important to the nervous system. GBM is more common in males, particularly white and Asian men over 50. Unfortunately, the tumor can grow without symptoms until it has become a dangerous mass. As an occupational therapist (student :-) in an acute hospital setting, we work on a variety of functional activities, such as orientation (making sure the patient knows who they are, where they are and the date), upper extremity active range of motion, functional mobility that is comparable to walking a distance within the home, putting on shirts, pants and socks, sitting balance, walking balance, vision and perception and fine motor coordination. We work on other things depending on the needs of the client but these are the most common.

2011-06-07T22:13:00.003-05:00

Here's a website that has contacted me twice. They have occupational therapy jobs and other resources, including other occupational therapy blogs! (click on the Resources link)

I've checked it out and it looks interesting, to say the least. I am not endorsing or attesting to the validity of their service or ANYTHING of that nature. I think this is an interesting site and they asked me to put the link on my site and I agreed to do so, so here it is:

http://www.GetOccupationalTherapyJobs.com

View at your discretion... :-)

Week Four!

2011-06-07T21:16:00.004-05:00

This picture gives you a a general idea of what the ICU is like. Now imagine a patient in the bed with lines coming out of their head, nose, neck, chest, arms, wrist, hand, genitals and legs. Yes, seriously, that many lines. The entire visual is very...busy. I'll write a post about it later to give you an idea of what to expect if you ever have the opportunity to work in the ICU. As usual, this is not my ICU, just a random pic :-)

Wow! One third of the way through my first Level I Fieldwork. Again, Wow!

It dawned on me that I didn't actually explain what I'm doing. At least, I don't remember explaining...anyway, I'm a student in Neurology-Acute Inpatient. I don't know if that is the official name, but that's what I'm doing. I only see patients that have neurological diseases or medical concerns, such as brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, strokes and a host of other diseases that are rare neurological disorders. Many of the patients are in the ICU, and that is exciting and scary for me because the ICU is BUSY. There are so many lines, monitors and noises, you have to be focused on 10 things at once. At another time I'll write a post just on that. It's sooo interesting.

This hospital treats A LOT of diseases that are far and few between; outside hospitals send their patients here when they are unable to provide further care or determine the exact problem. As a result, I see a host of interesting disorders that are very uncommon. Sometimes, I also see burn patients or 'general medicine' patients.

Please note that hospital inpatient acute is different from rehabilitation (inpatient) acute care. It's confusing I know...I've noticed that clinicians often use them interchangeably, depending on with whom you are speaking. However, they are different.

As a hospital inpatient acute therapist, I work with people who have come to the hospital with an illness or problem, the doctors have diagnosed the problem or are medically managing it and the doctors require the occupational therapist to see the patient to determine if the patient is safe and stable enough to go home or participate in other forms of care, such as outpatient, acute, day rehab, etc. The patients are only in the hospital for 7 days or less, rarely longer, hence the term 'acute' for this setting. These patients are acutely sick.

A rehab acute therapist works with people who require a long-term hospital stay, 24-hour nursing care and daily medical supervision AND they must need (and be able to tolerate) at least 2 hours of therapy a day of AT LEAST 2 skilled services--occupational, speech and/or physical therapy. This is the key to acute care-- inpatient stay, 2 or more services, 3 hours a day. Please note that rehab acute care is not offered at all hospitals. As a result, it may take place in a hospital or another facility, but the premise is the same, regardless of the location.

Hope this clears things up, even if just a little; I hope I explained it well. So, back to me. As an inpatient neuro acute student therapist, I assess the patient's current function and abilities, perform a verbal investigation of their functional history before they were injured and determine how what they can do now compares to what they were previously able to do.

I make a discharge recommendation, stating if they are able to go home (safely, of course) or if they need additional care, such as further acute care, outpatient care, day rehab, home health, 24-hour supervision, etc. The purpose is to determine how functionally independent AND safe the patient would be if they were to walk out of the hospital at that exact moment and return to their normal living conditions.

As you can imagine, most of the patients I see are not safe and require additional care. In the meantime, while they are still inpatient patients at the hospital I continue to see and work with them. We work VERY closely with the PTs, we work in teams. We work together to evaluate and treat patients. Because patients are so acutely sick, 99% of the time they are laying in bed 24 hours a day. As you know, this is a recipe for pressure/bed sores.

So, we work on sitting them up in bed, balance while sitting on the edge of the bed, standing and walking. We also work on other functional activities, such as dressing, eating, cognition (do they know where they are, the date and the president? You'd be surprised how many people who have not been medicated are clueless), following - multi-step commands, safety awareness, sensation, vision, L/R discrimination, toileting, transfers, attention, and memory, to name a few. Our goal is to get them healthy enough to leave the hospital and return home or to the next level of care.

I hope this has clarified some things a bit...Some people expressed some confusion.

Week Three!

2011-05-31T20:35:00.003-05:00

I'm always amazed at how one day I look up and BAM! It's been weeks since I've posted. Time is flying and it's a little scary.

Week three of my first Level I Fieldwork is coming along well, I think. I'm always amazed at how little I actually know. Just when you think school has stuffed you chock full of info you go on Fieldwork and realize it wasn't enough. I'm learning diagnosis I didn't even know existed and sometimes there are 2 and 3 variations of one diagnosis.

I'm also learning that every OT and every facility has their own way of writing notes and writing goals. So, just when you get used to doing it one way, you go to another facility and their protocol is slightly different.

Please know that to date I've had 2 clients kind of tick me off by saying inappropriate things to me, however, I smiled each time and kept my cool. I can take a client being rude because they are tired or mentally impaired or don't want to do therapy, that just comes with the territory and doesn't bother me much. But when people make personal assaults, well, that ticks me off. I am a professional AND I am a student, so that puts in the position where unless they call me something really outrageous or do something to threaten my safety then I just nod my head and move on. But you future occupational therapists need to be prepared for the fact that patients say crazy things, even though they themselves are not crazy. They may catch you off guard and, as a student and future employee, it's not in your best interest to give them a piece of your mind. Sometimes you have to just smile and let the patient think they are right or let them think they know more than you. The way I see it, they are not an integral or fixed part of my life; I'll only be working with them for a short time and then it's over.

First day of Fieldwork - 10 tips

2011-05-18T20:32:00.006-05:00

Before I go to bed, I want to share some brief tips with you on making your first day go along as smooth as possible:

1. Call your clinical instructor AT LEAST 2 weeks before your start date to introduce yourself.

2. Ask about appropriate attire and BE SPECIFIC. At one hospital and another pediatric site, I wore corduroy pants and both sites said it was fine. At a different hospital, the administrator had a HUGE problem with it and said corduroy's are actually jeans and are inappropriate. At some place, khaki's are okay and others they are not okay. So, ask specific questions.

3. Find out if your site requires a background check. They may ask you to pay for it and these things can be expensive so save your money and be prepared.

4. Your site may require vaccinations or titers. FIND OUT! Once you find out, DO IT immediately, assuming you don't object or have personal convictions against being vaccinated. Be sure you read the paperwork carefully. My current site requires tither/vaccinations against Rubella AND Rubeola, and YES, THEY ARE TWO DIFFERENT FORMS OF MEASLES. Only after triple-checking and calling the site did I clarify they needed both. It would have been tragic to show up and be unprepared for this. These injections and titers can get expensive so if you feel comfortable, go to a clinic, it's generally cheaper. Or, if you're at a hospital, they can do it for you--this option may be more expensive but at least you'll know you'll have everything you need and it will be done correctly.

5. Your site may require a urine/drug test. Find out how many 'panels' they require. If they require a 9-10 panel test this is more expensive so be prepared.

6. Ask your CI if there is anything you can study to prepare for the upcoming weeks. Express how eager you are to start and how much you appreciate them taking you on.

7. Review the FIM and your Manual Muscle Testing grades! Many sites use these and it comes in handy to know it!

8. If you can, submit your paperwork, titer/vaccination paperwork early so you don't have to take care of all that on the first day. If you need an ID, see if you can come in early and complete that process.

9. Do a trial run to your site! Drive, walk, bike, take the bus, whatever your mode of transportation will be during your fieldwork, take the time to do it and time yourself. It will prevent you from being late, finding/paying for parking on the first day, or getting lost. Trust me, I do this and IT IS SO HELPFUL. I even go INSIDE the site and find the occupational therapy room. This way I know EXACTLY where I am going on the first day.

10. Go to bed early the night before and get up early enough to take your time and eat a good breakfast. Many sites have set times for lunch, which can easily be 4 hours from your arrival. You may not have time for snacks because you're so busy. If you ate a skimpy breakfast you will starve and this may affect your concentration and performance. I wake up 1.5 hours before I need to leave so I can do my hair, cook and eat a huge breakfast and take my time to get ready. I don't like feeling rushed before leaving out the door for fieldwork. Also, be sure to pack your bag with everything you need so that you can just zip the bag and go!

BONUS--When it's all over-- Send a thank-you card or buy a small, but useful, gift when your fieldwork is done. Remember, taking a student is a both a burden and a blessing. Be respectful of CIs and sites that agree to take you. I ALWAYS send thank-you cards. At one site, they needed clothing for their girls so my classmates and I got together and send clothes for about a month. One girl got her Old Navy co-workers to chip in and buy LOTS of Old Navy clothes. At another site, I noticed my CI was carrying everything in plastic bags so I bought her a sturdy plastic carrying case to make things easier (only $5) and I wrote a thank-you note for good measure. At another site, I wrote about 10 thank -you cards, one for EACH PERSON that took me under their wing, even if it was only for an hour. The point is, show your appreciation in a form that is NOT email. People will remember that and they will remember you.

Good luck!

Level II Fieldwork - Day 2

2011-05-18T20:11:00.003-05:00

So, today was my first REAL day of Level II Fieldwork. Yesterday, I took care of all the 'new person' logistic things, like meeting my CI, getting to know the building, taking a HIPAA course (which was about 2 hours!), getting keys and access to the electronic system, getting a locker, signing papers, going over expectations, meeting the other clinicians and taking a 3-hour course on using the electronic documentation system. By the time I did all of this it was about 4pm and so they sent me home.

Well, today, that was not the case! Haha! I had a FULL day. I did some ICU (Intensive Care Unit) treatments, evaluations and inpatient treatment. I did not actually DO the treatment, that comes in the next 3-4 weeks. Rather, I observed and assisted and asked a gazillion questions. I probably won't be posting much detail, due to privacy and discretion and all that good stuff, but I'll try to post the most interesting things that I see or experience so that all of you can share this wonderful Level II experience with me.

One thing I must say is that this particular fieldwork is INTENSE. At my last fieldwork, I would hear a diagnosis and it would be familiar. At this location, however, there are diagnosis that are so rare or uncommon that many times the only way to know is to ask the doctor, use the online medical database or Google it. I can definitely say I will be trained very well by the end of this fieldwork because I am learning diagnoses that I didn't even know existed. My CI confirmed that they tend to get a lot of special cases...which is good for me.

Another thing I must say is that I have been blessed with some AWESOME CIs, at this location and all my fieldwork locations prior to this one. God is really looking out for me because I have not had some of the horror or boring experiences that others have shared with me. Taking on a student is a HUGE responsibility, and in a way, a big pain in the buttocks. Taking on a student definitely slows the therapist down due to all the questions, having someone follow you EVERYWHERE you go like a shadow, explaining all the steps in the treatment process when you would normally zip right through it and then the biggee--documentation. Showing a new student how to use the system and then how to write in OT language is a huge challenge and not everyone can teach this well. My CI stayed behind an hour today just to show me how to document, to assess my clinical reasoning and to ensure that I understood what we saw, how we treated the patient and how to translate that information in a way that OTs and other medical professionals can use it for further treatment and discharge.

At the site prior to this one, my CIs were the same way. They were soooo patient and were very good and pushing me to jump right in and do it. I learned so much from them and they gave me an excellent baseline for this fieldwork.

I probably won't get to go out with my friends as often because I'm realizing all that I don't know. I'll be one Googling sister. Seriously. There's not much time for me to Google while I'm on site but when I come home I have to make the most of my time, and there's not much time in the day. I'll probably be in the bed by 9 tonight. Right now, it's 8.30 and I'm exhausted--and it's just the first day! Lol. After work, I had to run some errands, eat dinner, prepare everything for tomorrow and update this blog.

I also have all these blog notes I wrote from the last fieldwork, notes on things I observed or participated in and wanted to share with you on this blog. However, I rarely had time to log on, as you can see from my limited activity last month. Additionally, I have notes from things I learned months ago while in class, along with a ton of pictures I took of adaptive aids and devices and other interesting occupational therapy items. As you can see, none of that has been posted yet! I'm so busy. But I promise I will get it posted, slowly but surely. It's really important to me that this blog is a resource for those pursuing occupational therapy or interested in more information about occupational therapy.

I'm so sleepy and there are probably all kinds of typos and grammar errors and words missing in this post. If so, I truly apologize!

First Level II

2011-05-17T21:20:00.004-05:00

I started my first Level II today! Whooooooo...scaaaaaary. But, so far, l'm loving it! It's only been one day, but still...

All day, I kept thing that this is it. This is LEVEL II. I finish this fieldwork in August and then I start the second Level II and then...graduation...and then real life. I'm a second career occupational therapist, I don't know why I treat this as if it's my first job.

More importantly, this is Level II and this is the real thing. My last three Level I's were more like practice. I observed and I asked questions. I performed some evaluations, planning and interventions but not every day and not with every patient. This time, however, it's a bit different. The first 2-3 week will be observing, asking questions and working with a few patients. But, by week 6, both my school and my CI (clinical instructor) will expect me to have a caseload, as in a minimum of 8 patients that are my own. My CI reviews everything I do, of course, but for the most part there will be many, many, many times when I am alone with the patient and need to use my professionalism, knowledge and clinical reasoning/judgment.

Thankfully, this will be an interesting and fun experience. I can't wait to get into the groove of things. I'm really looking forward to it.

Don't ASSume relationships!

2011-04-20T18:49:00.004-05:00

Although I'm pretty good at making conversation sometimes I have to watch the questions I ask, especially when I'm distracted. Normally, when someone comes to therapy with another person I ask, "So, are you related?" because you never know if someone is a son, daughter, caregiver, girlfriend, boyfriend, wife, husband, etc. I don't like to assume those things with strangers because I don't want to offend anyone. If someone wants to expand on their relationship then they will, if they answer and get quiet then I know not to press the issue. I usually just have to feel the person/family out and see how open they are to sharing and conversation.

Last week I asked a client this question and she replied that she was the caregiver. I was sooo glad that I did not assume anything. However, there was another client who had someone with him who, to me, looked really young. I asked, "Is that your son?" He gave me a look and then started laughing and said, "No, that is my younger brother" I was just like, "Oh" as I listened to all the crickets amplifying the silence that followed my mistake. haha.

He was pretty good about it, thankfully, but this is an excellent example of BEING CONSISTENT and NOT assuming familial or any other relationship. The client's brother was young, but not THAT young, he only looked significantly younger. I have not experienced the situation where you ask if one is the wife but she is actually the girlfriend and then the wife comes by later. That has happened to others I know, but thankfully not me!

So, the point of this story is to be mindful of assumptive questions. It's best to ask vague questions than direct, yes or no questions. Save yourself, and the client, the embarrassment.

Work Hardening/Conditioning

2011-04-20T18:24:00.003-05:00

I visited a work hardening/conditioning site today and it was so interesting. In a nutshell, work hardening is occupational therapy that focuses on returning a person to work. Treatment focuses on mimicking, as much as possible, a client's job duties and work environment.

This facility was wonderful. Some things I noticed are

streetlights (yes, a real streetlight, truncated of course)
tall and short ladders
nuts and bolts for screwing on and off on a high or low board
bags of true-weight cement
garbage cans
buckets to simulate the weight of paint buckets
vacuum cleaners
shovels
inclines and declines
gravel
carts for pushing and pulling
carpet for friction
a dummy in a wheelchair
a plumbing setup
scaffolding
all sorts of boxes of various weights
stairs
and even a simulated bus/truck driver unit. I got in this unit and it moves and feels just like a truck/bus. It has a clutch, gears, and a TV to simulate driving on the road.

They also have a machine called the BTE or Baltimore Therapy Equipment which is basically a machine that simulates all kinds of real world movements for job function or personal interest. You can set the machine for appropriate resistance and to mimic the motion. For example, I was told the story of a woman who said she'd love to be able to ride her Harley motorbike again. They showed me a piece that looks kind of like a wrench. It was attached to the simulator and when I gripped and squeezed it, it had the weight, feel and resistance of a motorbike clutch! The machine requires that you continue to grip it and maintain the same force with each grip. It records your grip strength performance over time so the therapist can determine your rehabilitation progress.

The machine can do hundreds of simulations but some that I noted were:

shoveling
operating a drill press
turning a knob
using a screwdriver
turning a key
climbing a ladder (amazing!)
sweeping the floor
shoveling snow
sanding
painting
steering a whel
gripping
vacuuming

The work hardening environment is good for all the movements needed in a job that people don't think about--kneeling, stooping, crawling, reaching, climbing, balancing, lifting, pushing, pulling, carrying, scooting, etc. Finally, work hardening is therapy that mimics a workday where one participates for 6 or more hours and work conditioning is a half day, where one works for 3-4 hours.

Very interesting!

Yo PUEDO hablar espanol!

2011-04-20T17:56:00.002-05:00

So, all my traveling and (inconsistent) studying of the Spanish language has paid off! Today, my CI had to do an evaluation and commented that she believes the gentlemen, with a Spanish/Latino surname, only speaks Spanish, based on some information from his chart. I told her that I speak Spanish, although not fluent, I can certainly communicate. She said 'Ok, let's try it."

We walked into the room and she asked in Spanish, "habla ingles?" To which he replied no. And then she said, "Ok, Kim, you're up."

AND I DID IT.

I explained that I only speak a little Spanish and that I am the student and she is the occupational therapist. I explained occupational therapy to him (although I need to work on that part a little bit) and he said he understood. We asked about his home life, his pain level, location of pain, the type of equipment he currently has at home or used before his injury and so on. His pain level was really high so we called in a nurse and I had to translate that exchange, explaining when his doctor would be in to prescribe more medication.

I tried to explain some adaptive equipment to him but he was in so much pain he didn't want to be bothered. Also, some Spanish words I couldn't understand because I didn't know them and other words I couldn't understand because he was mumbling and slurring words together.

I'm not sure if he understood that we were OCCUPATIONAL therapists and not physical therapists because he kept saying the therapists already came and made him walk around. I explained again that we are different so I hope he gets it. We have to see him again tomorrow so I'm going to write down some common phrases for his condition and write another, clearer explanation of occupational therapy. Perhaps he was drugged because he did seem a little out of it, or perhaps the pain was so great that he couldn't think straight.

Either way, it doesn't matter because I SPOKE SPANISH. Ha!

Afterward, my CI said, 'Well, Kim, you did very well. I am very impressed."

I've been doubting my Spanish skills all this time because my listening is not strong and I mix up words all the time and I get nervous. But now I realize I get nervous when someone is correcting or judging my grammar or word choice. In this situation no one was there to correct or judge my level. I only needed to communicate. It wasn't as important that I had subject-verb agreement. When foreigners speak English their subject-verb agreement is not always correct but as Americans we're used to it and let it slide because they COMMUNICATE well. My Chilean classmate told me this about a 1.5 months ago. He told me that he knows his English is not perfect but it doesn't matter. All that matters is that he is understood and he can communicate. He told me I should feel the same way about my Spanish. I would LIKE to feel this way about my Spanish but I get nervous and I want it to be perfect because I don't want Spanish speakers to think poorly of me.

I'll still probably have that thought in the back of my head but now I have more confidence in my ability to express myself and be understood. Now I'm going to REALLY have to pump up my Spanish studies.

This was the highlight of my week!

Therapeutic Use of Self

2011-04-19T21:41:00.003-05:00

The Great Wall of China. I visited this AMAZING structure about 10 years ago while on vacation in China. If you ever have the opportunity, please go. It's breathtaking. The Chinese culture is incredible. And no, you cannot see it from space. :-)

The OT community often talks about using therapeutic use of self. We talk about it a lot in school and I understood it but now I REALLY understand it because I'm using it so much everyday. I'm not going to quote anyone for this one but tell you my own definition: using your personal, unique skill set to meet the client where they are in such a way that YOU become a valuable tool in the OT process.

A quick example before I go to bed:
At my site we have clients of all cultures. One particular group of Chines ladies comes in, does therapy and leaves, one lady serves as an off-the-cuff interpreter for the other who speaks no English. One day I commented to my clinical instructor (CI) that their Chinese accent was very interesting and I wondered if they spoke Mandarin, Cantonese, some other dialect or maybe my ear for Chinese was just off. She was curious as well so we asked at their next appointment. One question led to another and me, being my talkative self, starting asking a gazillion questions about where she was from, how long she's been here in the U.S., her job, etc.

She was excited to know that I had been to China and had a wonderful experience there. Suddenly, she wanted to share EVERYTHING with me, all kinds of stories. I asked her to teach me some basic Chinese and she was so HAPPY. She shared with me that there are three words I absolutely must learn to get by: Hello, Good-bye and Thank you. I kept practicing the words over and over and she taught me more words and kept corrected me, haha. The more we talked, the more engaged she became. Now, I know I'm still new and all but up to this point I'd seen this lady a few times and I didn't know she could talk this much! And it was so interesting!

Later that day I asked my CI for feedback and she told me that I have great rapport with the clients. I'm really good and starting and continuing conversation, making the clients feel welcome and engaging them in therapy and the intervention process. The previous week another OT clinician had told me the same thing. They both commented that I should never lose that quality.

Naturally, those encouraging words made me feel really, really good. It also hit home how just being yourself and using your natural strengths (in my case, the gift of gab and of genuinely being interested in people's cultures, family life and life experiences) can encourage the client and make therapy enjoyable.

And in case you were wondering, here's the Chinese I learned. I can't guarantee it's correct, HAHA! Either my pronunciation is off, or hers...probably the former more than the latter. :-) (smile)
Hello - Ne-how-ma
Goodbye - Chai Chen (the first sound is more like a 'j' sound)
Thank you - She-e She-e

The Framework vs. The Real World

2011-04-19T21:21:00.003-05:00

Today we had a guest speaker come and lead a meeting about the Framework. I thought this was interesting since as a student that's ALL we do is talk about the Framework--we eat, breathe, sleep and poop the Framework. But what I hadn't considered is that the Framework hasn't been around forever, haha. There are OTs for whom the Framework is a new document and learning all the pieces of the Framework is a new process.

Today's speaker discussed how students come into fieldwork with Framework terminology swimming in their heads and, because of this, it's important for clinicians to regurgitate these terms as often as possible so that the Framework makes sense and so that students can relate what they've learned to what their actually doing in the clinic. I thought this meeting was very interesting because I'm certainly seeing the difference between how academia sees implementing OT interventions and how it's actually done.

To be clear, there are no significant differences, however, I've found the emphasis to be different. In school, the emphasis is often on occupation-based intervention, but sometimes this is just not possible in every session. Many times clients need skill-based exercises to build their strength; they need a clinician to guide, pace and review the exercises with them. Also, if the clinic environment is not built for a true occupation based intervention due to a lack of tools or time then sometimes performing 'rote' exercises (known as preparatory exercises in the Framework) is the best way to accomplish your goals.

I've found that many OT instructors I've run across (to clarify--this is not just at my school but at other institutions as well) discourage 'exercise' per se and place extreme emphasis on occupation based intervention. For the purposes of this discussion exercises are not just lifting weights but are also activities such as working with putty, thermal modalities, ROM, using thera bands, etc. There are clinicians and educators out there who frown on using these forms in treatment, especially for extended periods of time.

Thankfully, I'm in an awesome place that has WONDERFUL facilities but in speaking with others some clinics are not as well-prepared. As a result, some tasks, such as performing a kitchen task, are just not feasible. You may not be able to see how your client cooks in real time, or if they remember to turn the stove off, or if they note that the recipe calls for leaving the cake in the oven for only 10 minutes, or WHATEVER the case may be. This where that good ol' OT creativity comes in and you have create/simulate the environment as best you can.

So, please no one take this post OUT OF CONTEXT and get all argumentative on me, because I can certainly see someone doing that; please try to see the point. I hope I've been pretty clear in expressing that OT interventions encompass a good mix of preparatory (warm-up), purposeful (activity simulation) and occupation based intervention (real time intervention). Exclusively using one over the other only disservices your clients.

Also, in regard to that last post--after cooking the food, we placed a tablecloth on the table, set the table with plastic silverware and glass bowls and plates and we ate the spaghetti and garlic bread and it was delicious!

We made spaghetti!

2011-04-12T20:57:00.002-05:00

Ok! It's getting hot in here! Things are really heating up. I'm on my third and final Level I fieldwork! For obvious reasons I can't tell you where I am or give you much detail. But I can tell you some things, though very little.

Last week I did a cooking task with two people who suffered a stroke/CVA. It was my first 'real' task. It was awesome! They made spaghetti and garlic bread. We watched them from start to finish and they did everything. Turning on the stove was interesting as one person knew how to turn it on and the other didn't. I think Pt2 had a stove with electric buttons because she kept pushing all the pictures instead of turning the knobs. I thought it was cute. Pt1 had to cut and butter French bread, which was interesting because Pt1 doesn't cook.

Pt2 swore up and down that she wouldn't be able to open the spaghetti jar. She tried to open it with her stronger side but I kept encouraging her to try it with her hemiparetic side. We looked for some Dycem (a non-slip material to help you grip items, it's like the Superman rubber material) and didn't have any so we just used a regular rubber liner. And Voila! She opened the jar with ease and she was soooo happy! She then exclaimed how now she can make spaghetti more frequently!

I really enjoyed the task and it forced me to multi-task--I had to watch and make sure the clients don't hurt themselves, we were cooking with fire after all; I also had to ensure that they successfully completed all the steps; and I had to observe their motor control, bilateral coordination, strength & endurance and make sure they were using their hemiparetic side as often as possible.

I've noticed that stroke patients often use their stronger side over their hemiparetic side. In doing so, they force non-use of their hemiparetic side. This can lead to overuse problems of the stronger side and muscle atrophy and degeneration of the hemiparetic side.

I'm still here!

2011-04-05T21:18:00.002-05:00

Ok, I have been quite the busy bee! I know I've been away for awhile but I've had physical issues and SO MUCH SCHOOLWORK. This is my final semester on campus before my Level II fieldwork and we had a lot of loose ends to tie. I am currently on fieldwork in a hospital and I LOVE IT. I have so much to write but I can't do it now. I'm exhausted. I haven't had a rest from school. I still have 2 online exams to take and some posts to upload. Hopefully, I can write more over the weekend. Plus, on top of all that I took notes from all the weeks I missed writing on this wonderful blog so I have to catchup on all that stuff.

Please forgive my silence. I always think about my blog and content but lately I've been too exhausted to log on and type all the stories I have. I will post this weekend.

24 year-olds in nursing homes

2011-02-22T21:46:00.004-06:00

I received an excellent submission form a reader on an article that was new information to me and very interesting. This article discusses how a growing number of nursing home residents are actually under the age of 65. Apparently, this groups suffers traumatic injuries and their families cannot afford to take care of them, either financially or because of time. As a result, they are put in nursing homes where they can get the care they need. Some people are in nursing homes because its cheaper than a hospital.

The problem is that they are still young (some are in the 20s) and want to play their music loud, get up late, eat late and hang out. This can be a problem when the people with whom you live get up at 7 am and go to bed at 9pm. They also mentioned how people are dying and that makes them very sad.

I think it is a very interesting article for occupational therapists and the health profession to review and consider. I hope you take the time to read it!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/07/assisted-living-more-young-people_n_805772.html

Change is good

2011-02-22T21:30:00.004-06:00

As you know, I take voting VERY seriously. We had a mayoral election here in Chicago today, and, of course I voted! Mr. Rahm Emanuel is our new mayor, which is interesting because Mayor Richard Daley has been mayor since I was maybe 7 or 8 or something like that. He's the only mayor I really know and I'm almost 32 years old! The only other mayor I remember is Mayor Harold Washington, the first and only black mayor. I remember going to a restaurant as a kid and my dad being so excited to meet him. Mayor Washington was so gracious, I remember him picking me up...I think there's a picture of that somewhere around here.

Well, anyway, what struck me about this mayoral race is that all the candidates were minority or 'other.' At least 3 candidates were African-American, 2 were Latino/Mexican and one was Jewish. It was very culturally diverse. For Chicago, this is significant because Chicago is well-known for being a major city that is very racially segregated.

And this is quite true.

To this day there are some neighborhoods that make me nervous after a certain hour because of previous unpleasant racial experiences. Chicago is also a city with a very large black population that has historically voted for black candidates. This is mostly due to the fact that until recently the only option was white candidates and we were excited to have other options, but that's a topic for another day. This is interesting to note because Mr. Emanuel won a HUGE percentage of the black vote, he won the majority of the black vote in every ward in Chicago.

I won't tell you who I voted for in this election because I don't want my beliefs plastered all over the Internet. haha. But I will tell you that I don't vote along racial or party lines. I vote for whom I believe will best serve my interests. I did not vote 'black' in this election. I know this has nothing to do with occupational therapy but this is very important to me. I believe very strongly in voting. I hope these rants encourage people to make more of an effort to vote in future elections. I'm always very disappointed and agitated with people who give crappy reasons for not going to the polls. Anyway...

I am very happy to have a new mayor.

Change is good.

FAQs-How I found Costa Rica & Dominican Republic

2011-02-16T17:57:00.006-06:00

I received a question asking how I found the families I stayed with in DR and CR. I performed an EXTENSIVE Google search for Spanish immersion programs. For weeks, I looked at websites and compared amenities and prices. I asked around my network to get more information on the experience and how things work.

Finally, I settled on this company--Spanish Abroad. They have a very comprehensive site and I learned a lot about the different countries just from perusing their site. I had no idea if they would take my money and run but I just went with it and it worked out very well! I chose the countries based on how much money I wanted to spend and CR & DR were two of the cheapest. Ecuador and Guatemala are pretty cheap as well but I was concerned for my safety. In hindsight I wish I had gone to Guatemala as well.

Anyway, they enroll you in the school and book your time with the family. You are responsible for your flight, although they give you arrival and departure parameters. Your school books and two of your meals are included in the price. You can choose to stay in an apartment if you don't want to live with a family. Don't think that just because you live with a family you will practice Spanish. I lived with one family that was too busy to talk to me and another family that spoke English very well so they always spoke English to me first, which was annoying as H-E-double hockey sticks. But, overall, they were both amazing experiences.

So, I have learned that the total experience is very dependent upon that country's Spanish school, the family you stay with and the country itself. I had some experiences that weren't so great. Unfortunately, I won't share them here on the Internet for the world to see because some people may get offended and it just makes me look bad.

But, buyer beware. I have not had a bad experience with Spanish Abroad, however, they are just a broker. They only set-up the experience; the family, the school and the country you choose MAKE the experience. Plus, your attitude and expectations makes a big difference, too. Go with low expectations because our living standards here in the US are very, very different than many countries Spanish Abroad offers. I knew that going in so I wasn't too surprised at what I saw and experienced.

If you use them, please tell them I referred you. I think my Spanish immersion trips are over because I can't squeeze any more money from my family and friends, haha, plus a lot of my savings is slowly dwindling away, however, you never know what the future holds. I'd like for Spanish Abroad to know that I speak highly of them.

Good luck!

(As a side note, to the young lady that left the question, I could not send you a direct email because I didn't have an email address. I think you responded directly to the blog instead of entering your email address. Anyway, I hope this answers your question. If not, email me back, I'd love to hear from you again! Thanks!)

School, Toilets and Friendship

2011-02-16T17:47:00.006-06:00

Two things to make you smile today:

1. My classmates and I were complaining about how tired we always are and how there is always so much to do that we never get to do things we really like, such as spend time with our families, read interesting books, hang out with our friends til the wee hours, and sleep.

The 6 year-old son of one of my classmates asked her to play with him and she said, "Ok, I have some homework to do first and then I can play with you."

To which he quickly replied, "You never spend any time with us anymore. I hate school; I'm never going to school, not even after college!"

For some reason, that cracked me up!

2. Another classmate left her bag and coat in class but was nowhere to be found and the professor had started teaching. I asked another classmate where she was and found out she wasn't feeling well and went to the bathroom.

When she returned and found out that I inquired and was interested in her whereabouts she said, "Wow, you asked about me? That's awesome, thank you for thinking of me! I was in the bathroom on the toilet and I thought about you, too!"

I just shook my head and turned away. Not the image I needed at that moment.

More thoughts on (air quotes) free money

2011-02-16T17:43:00.003-06:00

So, in regard to that last post on (insert air quotes here) free money (insert sarcastic face here), my classmate made a great point that somehow alluded me. She reminded me that paying a couple of thousand in taxes for (insert air quotes here) free money (insert sarcastic face here) is MUCH better than paying $50k+ in student loans.

Ok, dear Classmate.

Touche.

You are right and I stand corrected.

And I'm going to shut-up about it now.

Why FREE money is not really free

2011-02-16T17:37:00.003-06:00

Ok, um, apparently, I didn't get the memo!

Why didn't anyone tell me that if you get scholarship money for school the U.S. government considers that income and taxes it up the yee-yang?!

Apparently when you think that income literally means going to work and making money you are sadly mistaken.

Income means ALL money that comes your way. Even free money. Period.

What gets me is that you are supposed to use your student loan and scholarship money for school and living expenses. If I have to pay taxes on this *free* money, where does the money to pay the taxes by April 18th come from? Isn't a misuse of funds to use the *free* money to pay the government?

Are the words *free* and *scholarship* misnomers?

Just curious.

Hand puppets & Pin the Tail on the Turkey

2011-02-03T21:38:00.009-06:00

After making puppets, two of the kids spontaneously performed a puppet show for me! It was lovely!

These puppets were supposed to be Pilgrims and Indians (Native Americans).

The Pilgrims had hats and the Indians (Native Americans) had feathers. I am personally opposed to the 'Pilgrim' and 'Indian' image as I have very strong views about the way their relationship is portrayed to school children. I won't get into my personal views here because the point is that the activity was excellent.

The children were allowed to decorate them as they pleased using yarn for hair and the mouth, crayons, markers, bubble eyes and pom-pons for the nose. We had to guide some of the children with the decorations but most did well using their imaginations.

We played a Pin the Hat on the Turkey game. This game was great for social interaction, communication, following directions, knowing body parts in space (while the eyes are closed), vestibular regulation (because we would spin them around), taking turns (some of the kids struggled with this) and a host of other performance skills. This is an excellent activity.

Just a picture to illustrate how small the kids' chairs are. This picture does no justice, really. Those chairs are either really, really tiny or I am really, really big. It may be a bit of both. lol. But, I thought it was so cute that their chairs were so small. The blue chair, although it looks larger, is still small in comparison to an adult chair because it is a chair made for a larger child. I had to sit in the red chair sometimes so that I could be eye-level with the kids. It was uncomfortable because I could not scoot under the table like the kids because I am too big!

Pediatric projects--turkey and cornucopias

2011-02-03T21:14:00.007-06:00

The kids made turkeys by tracing their hands, cutting out the shape and gluing feathers onto the paper.

The kids also made cornucopias by cutting out their favorite foods from magazines and food ads and gluing them onto the cornucopia.

(Apparently, this kid likes sugar)

Another turkey on the bulletin board.

I like these activities because they help you determine if the kids are sensitive or sensory averse to glue, construction paper or feathers. You can determine bilateral integration by looking at how and if they cut. You can assess fine motor skills by looking at how they hold the pencil when they trace their fingers for the turkey. You can determine their problem solving skills by how they cut corners and around weird areas when cutting out the pictures from the magazine. You can look at their posture while cutting and writing and you also assess their attention span and ability to concentrate on activities and follow directions. You can also assess communication and social interaction by how and if they share. Asking them what types of foods they eat for Thanksgiving also assess communication and social interaction skills and you can learn about their immediate familial cultural. (As a side note, I was disappointed to see one teacher correct a student when he said he does not eat pumpkin pie or stuffing for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving and stuffing is a personal experience. In my family we don't eat either. Instead, we eat sweet potato pie and dressing, a typical Southern Thanksgiving meal. So, please be mindful when talking to students that we are respectful of culture and differences).

These are just a few examples of what you can assess by these activities. The kids are having fun, you're having fun and you're also learning about their performance skills. These are awesome school-based occupational therapy activities.

Pediatric Bulletin Boards

2011-02-03T21:04:00.004-06:00

A bulletin board of turkeys and cornucopias of the kids' favorite foods.

A bulletin board at another school of turkeys and handwriting samples.

Towards the end of my fieldwork we made Christmas trees and candy canes! If you look closely you can see the pom-pons or 'balls' as one of the kids called it in my last post. :-)

HIppotherapy

2011-02-03T19:56:00.011-06:00

The riders taking riding lessons would sometimes mount here. Those receiving hippotherapy did not mount from here because it requires an extreme amount of balance and core coordination and strength.

One of the horses used for hippotherapy or riding.

Isn't this horse beautiful?

This is one of the 'stations' where we asked the kids to pick up toys that were strategically placed or place toys on the ledge.

A saddle used by one of the riders. None of the occupational therapists or other therapists use this saddle.

Instead they used a 'saddle' like this, it's more pliable and wider than a regular saddle. This is a smaller horse that can sometimes be a bit moody, haha. We used this horse and then had to switch to another horse as the rain torment increased.

The horse being led into the loading area. I can't remember the exact name of the area.

This is a smaller horse that can sometimes be a bit moody, haha. We used this horse and then had to switch to another horse as the rain torment increased.

Mounting a child on the horse. It often took 2-3 people to mount one child. The larger the child, the more effort to mount the child.

(For obvious reasons I can't show the faces of the children although I do have permission to post these pictures. I hope you can get an idea of what hippotherapy is like although the pictures aren't as clear as I'd like).

During my pediatric fieldwork, I had the opportunity to observe a hippotherapy session. In case you are unaware, hippotherapy is therapy (in this case performed by an occupational therapist although it can be performed by other professionals as well) that utilizes the movements from the horse. From what I saw, the children LOVED it and really respond well to it.

After mounting the child on the horse we each stood on the side of the horse to hold and balance the child. Up to 4 people helped and we never stood behind the horse. I learned that standing behind the horse causes them a great deal of fear and in response they will kick back. Horses have strong legs and kicking back is never good when a human is behind them, obviously.

We then walked around the stable for 30 minutes. Sometimes we would position the child backwards to work different muscles, or hold toys out in front of them or to the sides asking them to reach for the toys or point to the toys to assess and evaluate their balance, coordination or other performance skills. Sometimes we would stop at a station and ask them to reach and pick up a toy or place it in a bucket or place it down on the ledge.

At one point it started to rain, HARD, with thunder and lightening and the horses freaked out. I was terrified. I know nothing about horses and to see them whining and walking frantically and the stable owners trying to calm them was frightening for me. It was mostly frightening because they are HUGE animals and you don't want to be on the side of one while it's scared. There was a lot of calming action and 'shhh' noises by the occupational therapists and stable owners to calm the horses.

I think hippotherapy is an interesting form of therapy and I highly recommend an observation if you have the opportunity.

How are you feeling today?

2011-02-03T19:28:00.010-06:00

See my name? Apparently, I was very tired that day...

If you look closely, you'll see that my classmate drew a picture of me! Lol. That was when I had that funky ponytail with a headband matching my outfit. I think she did a pretty good job.

Last semester when we were discussing sensory integration and sensory processing our teacher started the class by posting paper on the door and asking us to both write and draw how we were feeling that day. We all had a ball with that one. It was interesting to see what everyone wrote and how they drew/described how they were feeling.

Disappearing Clock

2011-02-03T19:00:00.006-06:00

A clock indicating that he has time to complete the activity.

As time goes on, the instructors can fold over the flaps to indicate how much time is remaining --15, 10, 5 or 0 minutes remain.

The flaps make the clock disappear, creating a visual reinforcement.

The clock is gone! Time is up!

For my Assistive Technology class last semester we had to come up with an idea for an assistive tech device for a student. I chose to create a prototype for a student with Pervasive Development Disorder (PDD). Autism and Asperger's Syndrome are two of the most well-known forms of PDD.

This particular student does not respond well to transitions. To my knowledge, his team of instructors at school do not give multiple notifications of the upcoming activity. I suggested that we use a clock that counts down the time of the current activity. If he can 'see' that time is decreasing on his current activity while at the same time someone is verbalizing the countdown AND providing deep pressure on his shoulder or arm to get his attention, he may be more receptive to ending that activity and starting a new one.

In the real world this would probably be laminated or created using a computer or something but you get my drift. Some of my classmates actually created their assistive technology and gave it to the students, who were elated, of course.

Graduation is around the corner

2011-02-03T18:45:00.005-06:00

I'm a member of the Board of our school's Master of Occupational Therapy Club. We decided to welcome the incoming occupational therapy students with treats and snacks. I thought it was very thoughtful of us.

In April, we have our third, and final, Level I Fieldwork. This fieldwork is Adult Physical Dysfunction, such as Traumatic Brain Injury, Spinal Cord Injury, Cerebrovascular Accidents (Stroke), etc. After that it's Level II Fieldwork...whoo hoo, SCARY! And then after that, it's GRADUATION. I don't think you understand how excited, and nervous, I am to graduate.

Excited, because, well, it'll be the end of my life as a Master's student and I'm completely ready for that. School is physically, emotionally, and mentally taxing and I'm just downright...tired. I need a break.

I'm nervous because it'll be the end of my life as a Master's student (haha, same reason) and the beginning as an Occupational Therapist professional. Everything that I've been studying and waiting and hoping and praying for will come to be around this time next year. That's amazing.

I'll have to study for the Board and start preparing to life my life as a professional. This is my second career and it's pretty exciting...and scary.

Wow.

More Domincan Republic pics

2011-02-03T18:36:00.002-06:00

Another interesting picture from the Dominican Republic. I was curious as to why bars would be placed on the upper levels of an apartment building. I was told it's because people climb the building to rob homes.

The crime in Chicago is sky high and people do outrageous things here so I am totally not judging. But, I thought it was interesting enough to share.

Splinting 101

2011-02-03T17:43:00.011-06:00

Hands are so important...and so complex.

A more complex hand splint than the one I had for my finger last year (it's been a year! Can you believe it? Wow. My finger is still doing quite well.)

Two of my classmates are practicing on each other. Here they're making the outline to use as a template.

Here my classmate is creating a template for my hand/forearm.

A template I created for myself for my hand.

Here I am creating the template myself for my hand/forearm...

The finished template.

We have a class on creating hand splints. As of now, I'm fairly certain I am not interested in anything having to do with hands, including splinting. Learning about forces and vectors is interesting though and the process is pretty fun.

In case you're unaware a splint is basically just a tool or device used to immobilize parts of the body to prevent further injury so that the surrounding tissues can heal. It's kind of like a cast. Remember when I lacerated my extensor tendon and I had that strange white thing on it? That was a splint for the finger. That should give you a general idea of what splints do. The splints we will create in class will be much more elaborate than the one I had but you get the idea.

Finally, a bit on Certified Hand Therapists. So, CHT's are occupational therapists (and to my knowledge they are also physical therapists) with 5 years of practice in hand therapy, including passing a national certification exam. CHT's focus on injuries of the hand (surprise!), the wrist, the elbow and the shoulder. They assess, plan interventions and evaluate outcomes of hand therapy services. CHT's have to meet very rigorous standards.

So, there you have it! Splinting 101!

Salsa dancing

2011-01-30T20:55:00.004-06:00

She always makes funny faces in pictures! She's so silly but she's an AWESOME salsa dancer. Wow, I wish I could dance like her.

Before I left, I went salsa dancing with some classmates. You may remember them from last year's Halloween salsa excursion??? :-)

I'm not a very good salsa dancer but I'm a great merengue dancer and I'm learning bachata. So, those were the dances of choice that night. I had a lot of fun!

Dominican Republic

2011-01-30T20:25:00.005-06:00

A terribly funny beach picture. The wind was blowing like crazy and sand was EVERYWHERE.

A BEAUTIFUL cave with crystal clear water! We had to take a boat to get to the other side to see the next picture...

This is a small lake on the other side of the cave. It was like something from 'The Goonies.' Remember that movie, all of of you over 30???

This is where Christopher Columbus' son lived for awhile.

Pretty cool, huh? I thought so. Hence the picture!

I played Scrabble in spanish!

Pretty cool, huh?

I saw some shows. These are folks are dancers. They were awesome!

SUGAR CANE. All I can say is OH MY GOODNESS, how sweet it is. WOW! The sugar you buy in stores has nothing on this.

This is something that is like a taxi...but not quite. It's only about 50 cents. To 'catch' one you stand on the street and point your finger in the direction in which you want to travel. It was weird doing that...kind of like the world's oldest profession, if you know what I mean...

Rocking chairs in the airport in Tennessee! How southern! (I had several layovers--hey, don't judge me! It was a cheap flight!)

The food here was pretty good. I had tapas! This place had German, American, Spanish, Italian and Dominican restaurants. Around 9pm the flamenco dancers would give a great show!

And finally, EYE CANDY! My favorite picture. He looks like a model, doesn't he? We had a VERY PLEASANT conversation in Spanish. LOL.

So, i'm back! Yes, I know you know that already since I wrote that 3 weeks ago. Too funny.

I went to the Dominican Republic for more Spanish Immersion/Spanish school. It was lovely but I had a very difficult time understanding their Spanish. They don't pronounce the letter 's' there! So, 'como estas?' becomes 'com ta?' and 'Estoy bien' becomes 'toy bien.' I could understand my instructors and the family with whom I lived but the everyday common folks on the street? S-T-R-U-G-G-L-E.

After a few days I came to understand some things, such as como estas? and De donde eres? and so on. But, when I traveled across the country on the bus I got tired of trying to decipher what random people were saying as they attempted to make conversation so I started saying 'No hablo espanol. No entiendo.' I even said it in English sometimes to prove that I didn't understand (lol), and STILL, PEOPLE SPOKE TO ME IN SPANISH. They are just a friendly country, I guess.

This was probably my last time living with a family. I think I'm getting to an age where I want ALL the American/Western comforts. I want my water to come out the shower head, HOT, not cold or luke warm. I want it to come out hot and STAY hot. I also want to be able to put toilet paper in the toilets. I want to drink water from the sink--not that I particularly enjoy Chicago water as I have a Brita, but I want the option. I want good, hot, flavorful food. I've noticed Caribbean food is pretty much the same, all the time, and it's almost always served warm.

I went to the movies in DR and after the show I had to use the bathroom. As I waited in line, something about the situation was off but I couldn't put my finger on it. When I entered the stall immediately I knew what it was--I didn't hear any toilets flushing!!!! The plumbing system was stalled (I later found out this is common. The electricity or plumbing will just go out, and you have to wait for it to return) so the toilet was full of urine and menstrual blood and the garbage can next to it was full of toilet tissue and menstrual blood tissue. Sorry for the visuals but it's the truth.

And, in case you haven't guessed this also means the SINKS WERE NOT WORKING so I couldn't wash my hands. Thankfully I didn't drink all the water in my water bottle so when we got outside I poured water over my hands.

In my 20s, this would not have bothered me one bit (one day I'll tell you how my passport and plane ticket were taken and how I got kicked out my hostel room in China because they thought I was part of some religous sect) but now incidences like these are inconveniences.

These are the signs of a true 30-something. Sigh. But I'm still adventurous and young and beautiful and fun loving. I won't submit to any OLD AGE -isms! I WON'T DO IT!

:-)

I'm back!

2011-01-07T22:57:00.001-06:00

Hi I'm back from my trip! I know I didn't say anything, I got really busy then hopped on a plan and left. Sorry! :-)

It's late and I'm sleepy so I'll post more on Monday!

NICU-neonatal intensive care unit

2010-12-06T21:25:00.004-06:00

Before I went out on Peds fieldwork, we had a speaker come in and talk to us about the NICU--neonatal intensive care unit. This is basically a hospital unit dedicated to caring for ill or premature newborn infants.

Apparently this is a difficult area to get into as a new grad, which is not surprising considering the amount of knowledge and experience you need to care for these infants.

One assessment used to evaluate NICU infants is the Ballard assessment. This assessment helps you determine the baby's gestational age so you can know which kind of care it needs. Basically, you look at various systems, appearance, function and so on such as skin, lanugo, genitals, eyes and ears, tone, etc and give each area a score, sum the scores and compare the final score to a chart which tells you the baby's week of gestation. It's very interesting.

OTs in NICU assess a baby's development, calming ability, orthopedic and neurological conditions, positioning and educate staff and parents. I learned that with all the hype surrounding SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) baby's don't get the 'tummy time' that they need and they often end up with flattened heads or developmental delays. Babies need at least 2 hours of SUPERVISED tummy time per day.

Finally, an interesting calming strategy is to try to recreate an environment for the baby that is as close to the womb as possible. Remember the womb is where the baby ate regularly, was warm, comfortable and safe. You can accomplish this by the 5 S's: swaddle the baby, sway the baby, give the baby something to suck, position the baby in sidelying and 'shhh' the baby. Apparently the little boogers like these actions and it calms them. I've certainly noticed this with my niece!

Good times with the kids

2010-12-06T17:45:00.004-06:00

(Pom Poms)

So, as you know I LOVED working with those kids. They were all so cute and so funny and so adorable and so FUN. I had a ball!

Here is a joke one student told me. He said he made it up and he was so proud of it.

Him: What is a beaver's favorite food?
Me: I don't know, what?
Him: Steak...
Me: (silent, because I just did NOT get it, haha!)
Him: You don't get it?
Me: No, sorry! (ashamed, head down) I don't get it.
Him: You know, beavers eat wood and 'stakes' are made of wood.

I nearly fell out laughing and I think you know why.....

During another instance one student made such a hilarious statement that my supervisor and I had to turn away so she wouldn't see us laughing so hard:

We were making Christmas trees and decorating them with ornaments such as yarn, cotton balls and small pom poms (if you don't know what a pom pom is see the picture at the top of this post). This can be a sensory activity as many of the kids don't like touching glue and as a result they often don't put enough glue on the paper. When this happens, the pom poms fall off.

Boy X was gluing his pom poms to his Christmas tree but did not add enough glue. But, he was so proud of his tree that he held it up for everyone to see and his ornaments started falling off. Girl Y, trying to help him, said, "Hey, Boy X, be careful. Your balls are falling off.. Hey, did you hear me??? YOUR BALLS ARE FALLING OFF!!!!"

I nearly peed in my pants.

Individual Education Plan (IEP) meetings summary

2010-12-06T17:28:00.003-06:00

I've had the pleasure of sitting on a few IEPs (Individual Education Plan) while on my pediatric fieldwork and I really enjoyed them.

In a nutshell, various professions in education--psychologist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, speech pathologist, special education teacher, classroom teacher, nurse, case manager, paraprofessional and any other professional, and parents all meet together to discuss the needs and goals of the child's education. Everyone gets a turn to speak and report on observations, evaluations, assessments, interventions and outcomes. They also each report on how the child is progressing and if he should remain eligible for their service over the next year.

These meetings can last for HOURS. Of course, the time flew for me because I am a student and everything is new and fascinating but I can see how over time these meetings can be frustrating if people come late or unprepared. On at least 3 occasions the parents did not show up or were so late my supervisor and I had to leave to make appointments at other schools to see our regularly scheduled kids.

I also noticed how some professionals use words that may be unfamiliar to some parents, particularly to those with certain educational backgrounds. Words such as bell curve, fine motor, adaptive equipment, pincer grasp, range of motion, etc., may be unfamiliar to some parents. As professionals we must remember to speak in layman's terms so that everyone in the meeting can participate and understand what is being said. It's also important so that parents feel comfortable enough to participate in the meeting and ask questions.

As professionals we need to be aware of what is not being said during these meetings. I noticed that some parents were very passive and only spoke when a question was asked; the professionals dictated what was to be done to their child and they went along with it. Other parents were very proactive and asked lots of questions and had a very aggressive (but not in a negative way) role in the meeting. I think that when we notice parents are passive and go along with what is being said we need to ask them for their input because what they think is important.
Additionally, it's important not to speak so negatively about the child to the parent that you make the kid sound like an idiot. In some instances, I felt badly for the parents as professionals talked about the kid as if they were slow, or stupid or amazingly abnormal. This is still someone's kid and although as the professional what you say may be the truth, it's still rather crass and insensitive to speak so poorly about the child. Every child has SOME thing they do well and at some point it's beneficial to reflect on what the child does well. Parents are an integral part of these meetings and without their cooperation and support some of these kids won't progress.

On that same note, it's important for parents to consider that professionals have appointments to make and their world does not revolve around you. Be sure to confirm the time of your appointment if you plan to attend and then, actually BE THERE at that time. If you will be late CALL THE SCHOOL and inform someone that you will be late. It's frustrating for people to sit twiddling their thumbs waiting for parents to attend the meetings because everyone has paperwork to complete, other meetings to attend and kids to see. So much time could be saved if people would communicate their whereabouts and intentions.

FAQs--OT books

2010-12-06T17:19:00.002-06:00

So, I received a question (a really long time ago, haha) asking for suggestions on good books on occupational therapy.

Shamefully, because I'm always studying textbooks I only have two suggestions on leisure reading:

1. Treebarking by Nesta Rovina. I read this book sometime ago but it is basically a compilation of an occupational therapists experiences. I found this book incredibly interesting and I highly recommend it. It was one of the first books I could find on occupational therapy so I picked it up and read it. I thought it was a great read. I couldn't put it down.
2. Look Up for Yes by Julia Tavalaro. This is another excellent read. Ms. Tavalaro suffered several strokes that left her unable to walk or move or do anything. Everyone thought her mind was mush when in fact she was very much cognitively aware of everything that was going on around her. She was treated terribly by medical staff and professionals (emphasis on TERRIBLE) until an occupational therapist, physical therapist and speech pathologist came along and helped her. I highly recommend this book.

I'm going on another one of my international trips soon (more on that as the time approaches) and I will have more time to read so I can recommend more books then. I've found very few books specifically on occupational therapy. Rather, many books are narratives on the experience of sickness, injury or some other setback. I think books of this nature are good to read because they provide insight into the medical profession and occupational therapy.

So, thank you, Sara, for asking that question and I hope others begin to read more books in this genre!

We started our Pediatric Fieldowrk!

2010-11-15T21:10:00.003-06:00

So, I'm on my pediatric fieldwork now and I LOVE IT!

I have an incredible supervisor! She is patient and answers each and every one of my 3 million questions thoroughly. She brings me resources and samples regularly and I'm reviewing and learning from all the material.

The kids have disabilities that range from cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, autism, ADD/ADHD, mild Sensory Processing Disorder, handwriting and developmental delays. What's interesting is that a lot of the time is spent on paperwork, at least more than I expected. My supervisor is very gracious because during that time she takes breaks from paperwork to answer my 3 million questions per day.

My supervisor is awesome about allowing me to experiment, play with, joke with and work with them. I love working with them! One of the kids said to me, "Hi, I'm Boy X. What's your name?" I told him my name is 'Ms. Kim' to which he promptly replied, "What grade are you in?" It took everything in me to keep from laughing. Because I'm 'novel and new' the kids love working me and none of them are shy.

I had the opportunity to sit in on an IEP (Individualized Education Program) meeting and it was incredibly interesting! I had to sign the IEP paperwork, as an OTS of course, because everyone present has to be acknowledged. A variety of professionals were present--the psychologist, special education teacher, classroom teacher, case manager, occupational therapist (of course), Speech Language Pathologist-- and the parents were there. I felt that some of the language was a little too technical for the parents and I made a mental note to always remember to speak simply and clearly and explain everything when talking to people who are not occupational therapists. What is simple and common knowledge to me may be technical mumbo-jumbo to someone not in the field.

A lot of our therapy takes place in odd locations due to lack of space, including the hallway, closets, the classroom, backrooms in the library and other super small areas. Each area is distracting and exceptionally visually or aurally stimulating. I don't know how the kids can concentrate, given their occupational needs, and I'm always amazed at the kids' ability to concentrate with so much 'business' going on.

I've noticed that performing standardized assessments can be a bit challenging because the kids don't have the attention span, patience or focus to complete the assessment. So, the evaluations that I've witnessed use creative tools and simple/clever games and tasks.

So far, I love working with small children. I'm still learning how to really analyze their grips, posture, sensory needs or aversions, speech, gross and fine motor skills and a host of other things. I'm really working on being more observant to their abilities and delays.

A Man without Arms and Legs

2010-11-15T20:54:00.003-06:00

The other thing that I did in honor of participating in something new every month was visit a talk by a man who was born without arms or legs! Yes, it's true. I went to a church with my classmate and we sat for 30 minutes and listened to Nick Vujicic tell us about Jesus Christ, the Gospel and living nearly 30 years without limbs.

He wrote a book that you can purchase from his website or from Amazon entitled Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life. When we go on break in December, I'm going to purchase this book. I really enjoyed listening to what Nick had to say and I'm looking forward to reading his book.

One of the most interesting things was his wheelchair. He drives it with his 'flippers,' as he calls his feet, and he was very adept at maneuvering through the aisles. Nick was born with a rare disease called Tetra-amelia. From an occupational therapy point of view, he talks as if his daily occupations and functions have not been affected. I can neither confirm nor deny this as I have not evaluated him, obviously, and I choose not to place my own limiting beliefs on him. According to him, he's done tons of things--played golf, surfing, scuba diving, tons of things. You can view pics of all these activities here. And, of course, you can always Google him. Google knows everything...

You can find more information about Nick and his book by clicking here--Lifewithoutlimbs.org.

Sculpture Tour

2010-11-15T20:19:00.010-06:00

'Phoenix'...a really beautiful piece. It actually looks like a Phoenix.

'Bodark Arc.' Of course, while we were on the tour we didn't get this view. The staff part of the bow is a row of orange trees. The string part of the bow is a beaten down path that turns into a bridge that crosses parts of the pond. The view from one end the tree grove to the other is absolutely incredible! I REALLY wish I had my camera that day.

The 'House Divided' sculpture. This pic shows the 3 entrances, all of which lead to the same area since 1/2 of this structure is cut off by the diagonal wall. If you look closely you can see part of the wall.

'Yes! for Lady Day.' This is an interactive sculpture that moves and 'sings.'

So you know I'm committed to trying something new every month. I didn't post what I did in October so here it is! First, I went on an art tour. I don't know if I every mentioned this but my school has the largest outdoor sculpture park in the United States--Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park. Interesting, huh? Well, the last tour was in mid-October, it was free, so I went. I was the youngest person there, which was great. I invited my entire occupational therapy class but no one came :-(

Of course the tour group made all kinds of humorous comments about my youth because the tour was loooong--a little over two hours on foot and we didn't even see everything! I met a gentlemen who was 83 years old! He and I talked the entire time. He was incredibly talkative, open and friendly. I like talking to seniors because they always have something interesting to say.

Anyway, the tour gave me a new appreciation for sculpture and other art forms and I will definitely attend another tour. I wish I had taken pictures because the fall backdrop was absolutely GORGEOUS. The tour guide was excellent and gave an excellent review of each piece of art.

The most interesting part of the tour was the 'House Divided' piece which was a large white building, similar in shape to a barn. You could actually walk inside this piece. As the website describes, "When we step inside we are surprised to find the structure has, in fact, been divided in half, diagonally. Three entries to the outside create an uncomfortable space with no corners. Fully half of the structure has been rendered useless." The artist does not offer an explanation of the piece but rather leaves the interpretation to the viewer.

Our tour guide stated that someone once suggested that since the piece illustrates a complete waste of space with a diagonal wall with no doors to the other side, is titled House Divided, gives reference to Abraham Lincoln and is in Illinois, then one possible meaning could be the incredible amount of talent and skill wasted and lost by slaves who were never allowed to reach their full potential and contribute to society.

Their was an eerie silence as that statement sunk in and of course everyone turned and looked at me since I was the only brown skinned person on the tour. But walking into that piece and feeling and seeing how the space is completely useless and wasted by that diagonal wall really stuck with me.

I really enjoyed the tour. I wish more of my classmates would have experienced it with me.

Did you vote today?

2010-11-02T22:43:00.007-05:00

DID YOU VOTE TODAY?

The answer HAD BETTER be YES! I got up nice and early this morning to vote. Well, it wasn't quite so nice since it was still DARK outside. It was waaaay before the crack of dawn, the sun was still sleeping. But I performed my American privilege and voted. For me, voting is a pretty serious matter and I do whatever is necessary to get to the polls.

No offense to any American white males out there who may be reading this but I must say this: If you are a minority or a woman and you did not vote you deserve a SPANKING and you should be sorely ASHAMED of yourself. A lot of people busted a lot of sweat and tears for this PRIVILEGE and RESPONSIBILITY and I believe it's disrespectful not to vote. So, you had better have a pretty darn good explanation for not going.

While at the polls and talking to the people checking my paperwork I got a little teary-eyed thinking about the privilege of voting. I'm serious, I was really holding back some tears. I thought about my grandparents who didn't have this privilege when they turned 18, how proud they must have felt the first time they voted and how, amazingly, 75 years ago I would have been spat upon for coming within 15 feet of a polling place.

Voting is simple yet powerful act.

It made me happy and proud to be able to say I voted today.

Random pics from the Girls' Home

2010-10-25T20:17:00.009-05:00

I found these pics when going through my iPhoto. I forgot to post them from the summer!

A random pic of me before going to work at an occupational therapy information session.

We went to a 'carnival' with the girls. They did face and arm painting and made me a Dora balloon. Hola!

The girls did my nails...and Amy's nails...

We played a game on managing your emotions. We all sat in a circle with a tub of candy in the middle. Each person took a turn rolling a pair of dice. If you scored doubles you got to choose a candy. Once all the candy was gone we each rolled again; if you scored doubles you got to choose someone else's candy. At the end of the game we talked about how it felt to score doubles and choose candy from the tub, to choose from someone else and to have candy taken from you from someone else.

We played another game where we pretended everyone was on a cruise. We had them make and decorate hats. Before the activity we created 'keys.' During the activity each person received a key and went around asking others to exchange their key. The keys with the hearts have 'HIV.' At the end we asked who had the heart keys.

Switches & Circuits

2010-10-25T19:46:00.008-05:00

(this is the switch using the mercury filament. See the pencil gripper in my left hand? Inside is the mercury filled chamber--we glued it in the gripper so it won't fall out. I'm holding it upside down, and as a result, the light is off).

(We joked that he was a Chilean miner. He actually is from Chile! And with the flashlight clipped to his hat, well, you know...)

(sometimes it was a little frustrating and the switch wouldn't work)

(an open circuit. When I close the circuit by connecting the two sides of the business card the flashlight will light up.)

(my completed switch! Eureka! It works!)

We made switches last week. In layman's terms, a switch is an electrical circuit that turns something on or off. Occupational therapists use switches to make adaptive equipment/assistive technology. As an example, we made two switches. The first switch was for a flashlight. We taped metal strips to a business card to conduct electricity and complete the circuit (for more info on circuits click here). This type of switch would be useful for someone who doesn't have the ability to push the knob on the flashlight to turn it on. With this switch, they would only have to close the business card, this requires less energy and finger movement.

The second switch we made used mercury to close the circuit. Instead of connecting two ends, with this switch you hold the tip upright or upside down. I don't know all the terminology but basically we had a glass chamber with mercury touching something that was like a metal filament. When held upright, the mercury touched the filament and closed the circuit; when held upside down the mercury did not touch the filament and opened the circuit.

A visit to an Alzheimer's facility

2010-10-25T19:31:00.003-05:00

We went to an Alzheimer's facility about a week and a half ago. This facility was awesome! It was just so cute. It was built so that everything is in a circle so that the residents will never get lost. They had a library, a bistro/cafe, an outdoor sitting area, a salon, a recreation room, a complete kitchen (with all stove/burners turned off), and 'neighborhoods'. The neighborhoods had their 'homes,' which were really cute little dorm rooms. The neighborhoods were marked with distinct names, pictures and colors so that the residents will recognize in which area they are in. The outdoor area was completely fenced in with 8-foot fences, but the area was so large that you didn't feel like you were fenced in. The outdoor area was in a circle as well so that the residents would not get lost.

The residents are free to move about the facility as they pleased, including going outside whenever they want. The purpose is to give them the freedom to roam so that they feel like they are not in a 'hotel' or some other foreign place; the facility wants them to feel like they are home. To help them remember their 'home' each resident had their picture outside the door and some had pictures of family and pictures of themselves when they were younger.

I had a conversation with a woman at the Bistro. She was drinking a hot chocolate and the convo went something like this:

Me: Hi, my name is Kim. What's your name?
Her: I'd like something to go with my coffee.
Me: Ok, I'll get you something to go with your coffee in just a moment. Do you have any children.
Her: I'd like something to go with my coffee.
Me: Ok, yes I can see that you need something with your coffee. Can you tell me the names of your children?
Her: Yes, I have three children. I'd like something to go with my coffee.
Me: Three children, that's awesome! Are you married
Her: Yes, I was married. He was very good to me.
Me: That's great. How long were you married?
Her: He was very good to me. I'd like something to go with my coffee.

And you get my drift. The conversation went on and on like this.

As the marketing coordinator was talking about the horrors of Alzheimer's disease I became overwhelmed and had to fight tears. I started thinking of my grandmother and all the pain she must have gone through. I had no idea Alzheimer's was so...debilitating. I knew it was bad, but not as bad as what the marketing coordinator explained. It made me angry and sad and remorseful. I went through a bunch of 'I should've done this and that and the other thing.'

My classmates could see that I was fighting back tears. It took everything in me to keep from getting up and running to the bathroom sobbing.

Assistive technology creations

2010-10-15T12:06:00.006-05:00

(sequencing flashcards. for more fun you can play a game with these)

(the pic above and below are of a universal cuff for scissors. Also, that nail polish is pretty darn cool! I gotta buy some!)

(This project allows someone to practice matching and placing utensils, a vocational skill).

(This project allows someone to practice signing their name on their checks. It gives visual cues that they have signed in the correct place.)

(sequencing flashcards--how to put on a shirt)

(sequencing flashcards-how to wash hands)

(this pic above and the one below are a sensory cube--notice the various textures on all sides)

(a communication/reading slant board for those with low tone/motor skills. This board holds communication books high and at a slant for communication)

(Since I'm such a high sensory seeker I loved these proprioception bags! The one on my lap was filled with rice and was nice and heavy! The one on my neck felt good too! Sorry I know I look crazy. My friend Amy had me cracking up laughing and I was trying to stifle it and my hair was all over the place!)

(a picture communication book)

(The Dynavox bag! I love this project! The cereal represents the Dynavox. Dynavox is an augmentative/alternative communication device)

(Door lever. Note that this is soooo much easier to open than the regular knob).

(Our project! You can't see it too well here but the blue cup has a wide-spaced handle so that Boy X can pick it up. We then glued it to the yellow plastic plate. The other cup is a heavy duty plastic cup with a 10-inch straw and placed into a plastic storage container with the bottom cut out)

Two weeks ago we went to an organization that provides special education for those with special needs in their school district. The students were all severely disabled with a range of disabilities, including those that are blind, have cerebral palsy, mental impairments and autism.

As part of our Assistive Technology class we had to talk with the teacher, and, if possible, some of the students and determine what low-tech (aka low cost) assistive technology they may need. Assistive technology is basically any device or tool that is adapted for use for people with disabilities. As an example, many of the things we use today were originally invented for people with disabilities. The 'lever' door handle that is so ubiquitous now used to be very expensive because it was for people with disabilities. But now we realize that senior and children find this type of door handle easier than the round knob handle. The rubber grip pads that you use to provide friction to open doors were designed for people with disabilities to make that task easier. It used to be expensive but now you can find that at any Walgreens or CVS.

So, anyway, my group chose a 21 year old male with cerebral palsy. We saw his instructor holding a cup with a straw so he could have a drink of water. We found out that every time he wants to drink she has to hold the cup for him. With further inquiry we discovered that he has the capability to grasp a cup (he's very spastic/high tone) if the handle is wide enough. We asked if he would like a cup and she emphatically said he would love a cup!

So, we glued a plastic water bottle to a plastic plate (for a wider base of support in case his motor planning is poor and he drops it instead of placing it on a table/desk). We also cut a hole in a plastic container, glued a thick plastic strip around the cut out (for grip) and place rubber on the bottom of the container (for grip). We placed a loooong straw in it. Now he has two cups that are his from which he can drink on his own.

Some of the other class projects include:

picture sequencing books, for those who have trouble with the sequence of washing hands or brushing teeth
picture books for activities, for those who are non-verbal but can point to activities in which they want to participate
sensory cubes, for those who are learning to modulate tactile sensory input or who desire more tactile sensory input
proprioception bags (filled with rice or beans) for those who need proprioceptive input
a reading board, for those who are unable to hold a book but need a slanted board that will maintain the book's position
a Dynavox bag holder (I thought this was VERY creative). My classmates bought a regular bag from Wal-mart, dyed it purple (the girl's favorite color), put a purple pressure strap on it, then lined it with that plastic material that school folders are made from (for structure and stiffness) and then lined that with foam (for softness). So, now the girl can carry her verbal assistive tech devices with her in a cute little bag!

So, I thought this was a very interesting and creative project and I learned that it doesn't take lot of money to provide someone with the tools they need to be successful or comfortable. That's what occupational therapy is about!

(I have pics of everything, I'll post them when I get home).

Living Sensationally!

2010-10-12T20:27:00.003-05:00

Turns out I'm a Sensory Seeker! No surprise there, given the events of my life.

Last week we completed the Adult Sensory Profile assessment questionnaire by Winnie Dunn. This assessment asks questions on visual, auditory, touch, taste, activity level, and that's all I can think of off the top of my head. The test measures strong patterns of over- or under-responsiveness to stimuli in comparison to the population. Turns out I have a high affinity for taste and activity.

As a sensory seeker my neurological threshold for stimuli is high so I actively seek pleasurable stimuli in taste and activity. So true. I will eat any weird food (while living in Japan I ate the toxic Puffer fish and fish eyes and while in China I ate all kinds of strange things. I loved it!), I love going out to ethnic restaurants and trying to cook different foods. I also DO a lot. I love new experiences that take me out of my comfort zone and I love just trying something new, period. I just love it.

If you have the opportunity I encourage you to read Winnie Dunn's book, Living Sensationally. I'm reading it now (only a few pages a night, it's leisure reading. I'm a student for goodness sake! I have no time to read more :-). In a nutshell the book discusses that we each 'have a sensory profile that drives the way we structure our routine, choose our wardrobes, design our menus, and interact with co-workers, friends, and family members' (this description from from About.com). The four profiles examined are Sensory Avoider, Sensory Seeker (me!), Sensority Bystander and Sensory Sensor (or sensitive).

You can read the book to find out more. I think it is an EXCELLENT introduction to sensory topics.

We administered a standardized Pediatric test!

2010-10-12T20:12:00.003-05:00

As part of my occupational therapy assessment class we've been visiting a nearby school/development center. Today we had to perform a play assessment, a standardized assessment and an interview with the teacher on the child. Yikes! We worked in groups of 5 and we did very well, actually! And it was a LOT of fun! A lot! Does this mean I'm sold on peds???? I'm not sure yet. Everything is fun when you first try it! haha.

I was terrified at first, but then I realized, I'm great with kids and all kids love me because I'm fun! It's true, I'm not being facetious, I'm lots of fun!

Anyway, we administered the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency on a 4-year old boy (who was adorable, btw, seriously, just too cute!). We started off by playing Duck, Duck Goose, then we played catch with a large, soft nerf ball, then catch with a tennis ball, then we constructed an obstacle course (I had to model it for him, imagine my big self crawling through tunnels and laying on a scooter! haha), then we rolled him on a scooter, then rolled him on a scooter while he held a hula hoop and I pulled him (we made train noises), then we played Simon Says (you can learn a lot about cognition, proprioception, and motor skills from this game, wow!), then we sat down and drew lines, circles, X's and crosses (as I drew I made sure to make noises, like rolling my tongue, to make it more animated for him) and then we finally started the test.

The test is a lot longer than we anticipated, and because we were all new at it and had no time to prepare, it took ALL five of us to do it! LOL. We took turns with each module and we all helped set up to keep it moving so he wouldn't get bored. By the end he was definitely antsy and we tried to speed it up again. The BOT is very long and I don't know how any kid sits through it. We didn't do all the modules because our kid was technically too young (but we needed the practice) and we were short on time--we were, after all, interrupting his class time.

Afterward, we interviewed the teacher. This normally happens first but she had a class and we had to wait for her to finish. The interview went very well and we learned a lot about our kid, how he interacts and how to conduct an informative interview.

By the end, I was sweaty, dirty, and tired. But, I learned that I need this type of constant stimulation because, just like a kid, I get bored very easily. I am a Sensory Seeker (more about that at the next post) so I need constant stimulation. Working with kids may be for me. We'll see.

I think I was on MTV's Punk'd...

2010-10-12T19:51:00.005-05:00

(Just a random pic of me. Just thought I'd share :-)

So, we went back to the community center to speak with the seniors again. My original group of ladies was not there (yes, I was very sad) so I sat with a new group. This group of three was interesting because of two people: one gentlemen, who completely dominated the conversation, even at inappropriate times, and a woman who suffered from terrible episodic memories.

The gentlemen, Mr. Doe, talked about himself incessantly. He talked about his travels to one European country while he was in the army and he talked about the jobs he held after that. He talked, and talked and talked. When I tried to incorporate Ms. Doe (they are not married, just friends from the community center) into the conversation with openers like, 'Mrs. Doe, how are you?' 'Do you have any children?' and 'Tell me more about your children' Mr. Doe would interrupt with something totally unrelated but about himself. He had an amazing narcissistic quality.

When I asked Ms. Doe if she had any children she told me that she had a certain number of children living and one that died when he was very young. She then immediately began to describe how the child died! And she went through the entire day, from how she woke up and got dressed (all the details of that), to how the child didn't want to go to school that day (all those details including how she gave him a tap on the romp), to going to work to how, when and in what manner how child died. I was stunned because I asked a simple question and she gave me a lot! It was very sad. It was also very interesting that that is what she decided to tell me (an excellent example of episodic memory). When I asked about her living children she gave me another very sad story about the problems of her children.

Intermittently Mr. Doe interrupted every single one of Ms. Doe's sad stories to tell me a story of something totally unrelated--like a war, his war travels, his jobs, etc. This was narcissism at its best. A woman is telling me how her child died and he interrupts her to tell me about country X and the women there and how they loved Americans.

At one point Ms. Doe was so tired of Mr. Doe interrupting that I saw her physically take a HUGE breath, roll her eyes and sigh. She was clearly very frustrated. When Mr. Doe was distracted with another classmate I said, 'Wow, Mr. Doe has a lot to say, huh?' And she went on and on about him (I laughed inside at this). After I listened to her stories for a little while and Mr. Doe couldn't stop interrupting, Ms. Doe just got up and left. It was being on the Twilight Zone or a bad episode of MTV's Punk'd.

What sucks about growing old...

2010-10-04T22:55:00.006-05:00

Today we went to a senior community site to visit and talk with seniors as part of the late adulthood portion of our Human Dev course. We were supposed to observe their social, emotional, cognitive and physical abilities/disabilities and see if what we observed complemented or confirmed what we learned from our readings. IT WAS SO INTERESTING!

I happened to choose a table with the liveliest seniors EVER. The moment I sat down one of the women said to me, 'You know, Ms. Doe over here is telling us about her online dating.' Ms. Doe is 81 years old! Haha!

There were four women at my table, ranging from 58 to 81 and they had the best stories. I can't repeat what was said but some of the topics were:

abusive husbands
decent husbands
raising children
how breastfeeding makes your breasts sag
how old breasts are like eggplants and torpedoes (no kidding, they said this)
how breast minimizers push your breasts under your armpits
the cup size of each woman at the table (these were some large women!)
how one woman heard a joke about a 69 and went home to ask her sons what that meant (haha)
the secret to a happy, long marriage
what sucks about growing old
my personal dating life
how growing old can be lonely...and boring
how growing old can be physically painful
how when you're young everything is tight and compact
how I don't look my age
how online dating sucks
why you shouldn't marry for looks unless you want a deadbeat, an abuser or a womanizer for a husband
why a prenup is good...for a short time, and when you really trust one another it should be destroyed

and a host of other things that I can't remember right now. I had a lovely time and these women were so open, they just talked about EVERYTHING.

Systems Theory and Energy

2010-10-04T22:43:00.004-05:00

(the instructor didn't know our names so we had to create nametags)

Last week for my Interdisciplinary class we had a guest instructor. If you remember this is the class I told you about that uses the quantum physics textbook. Anyway, this instructor basically taught us about energy and how everyone and everything, including the earth, emits a certain energy wave that other living things pick up on.

She explained how, for example, if scientists all over the world are working to crack open some super hard code in health science, and finally somone in Japan figures it out then immediately someone in America will find a similar solution. The proposal is that the Japanese scientists emitted that energy out into the universe and the American scientists were open to it and picked up on it.

I suggested that this sounds something like the premise of Malcolm Gladwell's (one of my favorite authors! You have to read his books. all non-fiction) book, Blink. In this book, Gladwell discusses how mental processes work rapidly and automatically from relatively little information. It considers both the strengths of the adaptive unconscious, for example in expert judgement and its pitfalls such as stereotypes. (source: Wikipedia) In a nutshell, why is that when we meet someone we just don't like them. We can't explain what it is about them but we know that something is not right and they are not a good person. Or, how we just know a certain situation is just not right, we can't explain it but we know something about it is not right.

Our guest instructor proposed that what Gladwell is actually talking about is the energy that people emit. Of course, Gladwell didn't use those words or even suggest such a thing but that was her interpretation.

Finally, we performed an 'energy exercise' where we wrote down something we want in the next 6 months. We then had to write down 5 things we would experience from that want; she was careful to explain that it had to be experiences not emotions. For example, I chose that I wanted to go to Chile. My experiences were something like see occupational therapy there from my classmate's old job, relax and read on the beach, see the natural sights, and some other stuff I don't remember. But I could not say because it will make me feel good because that is an emotion.

We were then instructed to sit quietly with feet flat on the floor and close our eyes. We performed some deep breathing exercises. We then had to imagine a large pink bubble coming closer to us. The bubble had a door, in which we opened and placed our want. Then we shut the door and sent the bubble off. The instructor's instructions were 'don't think about it, just let it go. It will happen. '

The class was incredibly interesting, even though I disagreed with a lot of what she said. Even still, I'm interested in hearing more about it.

I saw cancer and, yes, it was ugly

2010-09-27T22:49:00.003-05:00

Did I ever tell you I saw cancer?

This is not a joke. Over the summer I decided to pay the incoming occupational therapy class a visit to their anatomy class. As they were poking through their cadavers someone asked me if I wanted to see what cancer looked like. Me being me, of course I said yes!

I saw pancreatic cancer. I wasn't prepared for my emotional reactions--sadness and anger. I don't know what I was expecting cancer to look like but it didn't look like what I expected. His pancreas was covered in these white blobs. The cancer had spread to to parts of his liver and colon. The gentleman who died from it was 45 years old, so young! I felt angry that he died so young and sad that he died so young.

All I could think was, "Wow, cancer is a BEAST." I can't imagine the pain that man must have been in...that cancer was everywhere. I wondered about his family and what kind of life he lived before he died.

My classmate told me that she drives by a billboard of a young girl, in her early twenties, with a caption that reads, 'CANCER, YOU'LL QUIT BEFORE I DO.'

Well stated.

Treating a patient with Breast Cancer

2010-09-27T20:37:00.009-05:00

(this daring photo came from this blog -- Musing of a Home Engineer. I know it's racy but I think it's important for people to see images like this so they can not only know the impact of breast cancer but FEEL it. I encourage you to read the post on the blog.

I also encourage you to view my favorite, most inspiring mastectomy photo by clicking here. All I can say is "Wow.")

In Human Dev class we had a case of a woman just referred to occupational therapy from her doctor due to a radical mastectomy (complete breast removal and some muscle, skin and other tissue) as a result of breast cancer. To illustrate how we project our ideas on our clients we had to name her based on our interpretation of the situation. I named her ADORING MOTHER because in the profile she stated that she just wanted to be able to take care of her children and her home. I thought that was interesting because here she is, with breast cancer, recently from surgery, and one of her most pressing concerns is an IADL--taking care of those around her. Wow.

The conversation then went on to describe the things we'd like to know to start our first treatment session, such as

how is she dealing with her illness
which occupations are most important to her and why
how does she see her future
does she have hope or does she feel hopeless
does she understand lymphedema and other possible effects of breast cancer and mastectomy
how is her social support
does she understand her current limitations (no lifting her children, heavy things, etc. for awhile)
what theoretical approach and assessment tools will we as occupational therapists use to treat her and why
what questions do we, as occupational therapists, have about breast cancer, mastectomies, the psychosocial effects, normal cognitive and developmental changes in a woman of her age (40s)
where will we find the answers to our questions--what books and other resources
many other things I'm too tired to write right now.

The class was really interesting and I thoroughly enjoyed the discussion.

Different perspectives contribute to the whole picture

2010-09-24T15:27:00.007-05:00

(A few of the many sculptures on campus and one of the lakes. I recently discovered that our campus has the largest sculpture park the U.S. Interesting, isn't it? I thought so, as well, which is why I am going to take a tour of the park in October.)

So, remember the quantum physics book I told you about a few posts ago? Well, I have a class that uses that book as a textbook; we meet once per week. This past week the instructors divided us into groups and sent each group to a different area of the campus (we got to go outside, I was soooo excited!!! It was like recess!).

Each member had to write down what they could see, hear, smell and feel. Then, each member had to focus on a different sensation or emotion: some focused on only the sounds they heard, some focused on what was in their immediate vision and then what was in the distance, some focused on things that were only as small as an ant, and others focused on one particular object and how it made them feel.

When we returned to the classroom each group had to collaborate on their particular focus area. I thought each person, saw, heard, smelled and felt things that other people did not even notice. For example, two people in one particular group both noticed the same statue in their area but only noticed a lamppost in front of it and the other only noticed a description post.

The purpose of the project, of course, was to illustrate that in groups people have different perspectives. Each person's perspective is important and each contributes to the whole picture. Also, it's very important to listen. The people who were instructed to only write down what they heard, heard things that the rest of us did not even notice. So, listening is an integral part of stellar teams.

What is occupational therapy?

2010-09-24T15:17:00.004-05:00

Occupational Therapy--Skills for the Job of Living:

You'd like to brush your hair if you could only raise your arm if you could just move the muscles so you could get out of bed so you could walk to the mirror like you used to everyday without even thinking about it before you had the stroke.

After a stroke, major surgery or other illness, it can be a long road back. Occupational therapy can make the journey shorter and help to ease the frustration most people feel when they can't do things for themselves. Occupational therapy not only shortens recovery time, it helps people to become more self-sufficient by teaching them new ways to perform job and life tasks despite their physical disabilities. Things like making breakfast, brushing their hair, driving a car and earning a living. Along the way, they gain the confidence to get on with their lives.

--AOTA

(I wish I could say these are my words but this is an AOTA framed photo in one of the classrooms in my school. I love it so much that I thought I'd share it with you)

OTCAS.ORG

2010-09-23T20:30:00.005-05:00

The occupational therapy profession is changing the way students apply to schools. It used to be that you would choose a school and apply on the school's website. Now there is a new online system for students, otcas.org. It's basically a centralized application website for occupational therapy students. You pay a a fee the web service sends your application to your schools of choice. You still have to send in some paper requirements, such as transcripts, but the site is flexible enough where even your letters of recommendation can be submitted online.

This makes me a little sad, it's like losing something...it just seems like some of the personality of the application process is lost in this. But I think I feel this way partly because I applied through a paper system and it's familiar to me. Everything is going electronic now, right? So, I guess occupational therapy has to get on the bandwagon. I also feel a little sad about all the changes because I just found out that my school no longer has a part-time option for occupational therapy students. I think this limits a lot of people who are second career like me. Thankfully, I am able to live on my scholarships and student loans so I didn't have to go part-time but many others don't have this option. So, with every change is a benefit and a loss.

I In a few years I'll probably be happy about this...

Quantum theory, chaos and occupational therapy

2010-09-21T23:02:00.005-05:00

I have an Interdisciplinary Team Process class that basically focuses on how to effectively work in teams. We do a lot of creative things in this class.

One of the subjects we are covering is 'chaos.' We're reading a book by Margaret Wheatley that discusses how chaos can be effective in organizations. This is also known as systems theory or chaos theory. The premise is that flow of information and the formation of relationships beyond hierarchical lines opens the door for organizations to self-organize and become productive, creative, adaptive and effective. She basically says that leaders control an organization when instead they should allow organizations to be more chaotic to accomplish their goals. Interestingly, she uses quantum physics (yes, that is not a typo) to explain this.

So, last week our instructors gave us a blank sheet of paper, representing chaos, and told us to do something with it. Some groups crumpled the paper and threw it in the trash, some groups made a bowtie, some made an airplane, a few of us made those fortune telling thingies and others left the paper blank. We then had to describe why we did what we did and if we all agreed to do it (and if not, why not) and how we came to the conclusion to do what we did.

It was interesting.

Problem Based Learning

2010-09-21T22:50:00.002-05:00

We are now in the applied section of our occupational therapy education at my school. So, over the last week we have been experiencing 'problem-based learning' (PBL) activities. Problem based learning is basically where students collaborate to solve real world occupation therapy problems. Every class period we get a bit more information about the case, in the form of doctor's notes, social worker's notes, or psychiatrists notes, just as if we were real occupational therapists. One of the most interesting things is that students do EVERYTHING. The instructors are only facilitators. So, they don't really say much. We, the students, sit in our groups, review the 'problem,' and direct our own learning process. The instructors jump in every now and again to guide our learning but that has generally been the extent of it.

I actually like this process, although it is a little frustrating because I am still new at this and need a bit more guidance. Our case has been a gentlemen named Tom, a 28 y.o. Caucasian male who has AIDS. Tom has been admitted due to complications of pneumonia and lymphadenopathy. He also shows signs of depression, isolation and loneliness.

What's interesting is that this PBL scenario is part of our Human Development course. So, one of the challenges is to determine how this disease, and his reaction to it, is affecting normal early adulthood development. This includes normal physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development. It's very interesting.

Cultural experience - Mexican Museum of Art

2010-09-21T22:17:00.018-05:00

An ofrenda displaying the elements of earth, fire, wind and water.

These next few pics are pieces of art depicting life or events in Mexico at various times in history. The skeletons are made of paper mache!! Impressive!

The gentleman who made this ofrenda dedicated it to both his Mexican and Chinese heritage. This is only a portion of it, as it was too large to fit in the picture, but it was beautiful.

Another ofrenda displaying the elements of earth, fire, wind and water.

This is art made of sand. Isn't it beautiful???

These days one of my goals is to really focus on occupation and culture. I'm always trying something new anyways, but now I want to take it up a notch. I'd like to put myself out of my element and get a little uncomfortable at least once a month. And being out of my element does not mean I have to be uncomfortable but it does mean that I have to learn or experience something new and different.

So, on the 11th I went to the Museum of Mexican Art with one of the organizations for which I volunteer at school. I LOVED it. The art was BEAUTIFUL. We took a tour as a group and I learned quite a bit. One of the main things I learned was all about an 'ofrenda.' The closest English equivalent to an ofrenda is what we would call an 'altar,' except ofrendas are not for worshiping. Instead, ofrendas are an offering to a deceased relative as they make their way back to Earth to visit.

Living relatives decorate (is the word decorate appropriate??) the ofrenda with the favorite food and items of the deceased person as a way to honor and please them on their visit back. Of course, the deceased does not eat the food or play with the items on the ofrenda, instead they enjoy the aroma of the food and the sight of the items they used enjoy while they were alive. I learned that an ofrenda is supposed to display elements of the earth, water, fire and wind. And finally, I learned that there a lot of Chinese in Mexico, due to the Chinese participating in the building of the railroads.

Afterward, we all sat around and ate Brazilian pizza, which was delicious! I've been to Brazil and I loved the food but I never had Brazilian pizza. Overall, I really enjoyed myself!

I AM NOT MY HAIR

2010-09-09T22:14:00.005-05:00

If you had to choose a song to describe you and/or your culture, which would you choose?

This was an assignment for our human development class today. We had to choose a song (and write the lyrics) to describe us, our culture, or are cohort. During class we used youtube or a CD to play the song while the class read along. Then we described how/why the song described us. It was so interesting. I learned so much about my classmates. We shed tears, we laughed and we were mesmerized.

Below are my song and my "Who Am I" statement. It's super looong....but all my posts are long so you should be used to it by now! I've included the video I played in class as well. I really hope you enjoy the video, the lyrics and what it means to me.
************************
India.Arie featuring Akon - "I Am Not My Hair"

Lyrics:

[Akon]
See I can kinda recall
Little ways back small tryin' to bawl
Always been black and my hair I tried it all
I even went flat, had a gumdee curly top and all the crap, now
Tryin' to be appreciated
Nappy headed brothers never had no ladies
Then I hit by the barber shop real quick
Had em give me little twist and it drove them crazy
And then I couldn't get no job
No corporate wouldn't hire no dreadlocks
Then I thought about my dogs on the block
Kinda understand why they chose a stealin' rock
Was it the hair that got me this far? (uh-huh)
All these girls these cribs these cars (uh-huh)
Hate to say it but it seem so flawed
Cause success didn't come 'till i cut it all off (uh-huh)

[India Arie]
Little girl with the press and curl
Age eight I got a Jheri curl
Thirteen then I got a relaxer
I was a source of so much laughter
Fifteen when it all broke off
Eighteen and then I went all natural
February two thousand and two I
Went and did what I had to do
Cause it was time to change my life
To become the women that I am inside
Ninety-seven dreadlocks all gone
Looked in the mirror for the first time and saw that
Hey...

[Chorus]
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your ex-pec-tations no no
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am a soul that lives within

[India Arie]
Good hair means curls and waves
Bad hair means you look like a slave
At the turn of the century
It's time for us to redefine who we be
You can shave it off like a South African beauty
Or get in on lock like Bob Marley
You can rock it straight like Oprah Winfrey
If its not what's on your head
It's what's underneath and say
Hey....

[Chorus]

[India Arie]
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better friend? nooo...
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair determine my integrity?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
I am expressing my creativity...

[India Arie]
Breast cancer and chemotherapy
Took away her crown and glory
She promised God if she was to survive
She would enjoy everyday of her life ooh...
On national television
Her diamond eyes are sparkling
Bald headed like a full moon shining
Singing out to the whole wide world like
Hey...

[Chorus]

"WHO AM I"

I love my hair.

I can wear it short, long, straight, wavy, in bantu-knots, curly, as an afro, in a ponytail, in cornrows, in braids, in a braided ponytail, in afro puffs, in a ponytail afro puff, under a wig, fingercoils, in extensions, in plaits, in extension plaits, twist-outs, braid-outs, flat twist-outs, bantu-knot twist out, bantu-knot braid-out, teeny weeny afro, chunky afro, chunky twist-out, curly afro…and that’s not even the end of the list!

I love all the creative styles in which I can wear it. I love using my hair as an expression of my feelings. I love washing my hair, styling my hair and learning my hair’s (sometimes fickle) personality.

My hair is an extension of me, but it is not me. I recently cut off my long tresses in an attempt to rid my hair, and my body, of the chemical relaxers used to straighten my hair for most of my life. I want to wear my natural, afro-textured hair. I enjoy the flexibility of it, but mostly, I love creative, funky hair.

I love this song, I Am Not My Hair, by India.Arie. I’m very attuned to hair and the power it has over us, especially as I watch my aunt battle breast cancer. In a way, the lyrics to this song represent my ‘coming of age’ story about my hair. It describes perfectly the decades-long internal and external battle I went through before deciding to eliminate relaxers from my life. This song describes the judgments and perceptions attached to natural black hair. It reveals the positive and negative reactions of others, the personal experiences that accompany wearing various natural hairstyles, and the overall importance prescribed to hair, particularly for women.

But ultimately, with straight hair, curly-afro hair or no hair, I am always me.

I am not my hair.

I am not this skin.

I am always the soul that lives within.

My Dad was in the hospital!!!

2010-09-09T21:53:00.003-05:00

Ok, so I need a SPANKING!!!! or as my Granny would say -- a WHIPPING!!!!

Today my Dad had to go to the emergency room because his blood pressure was over 220! Yes, 220!!! Earlier today, he was at my sister's house and complained of dizziness. My sis is a nurse so she took his blood pressure. When it popped in at over 220 they called the ambulance and rushed him to the hospital.

Turns out he had not taken his blood pressure medication in 3 days and his body was not reacting too kindly to that. He said he hadn't had time to go to Walgreen's to get it.

Not good enough, dad. You can do better.

So, first, I chewed him out for not calling one of us to help him get his medication. Then I chewed him out because he didn't tell me he was in the hospital, I just so happened to call him and heard all the beeping noises! "Well, I didn't want to worry you guys.." DAD!!!!!!

Then I had to slap myself on the wrist because Dad said, "Well, I get it now. The nurse explained to me the consequences of high blood pressure."

I'm sorry, back up. WHAT? I'm an OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY student! My sister is a nurse. My other sister is in school studying nursing. How the heck does this happen??!!! Shame on us for not educating Dad more on the dangers of high pressure. Dad's bp is high because of his weight. Period. The docs always say he's in good health, he just need to drop some weight.

It's shameful that his own children have not taken the time to explain what blood pressure is and its terrible effects on the body. I'm so ashamed of myself! Really! And I'm ashamed to be admitting this on the Internet.

Remember when I wrote the post on health literacy last year??? This is a perfect example of why health literacy is so important. One of us should have explained to Dad that he needs to take his medication EVERY DAY, no excuses, and, better yet, lose weight and lose the necessity to take medication.

The other side of the coin is that family often will not listen to you because you're "little such-and-such." They still see you in diapers and goofy glasses saying 'ga ga goo goo" instead of as the knowledgeable health professional you truly are. We've talked with our Dad about his health and he always says he's gonna be better but he never follows our instructions. We have to stay on him and make sure he loses weight and takes his meds. My dad is barely 60!!!! He's active, he's lucid, he's awesome. I would be heartbroken if he passed on suddenly. HEARTBROKEN.

So, please learn a lesson from this. Talk to your family about their health and make sure they understand why it's important to follow the doctor's directions and/or take preventative measures.

Going to the emergency room is NOT fun. And I'd hate to one day get the OTHER phone call...particularly for something that is avoidable.

Dad's wallet was stolen

2010-09-09T21:42:00.005-05:00

So, dad is one of those men that has a big, bulky wallet with receipts and papers hanging out of it. This is a conversation we had earlier today as I was reaching for his wallet to get his medical card.

Me: Wow, dad you got a new wallet?

Dad: Yeah, someone stole my other one. They stole it from my car right in front of the house!

Me: Why did you leave it in your car?

Dad: I always leave it in my car because I take it out my pocket so that I'm not sitting lopsided. And you wanna know what the crazy part is??

(dramatic pause)

They stole it from my car again a week later.

Me: But, isn't it crazier that you left your wallet in your car a second time after someone stole it the FIRST time?

Dad cracks me up sometimes. He's so trusting. But don't worry, he never leaves any cash in his wallet and the cards never work anyway. He's silly!

I WON A PRESTIGIOUS SCHOLARSHIP!

2010-09-07T19:22:00.003-05:00

I won a very prestigious award last week! It's called the E.K. Wise Scholarship and it's supported by AOTA. I applied for it a few months ago and I actually got it!!!! I am soooo excited. Only three occupational therapy students nationwide were selected.

The director of my department sent me a congratulatory note and cc'd all of the occupational therapy faculty. I'll be interviewed by the College of Health and Human Services here at my school and have my photo and the interview published in the newsletter. As my director pointed out, this is a very prestigious (I feel like I keep saying 'prestigious') award for both myself AND the school.

So, wow, I just put the school on the map. ;-)

I feel pretty darn good about this!

GARY KIELHOFNER DIED!

2010-09-07T19:07:00.005-05:00

(This is a random picture I pulled from Google because I didn't want to take a picture from UIC or AOTA. So, AOTA or UIC if you're reading this, I did not infringe upon your sites. Please don't punish me :-)

Dr. Gary Kielhofner died last week.

I forgot to mention this, I apologize. Dr. Kielhofner is an integral part of occupational therapy because he created a well-known, widely used model--The Model of Human Occupation, otherwise known as MOHO. This model actually was the result of Dr. Kielhofner's thesis. How amazing is that?! In a nutshell, the model explains how patterns in occupation are formed, hwo the environment influences occupation and how people are motivated to perform occupations. Anyone can use this model (not just those with disabilities) and it can be used throughout the lifespan. (for a direct link to Kielhofner's MOHO site, click here.) I personally find the model very interesting and have an upcoming project to study it further for my human development course.

Interestingly, one of our textbooks was authored by Kielhofner. We had an occupational therapist and student of his who worked closely with him come to our class to give a lecture on MOHO. He was also the head of the Dept of Occupational Therapy at the University of Illinois-Chicago campus, which is about a 10 minute drive from my house! One of my instructors informed us of his illness last week; she bought a card and we all signed it. Unfortunately, we signed it on a Tuesday and I believe he died the next day.

It's very unfortunate.

Keep quiet, listen, and just let them talk.

2010-09-06T19:43:00.003-05:00

I'm always looking for ways to improve certain behaviors. One thing I'm really working on these days is truly listening to what people say...and what they don't say. I want to notice their body language, facial expressions, and intonations and interpret what they are truly saying. Instead of reacting to something I find disagreeable I want to listen and ask questions as to why a person believes what they believe.

So, the story--I am 31 years old. As my mechanic was fixing my car he commented on how surprised he was to find out I am 31 as he thought I was in my 20s. He then went on to comment that I should be working on having kids now because if I don't I'll be a 40 year old mother (I'll be a 40-year old mother whether I have kids now or not because you're ALWAYS a mother, but that's another conversation). Time is running out, he argued, and I'd better hop to it.

I was annoyed.

I started to argue with a him a bit about how waiting has afforded me opportunities and experiences that younger mothers can't experience. And then it hit me--'why am I arguing with him?' Everyone always wants to give you unsolicited advice on how to live YOUR life. So, I decided to just listen to what he was saying and let him think he was teaching me something.

And so I listened.

He didn't ask why am unmarried or if I am going to marry soon. He didn't ask if I am dating or what my plans are for a family. He didn't ask if I was even interested in having a family, he assumed that's something I would want. He didn't ask about my experiences or where I've been or what I've seen in the world. He didn't try to find out about ME, which I found alarming; he only made assumptions about who he thinks I am. Clearly something was going on in his life where he felt the need to give me advice based on his LIMITED perspective. His current situation is not favorable. I won't tell you everything that is going on with him but I will say that he is 38 years old and lives with his mother. He's always giving me advice on something of which I am more of the expert. And yesterday I just decided to let him talk.

When I'm an occupational therapist I don't want to talk AT people like this gentlemen did without getting all the information first. He knows nothing about me. He put me into his little box and I could only be what his box dictates. I never want to treat my clients like this. Ever. It doesn't individualize people or take their perspective and life experiences into account.

And so I think I'm going to work on listening more. It's interesting what people tell you when you just shut your mouth and really listen to what they are saying. I'd better get used to it because there will be a lot of clients that feel the need to 'teach' me or think they know more than me.

I'm learning to keep quiet, listen, and just let them talk.

School started on Monday!

2010-09-02T00:03:00.004-05:00

Btw, school started on Monday! We're FINALLY getting to the meat and potatoes of the curriculum. I'm learning more hands-on occupational therapy! It's amazing. I love it!

Tomorrow we meet with children and 'document' them. This is exciting because this term fieldwork is in....drum roll please...PEDS (peds is short for pediatrics). Yeah! So, I'll be learning a lot about human development and kids.

One thing that I REALLY appreciate about my university is that we have FIVE fieldwork experiences. We have three Level I experiences--mental health, behavioral health and physical dysfunction--and two Level II's. Only ONE Level I is required by AOTA and, because it's currently midnight, I can't remember how many Level II's are required. lol. I'm tired.

Anyway, we receive a very rich fieldwork experience.

It's wonderful and fabulous, isn't it?

Good night!

Icebreaker game

2010-09-01T23:43:00.009-05:00

Here are some pics of a game we played with the girls at the Girl's Home while on fieldwork. This is a game we made up to keep the girls occupied and give them something to laugh about, despite their circumstances.

In this game, everyone sits around a table with a blank piece of paper and a marker or crayon. The leader yells 'Go!' and everyone starts drawing a picture. It can be any picture of their choosing--a house, a flower, a cross, food, a face, etc. After 10 seconds, the leader yells 'Switch' and everyone gives their paper to the person to their right (or left) who then adds to the drawing. After another 10 seconds you switch again and the third person adds to the drawing. This continues until the owner receives their drawing.

This is a fun game because when you receive your drawing it's interesting to see what the others in the group have added to it. Sometimes the pictures are drawn very well, sometimes they are silly and other times they are nonsensical. But it's great to talk and laugh about what others have added to the drawings.

Although we played this game with teens, I think this would be a great game to play with kids.The excitement doesn't last very long (one of the girls said 'ok, this is getting boring' after about 3 rounds), but it's a lot of fun while you're playing and it's a great icebreaker.

Grieving

2010-09-01T23:30:00.002-05:00

When my grandmother died last October my grandfather went through a serious depression. Emphasis on the word SERIOUS. My mother feared that he would not make it. His mental state was so weak that she had to commit him for fear he would commit suicide. He lamented that he was unable to go on without my grandmother. Some days I would call him and say, "Hey Grandad, how ya doing?" and he would answer in a voice that would break my heart, "I'm not doing so well today."

Have you ever heard someone speak to you in a tone that was totally unlike them, and as a result completely unfamiliar (and a little scary) to you? For months, this is how my grandfather sounded. He couldn't bear to be alone (remember he and my grandmother were married for over 50 years). It took a lot for me to talk to him and keep engaged.

I share this with you because as occupational therapists we have the opportunity to work with the families of our patients. Depending on the situation, the family may know that the patient will die soon. Or, perhaps the patient has suffered a recent injury and the injury resulted in a loss. The loss can be that the person is no longer able to participate in meaningful activities. The person, and perhaps their family, may experience the grieving process. They will grieve, and as the health care professional, you have to counsel them while providing health services. Sometimes this means listening, sometimes allowing them to cry, sometimes allowing them to feel angry or hurt. This encompasses many things. This is the human service side of occupational therapy and it's very important.

If you've ever suffered a loss think about all the wonderful things people said to you to help you feel better or get through that difficult time. Also, think of all the terrible things people said to you. If you know someone who suffered a loss think of all the wonderful and terrible things you may have said to them. It's important to channel those memories when dealing with clients during these times. I believe it makes us better health care professionals.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity in Occupational Therapy

2010-08-24T13:00:00.008-05:00

I read an interesting article today about attrition and racial and ethnic diversity. This article is in the Journal of Allied Health (which is a great resource, btw), vol 39, issue #2, pages 104-109 entitled Racial-Ethnic Diversity in Allied Health, the Continuing Challenge, author Fred Donini-Lenhoff.

The article discussed how "the racial-ethnic diversity of health professionals has not kept pace with demographic changes in the general population of the United States, with significant consequences for the health of minority populations and access to health care services."

Some interesting points:

"Student attrition in allied health educational programs is not a new problem"
"...attrition among students from underrepresented minorities remains high (most noticeably at for-profit institutions)"
" In addition, attrition is an issue throughout the community college environment, where many allied health programs are located, 'because many students are ill-prepared academically when they enter college and juggle classes with work and family obligations. Little is offered in the way of tutoring, counseling or financial aid.'"

I can attest to the truth of this statement, at least here in Chicago. I completed my pre-requisites at a few community colleges and the support and guidance are NON-EXISTENT. Were it not for my driven personality, the support of my family, my business background and the fact that I have an undergraduate degree I probably would have given up. I see how easy it may be for someone to give up on pursuing a career in allied health, or any profession for that matter.

"...variables associated with a lowered persistence rate (attrition) in completing an allied health education degree in the United States included

being under the age of 22,
having a mother with a college degree,
having low college entrance exam scores,
having a low GPA or no reported GPA,
working full-time,
and attending a for-profit institution."

Again, I saw people who fit this demographic at the community colleges I went to and I can attest to the truth of this statement.

"To help individual students, mentoring, counseling, and academic/financial assistance - both pre- and post-admission - are needed to reduce attrition at all institutions, public and private, nonprofit and for-profit alike."

This article brings up some interesting points that I would one day like to pursue further. I thought it was interesting and found it important to share.

Volunteer. It's important.

2010-08-15T10:18:00.006-05:00

Another thing that's interesting about that last post is that when I told some friends that I met a girl who can't read they were just as incredulous as I was. One guy actually said, 'C'mon now, she has to know something.' I thought it was interesting that none of us could believe that someone actually can't read. It's like hearing of the Loch Ness monster or Big Foot or something where you're always asking 'does it really exist?'

How sad that right HERE in America this can happen!

Ninety-five percent of my nuclear and extended family members have a college education and many have Master's degrees and PhD's. All of my friends have a college education. This situation made me think how fortunate I am! I'm essentially shielded from illiteracy. Most people I know and associate with have some college education. I know very few people with only a high school diploma, let alone bare minimum reading skills.

I would really like to give back to people like this. It's hard to find time to do things like this. It's so easy to make excuses. I'm so busy with school and all my other extracurricular activities that sometimes it's overwhelming. I would really like to find a way to incorporate volunteering to this group a priority.

I met a 17-y.o. girl who can't read. No, seriously, it's true.

2010-08-15T10:07:00.005-05:00

I'm changing some facts to this story due to the privacy of the matter...

I met a girl, who is 19, that reads on a kindergarten level.

During one of my volunteer activities I was sitting around chatting with some girls when one girl asked me to write some loving words on a birthday card to her boyfriend. A younger girl immediately volunteered and wrote an amazing passage on scrap paper and passed it to the first girl, who did not look at it. Instead, the first girl immediately passed it to me and asked me to write those words on her card. I was confused as to why she couldn't write it and why she didn't even look at it so I asked her a few times ,'Well, did you read it?' She lied and said 'yes' even though she so obviously passed the paper to me and did not even look at it.

When I pressed her by asking why can't she do it she said something like she likes the way I write or something of that nature (although she had never seen me write). Eventually, it hit me--this girl might not be able to read!

After writing the passage on her card I wanted to confirm my suspicion so I told her she needed to sign her own name. She wanted to write 'Love Always, Girl X.' I had to spell out the letters of each word for her (amazing) because she did not know the spelling (thankfully she can write her own name). When I got to the 'Y' in 'always' she said, 'Does that letter go like this?' and she proceeded to mime the writing of 'Y' in the air.

I was floored.

Although I played it off I was really surprised... and scared for her. She is young, very friendly and very pretty. In the hands of the wrong person this type of situation can end up badly for her. Illiteracy prevents you from being independent, such as finding your way home by reading street signs if you get lost, ordering from a menu at a restaurant or, even more importantly, finding a job. This is also how young girls become prostitutes. When you can't read, you're dependent on other people to do things for you.

I pray to God she lives life safely and learns to read.

FAQs--OT School w/out prereqs??

2010-08-10T23:49:00.006-05:00

So, here's another question I received waaaaaay back in May! I'm so awful. I feel so badly.

Ok here's the question:

Kimberly, I am sorry but do you mind sharing how you managed to get into OT school without prereqs?

I wish I could say I had it like that but I don't! I actually had to take prereqs! An entire year I did this. I worked 8 hours a day and went to school at night for another 3-4 hours. I spent an entire summer going to school just for biology pre-reqs FOR the prereqs (crazy, right!)--mon-thurs from 6-10pm! And this was AFTER I had worked 8 hours earlier that day.

It was really tough. Sometimes i even worked 2-3 jobs to pay for school and my bills. For about 2 months I delivered pizza on the weekends! Yes, I'm not ashamed to admit this. That was REALLY hard because I had no life--it was work, school and more work and then studying. When it was slow I would sit outside the restaurant and study in my car! It was summer during this time so I didn't freeze while doing this. The other drivers treated me well and respected me. It was a very humbling experience.

I also worked at a Latin dance studio for a while. That was fun and interesting and stressful. I had to give up my weekends for that gig too. *Sigh*

I even sold my beautiful car to cut down on expenses and free up extra cash. Amazingly, I don't miss it. I use the money to pay for interesting experiences that, in turn, make ME a more interesting person!

So anyway, every morning I managed to get up at 5.15am and go to the gym. It was easier then than it is now; I think that's what helped me keep my sanity.

I have a finance degree as well [the author of the question has a degree in Finance] and one day I just sat down and wrote out a plan on how I could finish all my prereqs in one year. I had no science class history. None! I went to the school and talked to the OT admissions staff and clarified what I needed, which classes I already had that counted as pre-reqs and which didn't, and which classes were necessary to take. I made sure I could go to the city colleges for pre-reqs. Sometimes I had to take pre-reqs for pre-reqs so I added that in the plan as well. By talking with the staff I discovered that some classes counted for some required pre-reqs--information I would not have known had I not gone to the school and inquired.

I missed out on a lot of time with family and friends but I WANTED to be an OT bad! So, I complained sometimes and I was ALWAYS tired but I made it happen.

You CAN do it, too. Just sit down and PLAN it and talk to the counselors and OT staff at the school you want to go to to see if some of your past Gen Ed class at previous institutions count for prereqs. It won't be easy all the time. But as my aunt told me once, "But in the end it will be SO worth it." This keeps me focused.

Good luck!

Bully words

2010-08-10T23:28:00.006-05:00

Like I said before, these children often have trouble with their behavior and emotions and they often lash out with intense, negative words.

They have postings on the wall about 'Bully Words.' I found it interesting because one of the words was 304. I had no idea what that was. I asked the clinician on site and she said 'spell it backwards and change the numbers to letters' (for those who don't get it--it's a derogatory name for a 'loose' woman; also spelled the same as a common garden tool).

Immediately I got it! Wow! How...expressive. But kids are saying this? They range from 4-12 years. They're too young to even really know what that means.

They also had the word 'Critch.' That's new to me. I wonder if its the same as a curse word that starts with a different letter. Also, 'bop.' Does anyone know what these mean?

Another thing that struck me were the words 'skinny' and 'fatty.' How interesting that we use both ends of the spectrum to put someone down! I guess humans find anything to make people feel badly about themselves, huh? It's sad when kids do it, though.

Finally, the last thing I found interesting was the number of words on the list! These are words that the kids thought of! On their own! I counted 56! Fifty-six words on just ONE of the posters; there were two posters. Fifty-six bully words from kids!

Being a kid is tough.

Are you angry because you're poor??

2010-08-10T23:06:00.005-05:00

(Of course I can't tell you where I am or show the kids faces or images of the facility but here are three of the wall postings to remind the kids of emotions and anger)

Every week the kids work on a theme. One particular week the theme was 'anger' and all of the activities stemmed around things that you make you angry, managing anger, etc. Now remember, these kids are labeled as having behavior and emotion problems so activities like these are designed to help them manage those emotions. One of the projects asked the kids what makes them angry.

So when this question was posed one of the college assistants (working for the summer), let's call him Dan, carried a conversation with one of the kids who's about 8 or so, let's call her Mary, that went something like this:

Dan: Hey, Mary, you should be working on this activity on what makes you angry. You need to write down what makes you angry, ok?
Mary: Ok.
Dan: So, what makes you angry? That you're not rich?

I'm sorry, what? I didn't know whether to laugh or correct him. This happened on my second day when I was only observing so I certainly did not correct him. But I chuckled a little out of shock. These are FOSTER kids. They don't live with their biological parents. They have problems that you would not believe and the LAST thing they need is someone reminding them of what they don't have. Plus, she's an 8 year old kid.

The room is large and there are a lot of kids so the clinician did not hear this exchange. But I just had to shake my head and smile at myself at how experience (and age) influence how you talk to and relate to people.

FAQs--Costa Rica

2010-08-10T22:53:00.004-05:00

Someone sent me a question about my trip to Costa Rica:

Meredith writes: Did you go through a program or did you set this up yourself?

I set this up myself. I saved for a LOOOOOONG time in preparation for a similar trip that I ended up changing my mind on. My dad also gave me some money to help me out. I researched various programs (thank God for Google) for about a month and finally decided on one about 3-4 weeks before I left. I highly recommend this experience to anyone who can afford it. Depending on the country it can be pretty cheap--from as little as $100 a week for economically challenged countries to as much as $500 for those more comparable to America. I recommend you do your research and ask lots of questions!

Good luck!

I'M SO SORRY!!!!

2010-08-10T22:36:00.002-05:00

OK, I OWE A TON OF PEOPLE A HUGE APOLOGY.

So, when I signed up for this blog through Google I never did any 'training' to learn how to operate it. I just jumped right in. I also never knew how to check my Gmail account through this blogger. It's silly. I know. I should know better.

So, people have been sending me a TON of messages that I am just now getting. So, for that I say I'M SORRY. Please, PLEASE forgive me. I've already responded to like 7 or 8 of them this evening and i'm going to keep going through them until I respond to every single one. Some of the answers to your questions will be blog posts as I'm sure many others have the same questions.

Also, I think I mentioned that this year I am working for the school to pay for my tuition and from April 30-mid June I was not myself. I was some OTHER person because I was taking 17 hours of INTENSE pass/fail courses and I was working 20-25 hours a week. It was really tough but I made it through. Thank God. I didn't blog much during that time because like I said, I was some OTHER person. Some monster woman, like Cruella De Vil or soemthing.

So, I'm working on all the responses to your questions. Please be patient. Thank you!

How old you is?

2010-08-05T00:33:00.003-05:00

Here's another post from my journal on communication with one of the 'clients' at the site:

Here's an example of a conversation I had with one of the younger members of SWM today:

Me: Hi, (child's name), how old are you?
J: I'm four. How old you is?
Me: Four is awesome! You can say "How old ARE YOU?"
J: I'm four! How old you is?
Me: (trying not to laugh) Well, I'm a lot older than you. So, let's say together "How old are you?"
J: I just said that. I'm four.

Eventually, I got her to understand that her English was incorrect and the correct structure is "how old are you?" however, she said she did not want to correct her English. If this were my child/niece/nephew, etc. this would be an issue but I understood she was purposely being difficult so I left it alone and praised her for being an incredible four years old. I did not want to beat a dead horse over her grammar when she has bigger problems but the situation irritated me slightly because when she realized I was correcting her English she immediately stiffened and withdrew. This alarmed me because when I correct the English of my niece and nephew they embrace it. This child's reaction was...different. It made me curious as to how she is treated in the home when she does something incorrectly. I realized that I just needed a different approach and maybe, in some instances, no approach at all.

I observed that the children communicate very aggressively with each other. While playing games, I was constantly parenting on how to 'play fair,' or 'play nice' or 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you' and 'judge not lest ye be judged.' I'm being slightly fecetious but the children use strong, negative language that is incongruent with their age. They see nothing wrong with talking to each other in this manner. "you're stupid," "I can do it better," "You can't do it," "You don't know anything" and so forth flowed freely and regularly between the children. I was very surprised. Interestingly, I don't see (yet) why they are behavior disordered children. For the most part they played better than I expected for children with this label. They were not so aggressive that I would label them as 'behavior disordered' but aggressive enough for me to notice.

(What would an OT do at this facility?)

As for the younger foster children--I think an OT would focus on developing relationships between the kids and their parents. According to [names removed] the foster parents don't do much with the children. They drop them off at camp and then they leave, only to return a few hours later to pick up the kids. They feed and clothe the children but they don't spend time with them or teach them life skills--they don't 'parent' effectively. I definitely see an opportunity for an OT here in that regard.

An example of living a life of mistrust

2010-08-04T23:19:00.002-05:00

When we first arrived at the site, one of the clinicians described how the girls are almost always angry and mean. She warned us about some the things that we might see and hear. She told us (I am at this site with another student, who is AWESOME!) that they would interact defensively with us and would not be welcoming. She also said that if we react impulsively and are offended easily we won't make it. You have to be strong and have a lot of confidence in yourself because the girls will 'try' us and attempt to push every hot button. Here is my journal entry from that day:

I close with this (paraphrased) quote from a supervisor to illustrate the life and thought process of girls who are always defensive: "These girls have lived a hard life in the 'system'. They have been hurt so many times by those closest to them that they don't know how to trust. They immediately lash out with anger and strong words. You two are young, pretty girls so be prepared for the language and the attitude. You're already on their bad side. You need to have a lot of confidence in yourself to work here because [pointing at my peer] you'll be a white b*tch and [pointing at me] you'll be a black h*e. You need to be prepared to hear that without responding negatively."

Update on first Level I Fieldwork

2010-08-04T23:12:00.004-05:00

So, I've started fieldwork and it is very interesting to say the least. There are good time and there are bad times but it's all interesting. I'm doing a mental/behavioral health fieldwork right now.

As I've mentioned before the girls are homeless and were in foster care or just recently came from an unfit household. New girls come and go weekly and sometimes they run away. They all have some pretty serious problems, unfortunately, and it's pretty obvious when we talk to them. Sometimes I see them blow up at the staff for no reason; sometimes they have a HUGE issue with saying please and thank you; and sometimes they just have an attitude for no reason.

I am also working with children with some of the same issues. All of the kids are in foster care and that is another post all it's own. In a nutshell I feel sorry for both the kids and the older girls. They have no one but themselves--no parents that love them and many times the foster parents take them in for the money. It's very....disheartening. Last week I started to tear up when hearing some of the stories from the staff.

The most interesting and heart tugging thing I've heard over the last week is that some the girls come to the home with just the clothes on their back. As a result, they often only have 1 or 2 pair of underwear. 1 or 2 pair! I have enough underwear to last me over a month, just so I can avoid washing! How blessed I am! Can you imagine having only 1 or 2 pair of underwear????!!!! Every day you would have to wash your underwear and hope it's dry by morning, assuming you choose to wear underwear given your circumstances.

The girls are very guarded, as would be expected in these types of situations. When you say hi you're lucky if they speak, and very rarely do they speak with a smile. Some of them are nice and I'm always curious why, given their situation. Generally, they are dry, uninterested, resistant and combative.

It's interesting....

Gallstones from REAL people

2010-07-22T11:34:00.006-05:00

This is a gallbladder and gallstones picture I found on Google. Our cadaver's gallstones were similar to this in color, shpae and size, only brighter and more 'jewel-like.'

My instructor's gallstones from her collection. Notice how these look like grimy rocks...

...and notice how these look like pretty stones.
(And notice how I differentiated 'rock' from 'stone.' Hmm, are they the same or are they different??)

I ran across this picture in my iPhoto and I realized i forgot to share it with you last semester!

These are REAL gallstones that came from REAL people. We saw some in anatomy lab, and of course I could not take a photo as that action would get me in a ton of trouble, but one of my instructors COLLECTS gallstones (don't ask why, she just like them). She said I could take a photo and post it on my blog. It's interesting to me how gallstones look different depending on the person from which they came.

I wanted to share this because gallstones are very painful (a few people in my family have had them removed). But it's amazing because when you look at them they are often very pretty! Like stones you may find on some rocky beach somewhere. The stones found in one of our cadavers were a very pretty bright green, I'm talking VERY PRETTY. And they were sparkly and hit the light just right. It was weird. Like opening up a pouch and finding some hidden gems.

It reminded me of the movie 'The Goonies." If you're younger than 30 then that name probably sounds like something I just made up. But if you remember that movie then you'll remember the very end when all the kids were reunited with their parents outside on the beach and the father was about to sign the paperwork to foreclose his house or something and at that moment the spanish speaking housekeeper opens this green pouch and out fell all this beautiful jewels!

THAT'S what seeing those gallstones was like. We cut her gallbladder and BAM! Out fell all these beautiful 'jewels.' Odd analogy but I'll bet you have a great visual right about now and you get what I'm saying!

"I'm making a bomb! I can't take the pressure!!!"

2010-07-22T11:11:00.012-05:00

My tools: the clicker with old batteries, the screwdriver, the insanely tiny screw that you can hardly see because it's insanely tiny, the new battery packaging, a new battery.

Insanely tiny screw.

Unscrewing the insanely tiny screw using shoulder and elbow flexion (I held it to my face to protect my neck) and forearm pronation and supination.

Me, whistling while I'm working. lol.

Batteries, clickers, and garbage, aka--A MESS!

Battery between my fingers and on the right, if you look closely, is another insanely tiny screw! The little boogers are sneaky. Another grad assist student dropped one and we were both on the floor looking for it. Those things are harder to find than dropped contact lenses!

I am the graduate assistant for the OT program here at my school and someone asked me to replace all the batteries in our 'clickers.' As I was doing this I noticed that I am turning into a true OT!

This requires using a screwdriver, you know, the kind you use to unscrew those insanely tiny screws for your glasses. Well, as I was unscrewing, removing the backing, removing the old batteries, replacing them with new batteries, replacing the backing and screwing the insanely tiny screw back in I noticed that I kept thinking about what motion I was performing and which muscles I was using!

How wonderful is that!

I was also thinking if this would be a good 'task' to give a client, with some variations of course. I'm not so sure about this because the screw is so insanely tiny that if you can pick it up, place it in the screw hole and use the screwdriver then you probably don't need occupational therapy services; you're probably functioning very well.

Anyway, I noticed that I used a lot of humeral and wrist flexion, along with forearm pronation and supination and a ton of complicated, combination, prehension (aka-pinching) movements. It only confirms what I said earlier about your hands and fingers being soooooo important! Don't take them for granted!

Last thing, I also felt like I was building a bomb! Ha ha. There I was, hunched over, with old batteries, a screw driver, clickers, insanely tiny screws, and garbage from the new battery packages. It looked a little crazy. I told myself if someone walked in and asked me what I was doing I would scream, "I'm making a bomb! I JUST CAN'T TAKE THE PRESSURE!!!"

I'm so silly.

My blog in the top 5-6!

2010-07-22T11:07:00.003-05:00

I performed a search for blogs on OT using phrases like:

Master of Occupational Therapy Student blog
OT student blog
Occupational Therapy student blog
etc.

My blog came up in the top 5-6 every time!!! I'm so HAPPY about this! It inspires me to keep blogging.

It also reminds me of the time Karen (remember, my OT blogger idol) was trying to get her blog to be in the top 3 or something like that. She had read somewhere that repeatedly using your key word(s)-- in this case occupational, therapy and student--would get your blog more hits and increase its rating on Google. So she just typed those key words over and over and over again in a blog post, performed another search and it worked!

Of course the way she tells it is funnier. I always crack up at that story.

Update on my Mallet finger

2010-07-15T09:50:00.004-05:00

(Remember this picture? This is when I first lacerated my extensor tendon. It's amazing to me that I just could not extend my finger, no matter how much I tried. Thankfully, as bad as this looks, it didn't hurt a bit.)

(Here's my beautiful finger with the splint. As a side note, the entire time my finger was in a splint I made sure my nails were always ON POINT. My finger may have been in a splint but I was C-U-T-E!)

(This is my hand about 4 weeks ago. My finger just gets better and better each day! And my nails are still C-U-T-E!) :-)

So, my finger is all healed now! I wore the splint for about 11 weeks, which is almost twice the suggested length of time. After researching the Internet I decided that the suggested 6 weeks was not enough for me and I wanted the splint to stay on longer, though not so long as to inhibit movement.

I didn't have to go the doctor for a checkup! This was a financial blessing. We just so happened to have an OT who is a hand therapist speak to our Anatomy class in April. I asked her to look at my finger and she said it looked healed and now it was time to start OT services on myself, lol. She suggested that everyday, for about 1-2 weeks, I take the splint off and slowly make a fist. This was tough at first because my finger was so stiff! It took me about a week or so of constant finger flexing to make a full, but light, fist.

She then suggested that after the second week of this I take the splint off for a couple of hours everyday, increasing the time the splint is off until I am no longer wearing it. I did this but was very careful. I made sure to wear the splint if I was going to do heavy lifting or some activity where I wasn't paying attention to my fingers. I also suffered a loss of about 5 degrees of both flexion and hyperextension. I believe this is the reason why I can't make a really tight fist.

I performed more research online and found out that I should wear the splint at night for at least another 6 to 12 weeks. This prevents injury while I'm sleeping. So, I'm still in this stage but some nights I forget.

My finger was a terrible color when I first took the splint off. As you can see from my pictures I am Black, and to see an abnormally pale, white finger surrounded by brown skin was a little...scary. It was just lack of air circulation, of course. And over time my finger returned to its normal, beautiful caramel brown color.

I cannot make a tight fist...yet...and this of course has decreased my grip strength in my left hand. Also, I sometimes cannot grip my hair properly while plaiting it. I don't push my finger too much right now but over time I will push it a bit more.

Everyone says you can't even tell it was ever injured, which is awesome to hear.

Hands are just so important! So, take care of yourself!

Don't Judge a Book by Its Major

2010-07-15T09:32:00.004-05:00

I learned something valuable yesterday evening about judging people before getting all necessary information:

I am a Peer Mentor for the Latino Center here on campus. Yesterday evening we had a meeting where the Counselors of the LC had to regroup mentors and mentees. In doing so, they paired me with my original two mentees plus another new mentee. The new mentee did not look happy that I was her mentor. She didn't even look at me at first.

She immediately said, "What's your major?" When I told her Occupational Therapy she looked agitated and raised her hand to comment. She suggested that the Counseling center provide the mentees with a website that allows them to review a mentor's biography so that they can choose their own mentor based on their goals. She commented that although she is sure I am a good mentor she is a Criminal Justice major and needs a Criminal Justice mentor who can help her achieve her goals and guide her through coursework.

The Counselors told her that they take all of these things into consideration before matching mentors and mentees, along with personality traits and the ability of the mentor to find valuable resources. I saw this young lady approach a Counselor to talk and so I approached as well.

I told the Counselor and the young lady that she did not give me a chance to help her. She doesn't know who I know or what connections I have. Truth be told, I know a TON of people in law enforcement, along with lawyers and other people in the criminal justice system. I could have EASILY connected her with someone who would be a resource once she graduates. Additionally, I am the Queen of free money for education. My schooling is free thus far because I try harder than anyone else and ask more questions than anyone else to get money to pay for my education.

The Counselor tried to explain to her that they have a police officer for her to speak but she can't call him and discuss school matters. That's why she needs me as a mentor. I then immediately told the Counselor and the young lady that this mentor/mentee relationship would not work for me, based on the fact that she didn't give me a chance to assist her, I'm not willing to help at this point and we would both need to be reassigned.

Although I understood the young lady's fears about not getting the resources that she needs what bothered me was that she did not look at me, she did not introduce herself and, most importantly, SHE DIDN'T ASK ANY QUESTIONS. It seems to me that the most logical thing to do first is ask WHY the Counselors paired you with a mentor when you specifically asked for something else. Once you have that information the second thing you do is talk to the mentor, tell them your goals and find out if they can help you or provide you with resources. If they cannot help you THEN you raise your hand and say this is not going to work for me. It's unfortunate that she missed out on an opportunity to have access to the criminal justice system through my contacts.

So, I learned that the cliche is true. You really shouldn't judge people, especially without first asking questions to GET MORE INFORMATION. This makes me wonder how many times I have done this to others. I can't think of any specific instances at this moment. However, I will definitely make the effort in the future to refrain from judging people without getting all the information first.

Research 101

2010-07-06T14:02:00.004-05:00

One of the classes that ended last week was my Research class. This was a 2 semester class that required that we find a research topic that relates to OT and go through the entire research process process, just short of actually completing the research. The only reason we did not carry out the procedures is because receiving approval from the school's IRB takes too long and we wouldn't finish the projects in a timely manner.

The purpose of this class was to encourage us to contribute to the evidence based body of OT knowledge by choosing, researching and creating a research study. This class was VERY detailed and we had to go through all the steps of deciding on a research question, to writing procedures to finding a grant that would possibly fund our study (if we were to actually continue to the study). It was a very long, tedious process. I learned quite a bit about the research process and research terminology. I also now have a greater appreciation for the research that currently exists, both within and outside of OT. Research is hard, but rewarding, work!

My topic was 'Factors that Influence Participation in a Sport or Exercise, Despite Chronic Pain." I wanted to find out why athletes continue to play sports and/or exercise even though they are in serious pain. I also wanted to find out if the environment in which they play sports influences their participation.

I learned a LOT about research and it certainly gave me something to look forward to if I continue with a PhD. However, I would not continue with this particular topic. In the beginning I was so excited with this topic. But, by the end of the second semester, with all the revisions and changes, I found my topic boring and uninteresting. I have a new topic in mind but if I tell you then I'll have to kill you. :-)

Nevertheless, if you're going into OT school here are just a few tips for research. This list is in no way comprehensive. It's just a few things off the top of my head:

1. Choose a topic that interests you greatly. However, be careful that it's not too personal. Some people had topics about disabilities of their kids and loved ones. When you're this close to the topic sometimes you're unwilling or unable to listen to suggestions or corrections to your paper. And sometimes, the topic is just too overwhelming to continue.

2. Try to choose topics that are non-existent or have very few research articles. This will give you a strong reason for the purpose of your study.

3. Decide how your topic is relevant to occupational therapy. This is so important because other OTs will read your work and use your information in their practice.

4. Look for articles that support and negate your premise. It will give you a balanced view of the topic.

5. Look at literature outside of OT literature. Other professions have awesome things to say and perform great research studies that OTs can use. Also, it's just downright interesting.

6. Once you have all your literature read the research articles several times and highlight things that stand out to you. Then, find three or four themes that the articles all have in common. Finally, decide the 'hole' that you are going to plug with your research. What is the one thing that's missing in those articles that your research will cover? How is your research different from what is already available?

7. ASK
8. LOTS
9. OF
10. QUESTIONS!!! Research is a VERY involved, demanding, yet interesting process. If there is something you do not understand or need clarification on, please ask your instructor. I would suggest you choose one instructor, if one was not assigned to you for your project, and stick with the instructor for the length of your project. I say this because I noticed that every instructor has a different idea on how the research should be carried out. If you ask multiple instructors you'll get inconsistent guidance. And trust me, that's NO fun.

:-)
:-)

Fieldwork Level I

2010-07-06T13:48:00.005-05:00

Part of your OT schoolwork is clinical experience. As students we must go to the 'field,' observe clinicians, and plan and implement interventions and evaluate outcomes, among other things. This is known in occupational therapy as fieldwork. This is a requirement to become an OT. There are two Level I's and two Level II fieldwork experiences. Thankfully, my school has expanded our Level I experience so that we have a total of 3 Level I's.

My first Level I fieldwork is a Mental/Behavioral health experience at a girls home. I am going to this location with another student. This home serves the needs of female minors who are in need of temporary placement. Other students have had an interesting experience here and I intend to have an awesome experience.

When I first found out I was being placed here I was NOT happy. Actually, I was downright disappointed. I wanted to be in a hospital or in another location that had an OT on staff. This girls home does not have an OT on staff. This scared me because I have a B.S. degree in Finance and I have a business background. Many of my peers have experience in Biology, Medicine, OT, PT and other fields. Sometimes I feel like I'm starting from scratch or behind so it was so important to me to be with an OT.

I spoke with my instructor who placed me here and asked her what about my character led her to place me in this location. She told me that many of my peers will be in a location without an OT. But more importantly, she said that I am very confident, I establish boundaries very well and have no problem saying "no." She said that I will be with girls with many emotional and social problems and many of them will want a relationship outside of this fieldwork experience and will cross various social boundaries; many of my peers are not equipped to handle situations of this type. She explained that this fieldwork location is in need of people who can be kind and stern at the same time. She also said that I am young and attractive and encouraging and many of these girls will look up to me and see their own possibilities.

So, I'll keep you all posted as much as I can. For obvious reasons I can't say too much but I'll do what I can!

So busy...all the time

2010-07-06T13:44:00.003-05:00

Well, things have finally slowed down a bit. This summer session has been worse than the last 2 semesters. I've been so busy the last 8 weeks it feels like I have no time to breathe. Going to school full time, going to the gym, working and trying to have a social life take their toll and at some point you realize you can't do everything.

I think about writing on this blog all the time but at night when I come home I'm exhausted. I basically wash my face, brush my teeth, prepare my lunch for the next day and go to bed. I feel terribly that I'm unable to write in this blog a few days a week because so many interesting things happen and I have so much to say.

So, I've come to terms with the fact that I can't do everything and I need to be content with the things I AM doing. So many people have started OT blogs and never continue them! I'm determined to see this blog through until I graduate. And hopefully, as my OT idol has done I can continue writing in it as a practitioner.

Ok, enough sadness. I'm content with the contributions I can make.

I'm a terrible blogger!

2010-06-11T14:21:00.002-05:00

I ONLY WROTE ONE BLOG POST IN APRIL!!!!

I suck!

(Sorry, just feeling bad and ranting and brooding, wallowing in my own sorrow)

OT is evidence-based and we musn't forget it!

2010-06-11T13:42:00.005-05:00

So, the other day I was reading my OT blogger idol's blog (another thing I don't have as much time to do anymore--read my idol's blog! Btw, Karen, how the heck did you do it in school????? Keep up with school, social life, read other people's blog AND write in your own blog???!!!! This is why you're my idol, you're amazing :-)

Ok, so I totally killed that sentence by digressing! Haha! So, I'll start over....

So, the other day I was reading my OT blogger idol's blog, Karen Dobyns, and, long story short, she wrote a post about "trying" an acupunture intervention on a patient. A commenter, Anita, commented that as OTs we don't just 'try' interventions on patients. Interventions should be well thought out and evidence based as patients are not are guinea pigs.

Anita commented that Karen's actions are a little scary. She also said, in a round about way, that as an occupational therapist blogger our responsibility while blogging is to present that we have "clear evidence for your practice decisions, and at worst it sounds like you could be 'simply giving things a shot' to see if they might work."

At first, I was terribly offended, because I love Karen so much and it's because of her that I made the final decision to jump in and go to OT school and because her thinking and blogging is often random like mine (in a good way!). Then I realized I was being biased and I would probably take Karen's side for most things, even if she stole something or didn't help a little old lady cross the street. So I had to step back a minute and reflect on what Anita was really saying.

When I really thought about it I understood and in some ways agreed with what Anita was saying (but I still get where Karen was coming from because our thinking patterns are very similar). AOTA's Centennial Vision emphasizes the importance of occupational therapy being an 'evidence-based' profession and as a result it's even more important for us as practitioners (and students!) to have clear rationale and reasoning for the interventions we choose, whether that rationale is based on written research or personal experience.

It's something for me to keep in mind as I transition from beginner OT student, to experienced OT student to practitioner. I think her comment will help make me a better OT. Also, blogging is hard work! Thinking of topics to discuss is certainly NOT difficult because in OT there is ALWAYS something to talk about, but accurately presenting the information and making it interesting can be a challenge. And when you're like me (and Karen), sometimes you post random things or type 'out loud', because that's just how you think. It doesn't mean what you type is always a reflection of how you feel, maybe you were just sorting things out at the time. But as a blogger I have to be careful of that, because although I know what my intentions are, someone else may interpret them differently. And God forbid that happens. I would be doing the public as huge disservice. Plus, I would just feel bad.

Karen wrote a blog post as a reflection/response to Anita's comment that I thought was really...open and honest. It only made me respect Karen even more as a blogger, student mentor and new practitioner. She could have easily responded defensively and started an all out blog words war. But she chose to address that she received the comment, and then, in her usual Karen way, she added some humor. I love Karen!

Later, Karen updated her blog with this SUPER LONG response to Anita's comment. I have never seen Karen write so much! But it was very well thought out and I thought it addressed the situation appropriately. Anita commented on that thread as well (just click on comments at the bottom of that thread).

So, anyway, this just only confirms that Karen is every bit as awesome as I originally thought.

I'm so so busy!

2010-06-11T13:37:00.003-05:00

I always feel so badly about not posting any new content. Like I've called in sick for work or something. I was so excited about this blog in the beginning of my OT journey and although I'm still so very excited I HAVE NO TIME!

So for all those applying for OT school just be aware that your priorities will change. You may spend less time with your boyfriend, best friend(s) and family than you would like. Your social life will change and for a few semesters you just have to accept that.

If you're really serious about learning the content and really understanding it and doing well in school then some things will have to take a backseat for awhile. Your life becomes study, study, study, sleep, sleep, sleep. It's all worth it in the end...at least that's the way I see it.

I have to really plan to make time for my friends and family, whereas before I would just call and say 'hey let's do X." Now I have to make sure that I don't have an exam or paper coming up because if I do then I can't just kick it the way I would like. Sometimes I go places and I have to just show my face, (eat, haha), and leave. I find myself nodding off around 11pm! Maybe it's just age...I don't know...

Not quite OT related but still worth noting

2010-05-25T23:21:00.005-05:00

I am extremely tired and it's 1.5 hours past my bedtime but here are two interesting things that happened over the last 24 hours. They're not really related to OT, other than that they are both very creative, and fun, just like OT.

First, a jokey-joke from my dad. He really cracked himself up with this one, and subsequently, cracked me up, too.

A little boy was riding in a car with his Mom and says, "Hey, Mom, look at that pack of cows."
The mom says, "Herd."
The little boy says, "Herd of what?"
The mom says, "Herd of cows."
The little boys says, "Sure, I've heard of cows!"

I thought this joke was very funny, especially in my Dad's amazing ability to tell incredibly interesting stories. Somehow, this joke doesn't come across quite the same in the written word...Oh well, I hope you laughed. It's a good joke for a kid to tell at school.

****************
Ok, on my way home from school today I saw a new billboard that read, in this exact setup:

Your wife is HOT!!!!
It's time to get a/c for your car.

I chucked to myself when I saw this...kudos to the designer for getting my attention while driving...

***********
The next time I write I'm going to post an update on my finger, which has healed quite nicely, and a critique someone had of my OT blogger idol Karen Dobyns (gasp!). I know, I know, I'm in shock myself. Hopefully I can get over it soon.

People with Down Syndrome are stupid...or something

2010-05-21T13:26:00.005-05:00

Earlier this week I saw ABC's "What Would You Do?" on television. Don't worry, I wasn't trading studying for TV. I was cooking for the week while watching television. See? Multi-tasking!

Anyway, apparently in this show the producers create outrageous situations (that could probably happen) and sit back and watch what people would do. So this particular episode, that is very OT relevant, involved a person with Down Syndrome working as a bagger in a grocery store. While waiting for their items to be bagged, actors, acting as patrons of the store, would get irate and say all sorts of mean and terrible things to the bagger. Things like
'what are you stupid or something?'
'my dog could do this faster than you'
'I can't believe they hire idiots like you to do this, you're so slow'
"Oh my God, can't you move faster? I can't believe you're moving this slowly!'
and so on. You get the picture.

The purpose of this 'experiment' was to see if, and how, other people in line would respond.

There are two things about this that struck me. First, overwhelmingly, in all but one case, women came to the rescue (men just sat back in shock). The women scolded the irate patron by saying things like:
'why don't you just leave'
'this is someone's son. how can you say that?'
'how would you feel if someone spoke to you like that?'
'don't talk to him like that'
and on and on.

I was so touched that people took up for the bagger and they were so convicted about it. Some women started shouting and others were really stern and called the manager to have the irate patron kicked out! I noticed that most of the women that spoke up worked with people with special needs or knew someone with special needs. Interesting.

Second, I was so moved by the responses of these women that I felt ashamed. I was ashamed because I would not have so openly taken up for the bagger. I would have only been appalled but I would not have expressed this. And this is so UNLIKE my personality.

This is embarrassing because this is what OTs do. We're advocates for people who cannot or will not advocate for themselves. How can I be so selfish? After seeing this show I will definitely speak up if I were to see something this horrific. How awful.

I admit this to you because part of the purpose of this blog is for me to reflect on my own strengths and weaknesses and someday look back on this and see how much I've evolved. I also admit this to you to encourage you to do the same and speak up for this type of stupidity.

When you see someone acting stupidly, get involved and speak up.

I feel like a slacker!

2010-05-18T22:04:00.003-05:00

I'm reading my comments and email and I want to cry. People are so kind in commenting on my blog and I've been such a SLACKER in writing over the last 2 months. I'm so sorry everyone. I feel badly about this.

I'm going to make the effort to do better starting now. I have so much to say...I just can't type fast enough.

I'll have to say it later because it's 10:04 pm! 4 minutes past my bedtime! Yikes!

recent pics!

2010-05-18T21:49:00.007-05:00

Some recent pics!

We had a 'booth' outside of our library for the month of April. We used it to share the good news about Occupational Therapy month!

Here's the creative team behind the design...

Me and some classmates at an OT party.

A bloody leg sticking out of a van in the school parking lot...no biggie....

SORRY!!! AGAIN!!!

2010-05-18T21:42:00.004-05:00

Ok, I suck! I know! I'm SOOOO SORRY! I don't know how my blogger idol Karen did it! How was she able to contribute to her blog so faithfully????

This semester is my most challenging semester yet. I have a full load, I'm applying for scholarships for next year, and I am a graduate assistant (yeah!!!) which is an AWESOME opportunity on SO many levels. I have to work about 15 hours or more a week. As a result I stay at the school until the evening hours, which wouldn't be so bad except that I live one hour away. So I get home pretty late. Which also wouldn't be so bad except that I get up at 5am every morning to work out. I could stop getting up so early to work out but that's NOT gonna happen.

Working out is true occupation for me. It's meaningful and enjoyable and I LOVE IT. When I'm working out that's MY time. I feel relaxed, strong and healthy. I feel youthful and energetic. I feel like I can do anything. It's awesome.

But I digress. Anyway, by the time I get home I have 1.5 hours to wash my face, brush teeth, check my mail and email, fix my breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks for the next day (hey, when you work out you have to eat a lot!) and lay out my clothes. By the time I finish all of that I'm POOPED!

But I'm committed to writing in this blog on a regular basis. So, having said all that rambling if you've emailed me and I haven't responded please forgive me. I am sooo sorry. I will have to catch up with everything over the next few weekends. Also, starting in June, my schedule will slow down a bit.

So, SORRY!

I'M STILL ALIVE, dear reader!

2010-04-11T23:52:00.001-05:00

I AM still alive.

I hope you're still reading my blog.

The semester is ALMOST over, which accounts for my superbusiness.

I'm sorry I haven't been diligent this month in writing.

I have SO much to say....

I plan to catch up over the next two weeks as the semester ends.

SORRY!!!!

Occupational Therapist Joke

2010-03-02T20:58:00.002-06:00

Here's a cute joke I found about Occupational Therapists. I like it because it really illustrates the power of Occupational Therapy:

Q: How many Occupational Therapists does it take to change a lightbulb?

A: None. We’d teach the lightbulb to change itself.

Don't tell me this is not funny!!!! It's soooo OT-ish.

YOU RETARD!!!

2010-03-02T20:39:00.003-06:00

I knew that phrase would get your attention. Those are BAD, BAD, BAD words. They are hurtful.

Calling someone retarded is intended to insult them. Thankfully, I don't use those words but I know plenty of people who do. So, shame on me for not correcting them!

Language choices influence how we think about others. The 'R-word,' as it is called, is hurtful and derogatory and it's time that people stop using it as an insult.

Originally, retarded had a REAL meaning which meant disabled or handicapped. But now people use it as an insult for clumsy, stupid or silly people. They often mean it jokingly but there's nothing funny about it as some people really ARE 'retarded'.

It's a painful word that stereotypes a group of people, whether they have an intellectual disability or not.

So, I'm encouraging you to use more accepting language from this point forward--like 'intellectual disability'. Or if someone is acting silly or stupid, just say they're acting silly or stupid. There's no need to label them with a term deemed offensive and derogatory.

There's a campaign to 'Spread the Word to End the Word.' You can find more info here and submit a pledge. I submitted my pledge to use more accepting language.

Please make the effort to change your language to be more inclusive and respectful.

I climbed 94 flights in 28 minutes

2010-03-02T20:28:00.004-06:00

Sunday I climbed the annual Hussle up the Hancock sponsored by the Respiratory Health Association. I remember writing about this back in November, I think. Anyway, I climbed 94 flights!

I did not act very wisely in that I did not train for this event, I had a glass of white wine and an awesome Mexican dinner the night before and I went to bed VERY late. If you ever want to do stair climb challenges, don't follow my lead! Thankfully I got up okay and I finished successfully...

I enjoyed the climb, it was a lot of fun and there were LOTS of people (more than 4000 participants). Two people behind me 9 & 11 year old brothers climbing the 94 flights for the second time! One of my classmates climbed twice--once at 8.45am with her Mom for the half-climb (47 flights) and then again at 11am for the full climb! Amazing! There were also quite a few senior there climbing as well. This was encouraging as I plan to continue to participate in races in like this as I enjoy them.

Anyway, my time to the top was about 28 minutes, which is pretty good for someone who didn't train at all and stayed out late the night before. Also, the average time to climb 47 flights is about 12 minutes but once you get to floor 70, especially when you don't train, it's all mental from there and you slow down a bit.

Once I got to the top the view was AMAZING. You could see all of Chicago! No joke. Plus the feeling of accomplishment is exaggerated by the people calling your name and cheering and the balloons and the medal you get and the crowd. It's overwhelming!

I climb again at the end of this month for the American Lung Assoc--95 flights! This time I'm training, going to bed early and eating at a reasonable hour.

Sexual innuendos & my lacerated DIP

2010-02-22T19:59:00.004-06:00

Earlier today in Research class:

Classmate: Wow! What happened to your finger????

Me: I lacerated the DIP tendon playing Dodgeball yesterday. Wanna see a picture of what it looked like before the splint?

Classmate: Sure!
(I show her the picture)

Me: See here, my DIP still droops even though I was trying to extend it.

Classmate: Wow...you were trying and you just couldn't get it up.

(a moment of silence as her words sink in...)

She and I in unison: HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

What is a splint?

2010-02-21T21:08:00.006-06:00

By the way, in case you don't know what a splint is, here's an explanation:

Here's a picture of a lacerated DIP tendon (tendon that causes the latter part of the finger to extend and stay extended).
Here's my finger.

When the extensor tendon (or sometimes even the bone) tears the flexor tendons (the ones on the bottom) are still flexing the finger but there is no force on top to counteract this so the finger droops.

My finger doesn't function well. I can hardly pick things up, type, or properly hold a glass. Plus, it hurts a little to try to extend it and I don't like looking at it. And, unfortunately, I can't extend it at all!

This is called a mallet finger injury.

So the doctor gave me a splint--or a small, rigid object secured with tape, to keep the finger hyperextended and straight so it can heal properly. Here's my splint!

No, I'm not giving YOU the finger. lol

I have to go to a hand surgeon to confirm it's not a serious tear that requires surgery.

Well, at least my nails look good!