OT Blog

Last Wednesday night, I went to a practice for the Rolling Grizzlies basketball team. I chose to write my neuro note on this to reflect on what a great experience it was. I had never seen an actual professional wheelchair basketball team, and had no idea of how much skill it takes to even dribble the ball and shoot, nonetheless fall out of a wheelchair and climb back in within seconds. At the end of the practice the team let us try their wheelchairs and play some. I was quickly humbled when I air-balled my first shot and then during a backwards race down the court ran over the coach and a player. I was able to talk to the players about questions I had, for instance, of how they get back into their chairs so quickly when they fall. The player thanked me for asking and explained that he loves talking about it because he worked so hard to be able to do it. He then gave me some helpful tips on how to teach people to get back into their wheelchair.  A huge takeaway from this experien...

While looking at the emerging areas of practice on the AOTA website, the area of prevention stuck out to me. Professor Flick came and spoke to our class about the importance of health prevention and health promotion, and the AOTA has also stressed the importance of this area of practice. After school, I hope to move to Guatemala and work as an OT there. There, individuals with disabilities are treated differently, and considered sort of "voodoo" when it comes to an individual with CP or Down Syndrome going into public. While it is hard to wrap your head around, it is something that they have learned through their culture. That is why health prevention and promotion is something I am interested in. I hope to educate people in Guatemala of the importance of occupations on a person's life and how those with disabilities deserve the same chance for occupations that others have. The AOTA has created a pamphlet on health promotion and I believe they summarize the concept and th...

Robert was a patient of Haliegh's mom going through a program designed for PD clients. The LSVT BIG program is a four week intensive program that teaches clients how to basically 'reuse' their muscles (by using "big" muscle groups). When reading about the program on the Prezi, it sounded great but I did not realize the extent of progress . Robert's main goal was be able to lay down and rest and sit down and stand better. We watched a video of Robert performing tasks such as laying down and going from sitting to standing before his treatment, which was difficult for him. We then watched videos of him performing the tasks after the treatment. I was amazed a how quickly and smoothly he was able to lay down, he looked like a new person. Before this presentation I had not really seen/heard of effective PD treatment, so my biggest takeaway from this presentation is that although there is not a cure, therapy (especially the LSVT BIG program) is extremely beneficial t...

Last week our class had the opportunity to hear Fletcher Cleaves' story. Fletcher was an amazing football player that got a scholarship to play in college, but his football career was tragically cut short when a distracted driver caused him to crash and sustain a SCI. I have seen movies and constantly heard that a positive attitude makes a huge difference in recovery, but until last week, hadn't really met anyone that perfectly embodied that example. From the beginning of his SCI journey, Fletcher was positive that he would be able to do things that the doctor said he would 'never' be able to do. During the talk Fletcher said something that really stuck with me and that I will relay every chance I get, "How can we say 'the sky is the limit' when there are footprints on the moon?". This all happened because a woman was distracted driving, likely texting. At the end of the video of Fletcher's story that we watched it read "No [post/glance/searc...

Today for class we implemented our activities that we analyzed. My activity was called "Let it Snow!", which consisted of making fake snow out of conditioner and baking soda. While this activity was obviously not something that people will do everyday, it is a beneficial activity for many populations. Instead of just taking an adolescent with a TBI or intellectual disability into the kitchen and having them prepare food, or write down measurements, participants have fun making a sensory friendly snow while also learning about measurements. Overall, I think the activity went very well. I realized that there were even a few things that I didn't think would be as difficult as they were, like opening the box of baking soda- that was hard! My group discussed ways to grade the activity up and down, and they even gave me some ideas of ways to change it that I didn't think of. I think in a field where creativity is so important, other practitioners are a great resource. As we...

For class we had a lab time where we could print and organize our professional development binder. Things like immunization records, AOTA/TNOTA membership cards are placed in the binder to keep up with our progress as professionals. When I started going back to look for papers, I realized that I wish I had started this at the beginning of OT school, and known to just make a copy of the documents I had to keep everything important in one place. After doing this lab I will definitely continue to use the binder and add to it as I grow as an OT. Not only will this be helpful to me,  but to employers, and others to ensure that I am continuing my education and being an active member of occupational therapy associations.

In the TED talk titled Can the damaged brain repair itself?  Siddharthan Chandran, a regenerative neurologist, discusses degenerative disorders of the brain such as Alzheimer’s, ALS, and MS, and progress of stem cell treatment of such diseases.  Before January I had never watched a TED Talk, but after OT school began I realized how not only informative, but powerful these talks are. That is why I chose to consider TED Talks for this assignment. Alzheimer’s and M.S. have impacted and continue to impact my family, so I have a great interest in the techniques that are being developed to combat the effects of, or even stop diseases like this, which is why I chose to listen to and discuss this TED Talk. My main takeaway from this video (other than education on degenerative neurological diseases) is a sense of hope for a cure of these diseases. I have heard of ‘plasticity’ in the brain, which is the brain forming new pathways after an injury, but I have heard little about...