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University of Southern California
University of Southern California
USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
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Amber

Wrapping Up ⟩
December 5, 2012, by Amber

Community

This is the last week of the Fall semester, and today was my last regular class day. It was fitting that our last lecture was on end-of-life issues. It also happened to be the last day that I will spend with my cohort. I have been with the same cohort of 40 since my class was divided into three groups for our immersion courses last Fall semester. For three semesters my “Cohort B” has learned together, laughed and cried together, and become like an extended family. We have created many memories and lasting friendships.

In honor of our last day together, our classmate Kim gathered hundreds of photos and created a slideshow looking back over the past year and a half. Today we watched the slideshow while enjoying a potluck lunch, to which everyone had contributed something delicious. For the last time, we laughed and celebrated together.

I still have one more semester before graduation, so I will continue to see the people in my cohort next year. However, we will all be in different courses and have different schedules. I suppose it’s an appropriate way to mentally prepare for graduation, after which we will part ways for good. I know I will definitely miss my USC family. Go Cohort B!

Kendra

Transitioning Occupations ⟩
December 5, 2012, by Kendra

Life Hacks School/Life Balance

Three years ago when I decided to switch gears from being an actor to becoming an occupational therapist, I went through a difficult transition. I constantly berated myself for giving up too soon or not having the chutzpah to make it work. In a way I went through an identity crisis. I had dedicated the majority of my life to acting! I moved thousands of miles away from home, dropped cash on classes, workshops, and headshots galore while working multiple jobs at wild hours just to make ends meet and get to auditions on time. Juggling so many factors just to maybe get a job took away the joy I’d felt performing over the years. Even though I wanted to be an actor more than anything I did not relish in the laborious, seemingly endless, struggle.

So when I decided to change careers I had to let go of a part of me, but I promised myself I would always find my way back to performing. But next time it would be on my terms. I could do it as a hobby, as a side project, for fun not money. Part of me thought that was a bunch of bologna, but part of me hoped I was right.

Having made the transition and been in grad school for nearly two years, I am so glad I made the choice I did. Knowing what I know now about occupations, I also know that I was never ‘giving up’ acting. It will always be a part of me. What I did was shift its definition within my life, moving it from work to play and leisure activities. Doing this allows it to best suit my personal needs, and therefore be a more meaningful, fulfilling occupation as opposed to one causing stress.

I had my first read-thru for a web series this last weekend. It was wonderful. Exciting. Freeing. Invigorating. Never once was I worried how this would affect other auditions, or disappointed it didn’t pay. I was able to indulge in the performance and truly sink my teeth into the experience. By redefining a meaningful occupation, I was able to find the just right fit for the rest of my life.

Paula

Older Driver Safety Awareness Week ⟩
December 3, 2012, by Paula

December 3-7th, 2012 is AOTA’s Older Driver Safety Awareness Week! Driving rehabilitation is a common area of practice for OTs and can include identification of unique challenges and strategies to improve safety well as analysis of the role that driving plays in someone’s life. The goal of this week is to advocate for older adults who still are driving and to educate everyone of the important relationship between access to transportation and active participation in one’s community. Mobility allows one to remain active, involved, motivated and confident in their abilities. This in turn helps improve well-being and reduces the barriers which are often imposed upon this age group due to stigma. We all realize that certain changes take place as we age and it is important to keep in mind that these changes are normal and that they will eventually happen to each of us. I encourage you all to be mindful and to help educate on the importance of driving safety instead of drawing assumptions solely based on someone’s age.

Ricky

Last Session ⟩
November 30, 2012, by Ricky

Fieldwork What are OS/OT?

My last day of fieldwork was this past Wednesday. For those of you who caught my post, “First Session,” from a few weeks back, I have continued to work with the same child. Fortunately, things have become so much easier. I’m learning to adapt, on the spot, to meet the child’s unique needs and interests on the given day — always focusing on goals and functional performance, of course. Things are much less awkward, but I still get nervous and feel unprepared before each session. My fieldwork educator has been very supportive and reassures that she still feels unprepared at times. And really, things always end up going a lot better than expected. It’s only been a few weeks, but I definitely see improvement in both my client and my therapeutic self. I’m learning to appreciate that patience is a very strong/important trait for me. My client would become easily frustrated and tantrum. Keeping a cool head and providing simple cues, very calmly and soothingly, really helped me cultivate an environment of tranquility for everyone. I’m happy to report that tantrums ceased after the first few sessions and that my client has become more tolerating of certain situations. Further, now that I am more comfortable, I have become more playful — and as I become more playful, I become more comfortable (oh what a terrible vicious cycle, haha!). I’m really grateful for this experience, and especially grateful to my client and his parents for trusting me and giving me the opportunity to practice being an OT . . . and for letting me sing. 😊

Kendra

Turkey traditions ⟩
November 28, 2012, by Kendra

Community School/Life Balance

So I know I’ve talked this semester occupations that connect us to our past like laundry and care giving. While the holiday season is the ‘most wonderful time of the year’ and the ‘season of giving.’ It’s also the season of stress, travel, finals, and so many cookies it makes my head spin.

What makes this time of year manageable are the traditions and chance to connect with family. This Thanksgiving I was thankful for my family’s long line of traditions and recipes that bind us together. Each Thanksgiving we cook old recipes, swap gifts, trim trees, and sing random songs I don’t think anyone outside my gene pool would know. Possibly the most important family recipe is my great-grandmother’s ‘Mimi’s buns,’ the world’s fluffiest potato biscuit ever. Ever. Now that I’m married I have to split the holidays, and its now more than ever that I am thankful for these traditions. Even though I am far away from my family, I can knead the dough, smell the rolls baking, and be transported back to my family and all the years we have performed this task. This also allows me to create traditions with my new family. As they bite into a bun, they are connecting to my great-grandparents and becoming a part of an old, and new, tradition. To me this all goes back to social support. It doesn’t have to be the physically present kind, its in the way the air smells as the buns bake and saying my grandfather’s blessing as we sit at the table that connects me to my social support no matter the distance.

Who’d a thought buns would make the holidays better?

So as we take part in black Fridays and cyber Mondays, pack our suitcases and ship presents think back to how it used to be. Does your family have traditions or recipes you can share with your framily (friend family) or in-laws? For thousands of years culture was passed down by tradition and storytelling. Even though we have the internet and can easily look up Ina Garten’s best recipe, what about your grandmother or great-grandmother’s recipe? The holidays are many things, but what they are across all faiths is a time to appreciate and love family. So as you sit down to feast after feast this year, think back and be thankful for the people who first found that pecan pie recipe, sewed the tablecloth, and wrote the blessing. Let your heritage connect you to now and shape your future.

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