Student Blog
Amber
Break Time ⟩
December 18, 2012, by Amber
Well, school is officially out for winter break and I am free for the next month. Whenever I have a long break from classes, a seemingly endless list of things I want to do immediately forms in my mind. Among the items on my list: play the piano, craft several Christmas presents, re-learn Photoshop, read a novel, catch up with a dozen different friends, and travel to two other states for Christmas and New Year celebrations. Needless to say, I never seem to accomplish even a fraction of my “to do” list. What I have managed to do so far is spend two days at Disneyland and organize my paperwork and binders from the fall semester. And it’s already time to leave on my three-week, three-state jaunt. I am looking forward to visiting family and friends that I don’t see as often as I would like. And nothing beats the celebration on Christmas Eve when my entire extended family gets together, each with their trademark potluck dish in tow. It’s a wonderful, warm time of year and I’m going to enjoy every moment of it.
My cat is not as thrilled as I am about Christmas.
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Crossing the Finish Line ⟩
December 12, 2012, by Amber
Well, it’s already finals week and I’ve almost completed another semester of grad school! I cannot believe how quickly the time has passed, particularly this semester. My schedule was especially packed as I took on part-time work this school year. It has felt very good to finish up one class after another, starting last Friday when I presented a community program that I had created with a group. That project was the culmination of an entire semester’s work in my community programming course, and we presented our poster along with all of our classmates in an inspiring display of creativity and hard work. I felt proud to explain my program to other students and faculty that attended the presentation. Today, I turned in a lengthy case study paper for my Health Promotion and Wellness course. I also took a final exam for my Adult Physical Rehabilitation and Geriatrics immersion course. In addition to the written exam, we will have a lab practicum tomorrow morning where we will execute an actual occupational therapy session based on a case study. What am I going to do in a mere 18 hours when all of this hard work is complete? I’m going to Disneyland! I am looking forward to celebrating the end of the year with Mickey and relaxing at last.
My poster presentation
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Wrapping Up ⟩
December 5, 2012, by Amber
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!
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Cancer Can’t Catch Caryn ⟩
November 27, 2012, by Amber
It’s challenging being a graduate student. The constant demands of schoolwork can become overwhelming at times. Now imagine doing it with cancer. My classmate and friend Caryn is fighting Hodgkin’s lymphoma and has been undergoing chemotherapy for the past two months. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for her to continue with life as usual. Yet Caryn shows up to class every day with a smile and infectious laugh. She continues to excel academically, conquering midterms and continuing her role as Co-President of our honor society. She is even training for a half marathon in January, raising money to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
To say Caryn is an inspiration is an understatement. So after learning that she shaved her head this weekend, the occupational therapy class of 2013 mobilized a response. On Monday, every single member of our class of 130 people wore hats or scarves in a show of love and support for our friend. It was incredibly touching and more than a few tears were shed. We will continue to support Caryn in any way that we can while she continues her fight!
Fight On, Caryn!
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The Diversity of Occupational Therapy ⟩
November 19, 2012, by Amber
Today in my Health Promotion and Wellness class we had a guest lecture from Alix Sleight, a doctoral program resident at our faculty practice. She has focused her studies on the role of occupational therapists in hospice care. Hospice is care that is designed to support patients and their families at the end of life. Care can be provided in the patient’s home, at a freestanding facility, or in a hospital unit. It was very interesting to hear about this type of care, as there are not many occupational therapists currently working in this area of practice. As part of an interdisciplinary team, an occupational therapist can help the patient by affirming life (maintaining independence and comfort) and preparing for death (wrapping up affairs, mending relationships). Interventions can include coping strategies for decline, stress and anxiety management, energy conservation, adaptive equipment, environmental modifications, caregiver education, advocacy, to name a few. Alix did a wonderful job addressing spirituality and the importance of addressing this topic with our patients. The majority of hospice patients are older adults, so the lecture was of particular interest to me. The practice area I’m most interested in is geriatrics, so it was wonderful to learn about this critical period in their lives and how I can help facilitate a peaceful transition.
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