Student Blog
Adding Variety ⟩
January 28, 2013, by Amber
With the start of a new semester and new year, I have made a goal to incorporate a greater variety of occupations into my daily life. I am not calling this a resolution, since I feel that the general attitude towards resolutions is that they are expected to be broken. I am thinking of this more as an occupational therapist implementing lifestyle redesign on herself. Last semester in my Health Promotion and Wellness Course I completed an activity called the Balance Wheel, in which you color-code your day according to the types of occupations in which you participate. I was expecting a very one-dimensional result, but to see a graphic representation was alarming: the one color representing schoolwork taking up all but a few minutes of my typical day. I realized that this lack of variety in my occupations was probably the cause of my occasionally overwhelming levels of stress. Ever since completing that activity, I have made an effort to be more aware of the way I spend my time.
With the new schedule of this semester, I am determined to get into a routine that is more diverse health-promoting. I have added exercise into my schedule nearly every day of the week. To keep my interest high, I am doing various activities like running, walking, yoga, and dance. I have even dusted off my Wii balance board to play fitness games at home. I am also making an effort to be more active socially within my demanding study schedule. For example, yesterday I went to Sunday brunch at a friend’s home. I set a time limit for how long I would stay, so I would have time to complete my studies for the upcoming week. It was nice to visit with friends and have a break in the middle of the day. I am hopeful that I will be able to maintain this new routine, increase the variety in my typical day, and decrease my stress!
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Data Phone! ⟩
January 24, 2013, by Ricky
Oh my goonies! So up until two weeks ago I had a classic, no-nonsense (and no data) flip-phone. The main reason for holding-out on the data was that I just couldn’t afford it. Sure I could save up for the phone, but what about the monthly $30 perpetuity? These are things an ex-accountant thinks about. So I reasoned, ‘what’s the point — besides, it is a phone after-all . . . a device that can make and receive telephone calls, right?’ Boy, was I wrong. The productivity that these little “miracle boxes” afford, indisputably trumps the cost. These things are no longer phones — how many people do you even catch anymore using their phones to make a long-winded phone-call? No, they are much more than that. That is, if you use them for the power of good. I can totally see how data phones can readily become a distraction, but if you consider it a tool versus a toy, then it can make you better. Life is fast these days — especially for a working graduate student. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve missed opportunities because I was the last one to check the email, or because I didn’t have my calendar memorized or in my pocket. Productivity tools like the list app called WorkFlowyare making me more efficient. Oh, and one more thing about apps, Google Maps (end of apps discussion). Yep, things are going well for me and my data phone. If I ever had to go back to the trusty ‘ol flip-phone, I think I could pull it off, but I just don’t want to.
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Revelations in Lifestyle Redesign ⟩
January 23, 2013, by Kendra
During my Lifestyle Redesign class this morning, we were instructed to get into dyads and practice coaching techniques. The specific one we were working on involved asking the client to identify complaints and then assist them to reframe that complaint or area of struggle in a positive light and/or identify strategies to help combat that complaint.
Many sessions went like this:
OTS: What is an area of complaint for you?
Client: I am not getting enough sleep. I only slept two hours last night.
OTS: Wow, you must have a lot of important things going on in your life!
It seems simple, and perhaps silly, but the student that played the part of the client in this dyad remarked that she felt validated and the stress of having not slept was more bearable when she looked at it in a different light. It made her more interested and willing to hear what the OT had to say, and more receptive to identifying and making changes in her life.
Often times these simple strategies of, basically, just listening and affirming the client make a huge difference and create a positive relationship between the client and therapist. I loved it!
So what happened in my dyad you ask? Well mine went a little differently, but it was simply amazing!
OTS: What is an area of complaint for you?
Me: This new schedule is stressing me out, I feel like I’m not organized and don’t have a grasp on everything that’s expected of me.
OTS: That sounds stressful. What are some things you’re doing to deal with that stress?
Me: Well I feel better since yesterday when I bought binders and organizing materials.
OTS: Do you have a to-do list?
Me: Yes I do. In fact it’s right here, it has everything on it, and I take it everywhere I go.
OTS: So it seems that you’re doing really well dealing with the stress and you seem to already have a system that helps you manage everything.
Me: You’re right, I do!
OTS: You do! You’re doing great, just don’t forget you already know how to handle all this!
Crazy right!? I had the list on me! I wrote everything down, crossed things out, but when I was not actively doing that the stress of everything else burdened me so much I forgot I had already taken steps to get organized and stay on top of everything. Oh how blinding stress can be!
This just calls to mind how the job of an OT can vary from complex to simple but both are meaningful, important interactions that carry the potential to change the way a person views, and interacts with, life!
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Fun in the Sun ⟩
January 22, 2013, by Amber
Living in LA School/Life Balance
After just one short week back in school, I was gifted with five days off over this Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend. I had already hunkered down mentally for the semester, so it was pleasantly jarring to realize I had five days of freedom ahead. And as if on cue, the winter decided to take a break and become summer for a while. Being a Northern California native, it will never cease to amaze me that there are days throughout the winter when one can have a proper beach day in Southern California, bikini and all. Armed with said bikini, along with bikes, roller blades, boogie boards, and surf boards, my husband and I escaped to the beach for two days. I spent a good amount of time perfecting my boogie boarding skills, which are meager to say the least. We enjoyed a long bike ride along The Strand, picking out which beach mansion we would most like to live in. We soaked up the sun, visited with various friends, and I even got a tan! It was a beautiful weekend, and I feel rejuvenated as I start my semester this week in earnest.
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Back At It ⟩
January 17, 2013, by Ricky
Day 4 of the new semester! I hadn’t fully comprehended how I’d be putting in 11–12 hr days. Don’t be alarmed, that’s only 2 days a week. The cool thing is, I have very light days just after to recover. So far it doesn’t even matter because I’m absolutely loving my courses. That may have something to do with the fact that I got to choose them. That’s not to say that some of the courses I’ve completed to date aren’t great; I’m just saying it’s always better when you hand pick ‘em. So one of courses is a USC OT staple: Sensory Integration (SI). SI is an approach that was pioneered by USC’s own A. Jean Ayres. My professor was a student of Ayres’ and is very accomplished in her own right. So exciting! Another of my self-selected electives is the Motor Control best-practice course at a renowned local rehabilitation hospital. This class is a late one, but I don’t think I’ll have any trouble staying awake seeing as how yesterday was our first day and already we were practicing transfers. So hands-on — I love it! The instructor is very engaging as well. Well, let me see how today’s 12 hr-day goes, and I’ll check in with ya’ll shortly. Oh, also, what’s the deal with Manti Te’o? C’mon bro, really?
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