Student Blog
What are OS/OT?

My Favorite Summer Occupation! ⟩
July 15, 2016, by Megan

Classes Getting Involved What are OS/OT?

One of my all-time favorite occupations is working with kids. This week, I was fortunate enough to help out at a summer day-camp program. I have been involved with this program for 8 years now, and I have got to say it is one of the highlights of my summer. This year has been exciting and different, also, in that I have been able to apply material from the Lifespan Development and Psychology courses I took last semester. Both of these courses (which we take in the Bachelor’s to Master’s program) address fundamental aspects of the development of children, and have been so applicable in daily life this week.

One of my favorite parts about studying to become an OT is how the coursework can be applied to individuals I meet each day, across the lifespan. Even simple activities like working for a summer day-camp are able to reinforce and practically display the material I have learned as an OT major thus far.

I was especially excited this year to be working with a group of crazy, cautious, and adorable TWO-year-olds!! These little ones take a lot of energy and patience, but my heart just melts to see them grinning from ear to ear as we do various crafts, games, lessons and songs.

Not to mention, craft time this week looked a lot like the classrooms here that are currently set up for Creativity, Craft and Activity Analysis — a course the Entry Level Master’s students are currently taking! 😊

Another aspect of OT I have needed to use this week is creativity. Just as an OT takes each patient’s needs into consideration to establish a meaningful treatment plan, I have had to alter my approach when working one-on-one with each child. The toddlers in my group vary in their ability to verbally communicate, follow directions, complete activities . . . or even sit still for over 30 seconds. With this in mind, creativity has improved my ability to communicate with each child and ensured that our group has a productive and fun week!

Nothing I would rather do this week than hang out with these cute kids! Two-year-olds can be tiring, but SO much fun at the same time! If you have some free time and love kids as much as I do, I highly recommend volunteering at a day-camp or summer program!

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My Road to OT ⟩
May 19, 2016, by Megan

What are OS/OT?

For my first blog post, I am going to share a little about how I discovered occupational therapy! Now, I would be lying if I said that I had always known that this was my dream career. In fact, I spent most of my life dreaming of becoming an elementary school teacher. This dream may have been slightly influenced by the fact that my Mom and Grandma were both elementary school teachers — but, regardless, I was confident that I would follow in their footsteps. With a love for working with children and a desire to make an impact, I figured this was the most practical career for me to pursue. However, when I began volunteering as a preschool teacher, I could not help but feel as if something was missing. I loved being surrounded by children, watching the wonder in their eyes with each new discovery — but I felt restricted by the four walls of the classroom. I found myself frustrated by the generic approach I had to take to effectively teach all children, and desired a more individualized approach. What I truly loved about teaching were the one-on-one moments with students, the times when I could truly understand and engage with each student. However, because I started volunteering at this preschool at quite a young age, my dreams about the future seemed rather premature. I decided to put all this career planning on the back-burner until something truly caught my attention.

Almost as soon as I made this decision, I stumbled upon occupational therapy. The word “stumbled” could not be more accurate — I found OT through an experience I never saw coming. In the spring of 2009, I was admitted to the hospital following lapses in memory and irregular changes in behavior. Following two grand mal seizures, I was admitted to the hospital where I was diagnosed and treated for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. While receiving chemotherapy transfusions and attending various rehabilitative sessions, I was exposed to a large variety of healthcare professionals. However, the endless support and reassurance I received from my occupational therapist has impacted me to this day. At a time where I felt so scared and helpless, she was able to bring peace. I remember feeling so triumphant when I was able to tie my own shoes or sign my name on a piece of paper. This occupational therapist was a source of light to my family in a time of such hardship. Once recovering and being discharged from the hospital, I could not stop thinking about how much this occupational therapist impacted me. I did know, however, that I wanted to be like her. I wanted to give back to others, to offer the same hope that I received all those years ago.

To be honest, I did not ever expect to find my future career this way. However, I am so thankful to have found such a fulfilling profession. I am equally as thankful to have had the opportunity to be a patient, and to have experienced firsthand how much impact an occupational therapist can have in someone’s life.

With each day I learn more about occupational therapy, I become more in love with the profession. Rather than feeling generic or formulaic, occupational therapy breeds creativity and innovative thinking. This profession is able to combine my fascination with the complexity of the human body with my utmost desire to give back to those in need, and I could not be more thrilled to be on the path toward becoming an OT!

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The POT of LUCK at the End of The Year Rainbow ⟩
April 28, 2016, by Rashelle

Beginnings and Endings Classes Community What are OS/OT?

Today is officially my last day of classes within the the Two-Year Master of Arts degree program for Occupational Therapy! This week my biggest stressors were preparing enough food to accommodate all of the potlucks that we have in celebration!

On Monday, the second year bible study leaders handed off the torch to the first year leaders with a wonderful picnic.

On Tuesday, we had our final practicum in OT 599: Occupation-Based Adult Neurorehabilitation, then celebrated with a giant feast!

Then, today for my final class assignment, I will facilitate a group in OT 583: Lifestyle Redesign. I am a member of the group focused on, “Sensory Strategies for Wellness,” which Joe had previously mentioned in his blog. To lead this session I prepared different food items for my group members to sample. Each item was intentionally picked to serve as either an alerting or calming gustatory stimuli, in order to regulate one’s emotions and stress throughout the day.

While my session is targeting taste as a sensory strategy for wellness, my classmates have led the groups prior, which discuss the other senses. Thus, to summarize and provide closure to our group, I also created this worksheet to remind everyone of what we have learned throughout our semester.

Essentially, we built a toolkit of sensory strategies, to serve as a visual reminder, whenever we experience those emotions listed. I can’t wait to be able to utilize this with clients in the near future!

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Fun Fridays: Fave Occupations Edition ⟩
April 22, 2016, by Joe

Classes What are OS/OT?

To cap off our Lifestyle Redesign course, we develop our own 5 week group program as a team. Each team gets to decide the theme or lifestyle area they want to address as a group; some group topics include “sensory strategies for wellness,” “life management skills” (e.g., finances, time management, etc.), and “healthy eating.” My group theme is “exploring recreation,” so each week, one of us leads the rest of the group in trying out a new recreational or leisure activity. Here’s a peak at some faves.

Check us out with our hip scarves! Our Lifestyle Redesign professor, Camille Dieterle, joined us in the dance too, but we were having too much fun to take any action shots.

Our group is also going to explore cooking, coloring, and gymnastics. It’s a really fun class, but I’m about ready for a nap . . .

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Rehabilitation with Motor Control ⟩
February 19, 2016, by Heather

Classes What are OS/OT?

Hello Springtime!

Apologies for my blogging absence these past few weeks – I have been extremely immersed in my classes. I am absolutely thrilled about my course load this semester. I am taking two required courses, Advanced Seminar in Occupational Science and Leadership Capstone. The electives that I am taking are Motor Control, Physical Agent Modalities, Hand Rehabilitation, and an Independent Study in Human Anatomy. The classes overlap very well, and I find myself learning a great deal in the areas of practice that I am most passionate about.

The Motor Control course takes place at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital, or as we call it, “Rancho.” Rancho is well known for its rehabilitation program, especially its occupational therapy programs. Many of the case studies that we have learned about in class have come straight from patients at Rancho, or from our professor’s clinical experience working at Rancho. Many of USC’s OT doctorate candidates and doctors practice at Rancho, and are actively involved in the Motor Control class.

The Motor Control class is focused on stroke rehabilitation in Rancho’s inpatient unit. This is very meaningful for me because of my history of working with my grandma after she suffered from a stroke. My experience of working with her is what led me to occupational therapy in the first place. It made me realize that I liked being in the position of helping others as I witnessed her recovery. Sometimes it takes a crisis to realize what you are good at.

So far in Motor Control, I have drawn upon my knowledge of human anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, and body biomechanics. We are largely focused on getting certain muscle groups activated in our clients. (Side bar: we practice on each other for a few weeks before we are introduced to actual patients in the second half of the course). We are taught that before we can work on ADLs/IADLs with a patient, we need to ensure that they can move in certain ways for functional performance. We begin by facilitating movement at the pelvis, and then move on to the trunk and scapula. If we cannot facilitate movement easily, we mobilize these certain areas which requires a more hands-on approach. Additionally, we learn how to use orthotics and tools that have proven to be effective in stroke rehabilitation. With practice and clinical experience, we will begin to realize what treatment techniques will be most useful for our patients to regain function.

I have learned from Motor Control, and from my Grandma’s recovery, that the basic tenet of stroke rehabilitation stems from the idea that all activity should be purposeful in recovery. I look forward to working directly with the patients in the second half of the course.

This class has truly united my vocation with my avocation, and I am so thrilled to be even further along my road to becoming a licensed OT in just a few months!

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