FW Experience

The first day of Fieldwork I felt pretty nervous. I did not know what to expect from the employees. I was not sure of the range of functioning or the different levels of functioning. They had a lot more energy than I originally thought. There is definitely a wide range of disability between all of the employees.The first day we passed a ball around and had a "get to know you" session. We asked that they tell us their name, favorite color, special interests...etc. We also played a game of bowling with 2 liter bottles and a ball. We quickly figured out that we will have to have a lot of activities (and maybe some backup activities as well) as this group has limited attention spans. The second week I felt less nervous and was looking forward to seeing the group again! I am still feeling a little overwhelmed because the group is so large and they leave at different times and it is hard to keep track of everyone while doing an activity. This may get better the more that I see them and learn names and see about what time they leave... I have to lead the group next week, so I am planning, planning, planning! Hopefully it will be great!

In Every Mind There Is Magic

 So wow, it has finally started FIELDWORK!  This first field work placement we get to visit a site where each employee is assigned a specific job for their skill level.  We get there late in the day and everyone is either waiting to go home or waiting to see what these green OTAS have up their sleeve by the way of fun.  No pressure there right.  I had visited this site with the second years last summer and we had a blast so I was greatly looking forward to seeing some of the same faces again. 

We were greeted warmly with an abundance of "who are you?", "look what I have!", "what are we going to be doing?" etc.  Admittedly this was a little intimidating with 30+ adults looking at just the three of us.  It went "ok" that first day and gave each of us a lot more to consider for our next visit.  Overall we got most of the names down, a brief idea of their cognitive state and willingness to participate or not.

The second visit went much better in my opinion with more participation from those who needed a little more encouragement.  Of course there are the wonderfully outspoken set of folks that help keep it lively.  Than there are the in between set so to say who participate but who are rather reserved.  It is to them I was drawn most last week.  To see "my friend" laugh and tell me I don't follow directions at Simon says was amazing considering I hadn't heard her say a full word before that!  More and more come out of their shell to engage in our activities and that is so awesome :-)

It gives a lot to think about at  the end of the day like what activity can more people participate in?  How do I give just a little more 1:1 with certain ones that stay away from the group activities?  Every head is a different world we have all heard said - being allowed into to their world is such a privilege.

Finding Our Dreams

THE FUTURE BELONGS TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN THE BEAUTY OF THEIR DREAMS- Eleanor Roosevelt

     When I stepped into my fieldwork site for the first time I felt a little bit of trepidation. There I was, one of 4 adults, surrounded by 3,000 children! (okay, there were only 17) It was interesting to gauge their reaction--some wanted nothing to do with us, some of the little ones couldn't get enough of us, and then there were the ones who tried to attract attention by being loud, picking on others, and taking every opportunity to disrupt the flow of our meeting. In other words, they were typical kids. For a minute, it was easy to forget why we were there.
     These children, ages 4-17, have one thing in common---they have been uprooted from their former homes and forced to live under one roof, in a place of transition between family independence and life on the street. In their few short years they have faced more uncertainty about the future than I have in my entire life. On a daily basis, they are told what to do by teachers, adults who run the shelter, tutors and parents who are trying to avert crisis' themselves. And here we were, four more people entering their new home to tell them what to do. I don't blame them for testing us. Our first session appeared to be a lesson in survival.
     The next session started out a litte rocky, but they settled into small groups to work on a project meant to determine their sense of self and esteem. They made collages of words and pictures representing who they were, what they liked, or what they would like to be.
     One of the older children cut out pictures of diamonds and yachts and expensive watches. He said he wanted to be rich.
     A second kept pointing to pictures of guns and knives from a hunting magazine that had slipped into the mix. He didn't cut them out. He just pointed and asked if they could go on his collage. I wanted to say, "Of course you don't want knives on your picture, they're violent." Instead, I asked if they made him feel good. He said no and continued on until he found things that he liked. I couldn't decide if he was attracted to the pictures because they reminded him of something, because he was trying to see what my reaction would be, or because twelve-year-old boys think guns and knives are cool.
      The littlest one in the group didn't want to say or hear nice things about herself, or be told that her picture was pretty. However, she did show her collage to the group, so she is trying to reach out. Baby steps.
     After just a couple of weeks, they are all opening up in some small measure and don't mind the new grownups who have entered their world. Inside, they each have a story; something unique to share. My job is to help them find it. I want them to look forward to our time together, to show them fun, to give each one a few hours to be special. My job is to give them the opportunity to be kids with dreams.

  For more information on self-esteem go to http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/talk/self_esteem.html

First Time

Our first session...man, you can try to be prepared but there's nothing like going to a place for the first time. I was lucky because I just happened to choose my location for my support group. I was able to visit the house and meet a lot of people that night. The next day our lab group went and I got a real first hands on experience with the group. Then, was our first session. And it was pretty amazing. By this, the third time going, I kind of thought I knew what was about to happen, but I knew nothing. Really dividing into a group with these individuals and talking to them and listening to them is something. I was really nervous at first, working with these residents, and then being watched by our group members, teacher, and the recreational therapist. It felt like we were able to be judged with how we interacted. The environment quickly calmed me down and I was able to relax. My group members are great and I'm pretty sure they were just as nervous as I was, so we all had each other to look too during our session. The client's really enjoyed seeing ms G and joked around and talked with her. The rec. therapist was awesome and was really relaxed and answered any questions or helped us out when we seemed to get stuck or not know what to do. Our first session we just wanted to get to know each other, so it was a lot of questions being asked while we sat in a circle. Some of the answers we expected, such as where would you go if you could go anywhere? and the answer was, "the beach." But a lot of stuff caught us by surprise too. We had to learn about the individuals and where to draw the line as well. There were certain points we had to cut some off and times we couldn't react to others, and sometimes we HAD to react before they felt ignored. I was worried that we might bring up situations or questions that would have an adverse affect on the residents and we would make them sad/mad. We spent the whole session laughing and joking around! I'm pretty sure one of the most meaningful/shocking responses to me was when, and no idea how the subject came up, one of the guys started thanking god just to be alive and thanking 'him' for everything. Then others joined in and were like "yes, thank you lord for letting me still be here." That just blows my mind. Im pretty sure I would be a bit resentful and probably pissed if I was put into their situation. It's amazing to know how they feel after everything they've been through. They truly are fun to be around and I look forward to the rest of our sessions together.

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What it is

I was nervous at first to start fieldwork. I didn't know what to expect, I have never worked with TBI patients before and I just wanted to do everything right. My first impression was "wow these guys are great!" Everyone was super excited to see us and of course many compliments were given as well. The house is very nice, new and seems like there is plenty of space for all their needs. The patients seemed to get along with each other, you could tell they knew each other pretty well and they were joking back and forth and encouraging each other during tasks. I lead the first group session (second time being there) and it was a little challenging for me. The task was to paint bird houses made out of cardboard boxes. I expected everyone to cooperate and pay attention the whole time, but everyone seemed to be doing their own thing. The patients did not all come to the group at the same time, so we had to continuously set the patients up with the task and help them through it. It was great once everyone got started but there were a few patients that needed more assistance than others and some needed cueing to complete the task. I love the patients attitude, it doesn't matter what they are doing they are having a great time and thinking positively. The client that I am observing is very enjoyable, he has a great sense of humor, he has been at the house for about 12 years, and he is very mobile. His TBI caused him to be blind so he does need a lot of assistance with most tasks. However, he does try his hardest to be independent and he has a great attitude. I did notice some irritability in some patients and constant reminders having to be said because the patients didn’t understand or remember what they were being told to do by the staff. Each person is so different based on their background and injury. Some patients are very talkative and expressive and some are unable to express how they feel and/or they are unable to talk. I feel the need to encourage those patients more that perhaps want to say something but they can't or it takes them a while to process what they want to say. I want the patients to have equal opportunity amongst each other, therefore if someone is not given the opportunity or the cues to speak then they will never say anything. My best advice for someone working with TBI patients that have never worked with them before is get to know each patient the best you can as an individual and a patient. This is a concept we should always use as OTAs, but especially with TBI patients I feel that it's important to know their background and relate to them in that way. Also, you may have a patient that is having difficulty with something but knowing what makes them happy, or how to cue them could help immensely when trying to do a task. I really enjoy TBI patients and I would like to keep that as an option in the future.

This week's FW was a good experience.  Even though I was still a little nervous, I did feel more comfortable having met the residents earlier and getting a feel for the place.  I'm sure as we continue  to focus on and  connect with the residents I will be more relaxed.
We are working on social skills as part of our goals which includes proper interaction among the other residents and the workers at the facility.  Also, we were told that this helps to prepare the residents for any activities outside the facility.
Choosing activities is a learning experience within itself because several of the residents are very low functioning and you're not sure what they may respond to (or if they will respond at all).  Using sensory stimulation seems to work best with this group.  At one point while working one on one with a resident I realized that the most response that I could get out of him was a smile.  It was wonderful !  We worked together  on our greeting card activity and he was responsive but not as responsive as when I would get him to look at me and smile.  It helped me see therapeutic use of self at work.
I look forward to our next session.  This a great group to work with and I'm sure we will all learn and grow from our time together.

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