Imposter Syndrome

 

What is imposter syndrome? It is a phenomenon where an individual feels they are not competent enough as others may see them. This can lead to the fear and worry of others possibly finding out, when in real life, may not mean anything to people. This is a common thing to have as a Level II fieldwork student or entry-level OT practitioner. In addition there are ways to cope with imposter syndrome on a daily basis. One being to reflect on what was learned throughout the didactic portion of school and relate it to the current situation. Another way to cope is to accept the positive feedback and compliments for the handwork being done. Furthermore, seek out mentorship, because this is a very important learning experience that will increase our clinical skills and allows for us to feel more confident in our practice. Lastly, perfectionism can be a strength as well as a weakness and acknowledging that will go a long way. 

There is a quiz that I had the opportunity to take called the Imposter Phenomenon Rating Scale Test. After answering the 20 questions, I found myself to be in the score between 41 - 60 meaning the respondent has moderate IP experiences. In reality, I do feel that I am about min-mod when it comes down to it. It is something I can work, as stated above. I have also been feeling imposter syndrome leading up to my first Level II fieldwork. I can only hope that as I go in to this new stage of life that I learn and grow from my opportunities I will be given and decreasing my IP score. 

Locus of Control

 

    Based on Rotter's social-learning theory of personality, the phrase "Locus of Control" (LoC) has become the main part of this particular framework. Based upon a video, it created a break down of what each term means. The term "locus" is defined as the position or location where something occurs. The term "control" is defined as an outcome determined by direct influence of actions, people, and events. Overall, this framework refers to a person's beliefs about who or what can control what happens in their life. There are two terms that signify what we are as a person - internal locus of control and external locus of control. For internal locus of control, these are the people that believe they play a big part in shaping their future. Whereas, external locus of control believe that things just happen to them. They attribute their success to outside sources. There is a questionnaire that can be taken called "Rotter's Locus of Control Scale" that determines if the person is internal or external locus of control. 

    After I took the questionnaire, it was determines that I was internal locus of control. I do have to agree with some of that. For example, I tend to blame myself if I miss an opportunity that I could have had - I didn't study hard enough. Internal locus of control is also based on those who take action on a good or bad situation. As well as good team players. For external locus of control, those individuals tend to blame others. For example, if a person didn't graduate on time, the person may blame it on the professors. As mentioned in the video we had the opportunity to watch, I am someone who can bounce between both internal and external locus of control. I have to admit that I have blamed others in the past when it wasn't their fault, because I felt stressed or anxiety. However, I also am one who blames myself for different things - I tend to be hard on myself.  

    Having read more about locus of control, I now have a better understanding of this concept. Going forward, I can use this concept as a way to be a better OT practitioner. I feel that being more of internal locus of control I will have a greater impact on my clients. I don't want to blame my clients for something they cannot control. In addition, as a future OT practitioner, this is also important to keep in mind when with a client. We can potentially use this questionnaire as a means to clarify the persons locus of control. This can help us determine reasoning behind behaviors or personalities and figure out an appropriate way to work with that client. 

Media Project - Straw Weaving

 

For my media project, my materials included straws. I also added yarn/string to the project. 

 

My client is named Barbara, she has relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. She enjoys doing crafts as well as sewing. She is also a co-leader in her local Multiple Sclerosis support group. She was recently admitted to acute care in the hospital, due to a relapse/flare-up. My client has weakness in her lower and upper extremities preventing her from doing her daily tasks and occupations efficiently. I started off thinking, that I can create many activities or interventions with straws. The question was, did it serve Barbara’s purpose and center around her interests and values? I came up with straw weaving. It is exactly how it sounds. In the video above, I briefly show how this activity or intervention is done. So, check it out!

 

My “ah-ha” moment was when I found the idea of straw weaving. I knew I wanted to create an intervention for Barbara that would be valuable to her. As I stated above, she loves to sew and do crafts. I thought, for this intervention, you get the best of both worlds. Barbara can use as many straws as she likes to create something special along with the numerous colors of yarn that is provided. She is also able to do this at home and become more creative with materials. In doing this project, I was able to watch more videos on Multiple Sclerosis and learn more in depth details on symptoms and the everyday life of those who have this disease. This allowed me to brainstorm and come up with this project. My goal for this intervention, was to work on not only fine motor skills, but upper extremity strengthening. It helps work the fingers, hands, and the arms which are all weak for Barbara. She also has increased fatigue since relapsing, so I would have her sitting for this activity to save her energy. I wanted to focus on this goal, because I know how much she loves to do crafts and sew as well as be independent in her daily tasks. I feel that this intervention will allow her to work towards doing the things she loves and could potentially help increase her ability to do things like upper body dressing, which she needs moderate assistance with. Overall, after completing this assignment, I feel that it will help me with more projects that are to come. It helped me really think and use my knowledge on what is best for Barbara. I can also use this intervention for individuals that are having the same symptoms. It not only works the UE, but it also works the mind and allows the individual to be expressive and innovative.

Spinal Cord Injury

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/

    Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI) can be caused from motor vehicle accidents, falls, violence and even sports. The injury can be complete (the nerves below the injury cannot communicate with the brain) or incomplete (some nerve signals can still be sent to the brain, even below the injury). Depending on where the injury is depends on how much function the individual has. For example, if a client has a C4 or higher SCI, then they may not be able to breath on their own and require a ventilator. Another example is if a client has a C7 SCI, they cannot move their LE and trunk, but can still move their shoulders, elbows, hands, and are limited wit their fingers. A person with a SCI can experience paralysis, spasms, bowel and bladder incontinence, etc. There are different types of SCI's as well as different conditions that come along with having a SCI. 

    I decided to write on Spinal Cord Injuries, because I recently watched a movie called "The Upside." It is based on a true story and of you have not watched it, you should definitely head over to Amazon Prime Video and watch it! It is just over a 2 hour movie that has some well known actors within it. 

Dementia

    Dementia is a difficult thing to have to bare. I recently read an article about a daughter and her dad who was battling dementia. A little background information, is that her dad did go to medical school at the University of Minnesota, but it wasn't long after, that World War II began. He did take some time off to be an archaeologist, but went into the war, after it broke out more. The daughter stated that her dad was based in the Mohave Desert, when he all of a sudden passed out from the heat, hitting his head against the hard desert floor and sustained a closed head injury. He was in a coma for months and when he woke, he had to relearn how to walk and talk again. He had a successful rehabilitative process, and actually stayed in the army until World War II ended - he just stayed stateside.

    Years had passed raising a family and as the dad aged, he began to retain fluid build up behind the scar tissue he had in his brain, from the injury back in his army days. He underwent surgery to drain some of that fluid and it "backfired" as the daughter stated. He came out of surgery with a severe stage of dementia and went by the name Herman. While being placed in a nursing home, the "Herman" began to ask when certain awards or degrees would be coming in the mail. It can be tricky as to how to go about assessing certain situations with a loved one who has dementia. For "Herman's" daughter, she felt it was best to play along, because it caused no harm and brought purpose, peace, and accomplishment to the person she loved. If that meant her going home and creating a fake degree with her dads name or buying a baton or an award for directing the Lawrence Welk band, she did what she could to make him satisfied. 

Myasthenia Gravis

Myasthenia Gravis is a neuromuscular disorder that causes weakness in the skeletal muscles of the body. The communication between nerve cells and muscles become impaired. This autoimmune disease mistakenly causes the immune system to attack itself. In the video, it stated that the antibodies block the receptors for acetylcholine at the nerve-muscle connection, keeping the muscle from working properly. Symptoms include drooping of the eyelids and mouth, difficulty swallowing and chewing, weak muscles, and vision impairments. 

I had the opportunity to watch a video about a young girl named Sheryl, who was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis when she was 16 years old. She started to notice symptoms while in school. Her eyelids began to droop as well as her mouth when she was at lunch, which made it hard for her to eat and drink something. Sometimes, she would even have to hold her mouth shut, so the liquid would not come out. Finally, she mentioned her symptoms to her mom, which then led her to an eye specialist. They ran some tests and came to the conclusion that she did have Myasthenia Gravis. Sheryl had to miss school for three whole months, due to her being in and out of the hospital. 

"My Beautiful Broken Brain"

Retrieved from: https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/first-look-at-netflix-original-documentary-my-beautiful-broken-brain/

        

I watched the documentary “My Beautiful Broken Brain” that is on Netflix. It is about a 34 year old woman, by the name of Lotje, who woke up one night due to having a bad headache. However, it wasn’t just an oncoming migraine, it actually wound up being a intracerebral hemorrhagic stroke. Lotje was a social person who loved to read, write, and film things. For the next year, she was going to have to spend her time relearning words and phrases.

            For Lotje, just hours after her stroke happened, she was not able to speak. After a few days’ things started coming back. However, she still struggled with finding the right words or phrases when trying to speak to someone. For example, she could look at something and know what it is, but it was very hard for her to say the correct word. She would point to a record for a record player and really wrestle with trying to say the actual word “record.” She would have to ask her friend to repeat the word and once she heard it, she was able to actually repeat it back. Although, if just a few seconds went by and she was asked what that object was, she wouldn’t be able to repeat it back. This was something Lotje dealt with on a regular basis and made it frustrating for her. Along with that, her vision in her right eye was starting to change. Lotje stated that since her stroke, she experienced louder noises and brighter colors. She also battled unlocking doors and had dreams that would make her confused on if they were a dream or reality. Halfway into her recovery, she had a seizure and was sent to the hospital. There Lotje found out that she had an epileptic episode. These seizures can become common after having a stroke.