Let's Get Down To Business

...to defeat the Huns!

This Mulan quote explains exactly what I must do now.  Well, besides defeating the Huns part.  I am now feeling pretty confident with where I am with my researching and organizing the 4th section of my capstone paper.  I have not begun actually writing but I have a clear plan the research to accompany it.  It is time for me to get down to business and actually write this thing.  This weekend I plan to get a large chunk of my paper written.  This topic is very interesting to me so I will enjoy writing this paper.  I have talked with my supervisor at Children's and I have contacted my aunt and friend who are both physical therapists.  I am excited to get the opinions of the people actually in the field because I think that will be some of the best information I can get, because it will be very practical.  I have about 5 books from the library that I am referencing for this paper.  They are about an array of topics and I will choose some of the more pertinent sections of each book to read in depth.

This research is a lot of fun and very interesting still and I am learning so much.  Though because it is psychology and physical therapy, there are some claims from people that to me are hard to believe.  Here is a quote from a woman who did a Psycho-Physical Therapy workshop.

"This workshop I took on Saturday February 18th changed my life!! I became embodied in a different way during an exercise there and it has affected my body in how I walk! The physical therapist can’t explain the range of motion I now have in my injured hip since I have started relaxing my spine!! He doesn't think I need to see the orthopedist now!! Thanks Bill!!"

This sounds cool and everything, but I find it hard to believe completely.  This woman is saying one day of therapy has completely changed her life.  Maybe it is true and I am being too skeptical, but I want to find real practical solutions for everyone.  This the type of thing I am trying to sift through, to find the realistic options for psychology and physical therapy.   So I will now go get immersed in my paper and more research.  This should be fun!

Maturity

In Gerad Egan's book, The Skilled Helper, there are some outlined tasks that must be completed to become a mature adult.  Tasks such as become an active role in life, become independent, diversify yourself, develop enduring interests, have some leadership positions, and control your destiny.  I agree with most of his thoughts about how to become a mature adult.   

But I also think another piece that wasn't addressed is the skill to have an on off switch.  Let me explain myself.  I am in marching band and we have to get a lot of work done, but we also have a lot of fun.  A major skill that separates the mature people from everyone else is the ability to easily switch the fun switch with the hard-working switch.  When we are working for 12 hours a day, we need to be able to have some fun and relax, but we also have to get things done.  The people who can work hard but also have fun, I think are the best people to have in band.  The people that only have work and not have any fun are usually uptight and stressing a lot and more critical of others.  The people who only have fun get obnoxious and disregard all focus and do not get any work done.  There has to be a middle ground.  The ability to have an on off switch, to know when it is time to work and when it is time to have fun.

I think that my high school has allowed me to grow into a mature adult, but I don't think they have pushed me to do so either.  I think I have been influenced more by my church and my family to become the person I am today.  My high school did not hinder me, but they did not help me along the way.  But I think the steps to adulthood cannot be forced upon anyone, otherwise it proves they are truly not an adult.  It has to come partially from within.  No one can just hand it to you, it is becoming more of yourself.  The person you want to become, not the one someone else is telling you to be. 

YOU have to be the one to seek out the activities you are interested or YOU need to start that club.  YOU need to take responsibilities for your actions.  YOU need to be in charge of your learning and not expect to be spoon fed everything.  YOU need to do what you love and love what you do.  YOU need to experiment and fail and learn for yourself.  YOU need to realize that you are an example to others even if you aren't in an official leadership position.  YOU need to realize that you control a great extent of your future.  YOU need to do the necessary things to get to where you want to be.  What are other characteristics of a mature adult?  Do you possess them?  What can you do to make you into the person you wish to be? 

Volunteering :)

Today was my first day volunteering at Cincinnati Children's Hospital at the Mason branch in the Physical Therapy department.  I thought it was awesome! 

I love to volunteer and this is the kind of volunteering where it is not a tedious job, but where you see a need and fill that need.  I see the tables that need cleaning and clean them or see someone needs an ice pack so I go get it or make it.  I love these kind of jobs because I am directly helping someone. 

I spent a little over two hours there today and I loved every minute of it!  I was able to observe a lot of exactly what physical therapists do as well because it is a small room with a lot going on.  I think this is going to be a great experience and I can't wait to get as involved as I can.  It is one of those activites I cannot calm down afterwards, I am just too excited!  Even though I am not doing the same exact thing I hope to be doing for a job someday, I know this is where I want to be.  All my paperwork and medical records took about a month to complete because of the shots I needed.  Because it was taking so long, I started to get discouraged that I wouldn't be able to do this due to the fact that I am leaving for college in less that 5 months (wow).  But I am so glad I have this experience!  :)

If you are interested in this, here is the link to Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.  It is ranked the third best children's hospital in the nation.  If you too are interested in volunteering somewhere there, all the information is in the volunteering section under the giving tab. 

Positive Psychology

Is the glass half full, or half empty?

The most interesting thing I learned this week was actually in my psychology class.  We have been studying personality and part of personality is optimism vs. pessimism.  I found that there are some interesting correlations between optimists and health.  Optimists live longer and have fewer illnesses than their pessimist friends.  This is interesting because it shows that the way you think about things affects you biological health. 

Knowing this information makes me wonder how the perspective someone has affects the recovery process. Is the the perspective someone has very important to their physical health and recovery?  Before, I was only finding information about people who thought they could heal themselves through solely thinking they are better.  Now, I am finding some practical mental perspectives that can help someone stay healthier or get better quicker.  Finding positive psychology, specifically positive health for physical and mental wellbeing, is the main avenue I will stay in to see how this could affect the recovery process.  There is a lot of research done on the perspective of people by the founder of positive psychology Dr. Martin Seligman.  This is a cool link I found about positive health.

Through researching it more and kind of stumbling upon it, I have found a great psychological avenue to focus more of research on. This week's research has been focused on the psychological aspect and next week I plan to look more at the phyiscal aspect by interviewing some physical therapists. 

Mind and Body

I found out this week that my project may be a lot harder that I originally thought.  I am attempting to combine the sciences, biology and anatomy, with a soft science, psychology.  Psychology is a soft science because it is different for almost every person, though there are some universal themes.  Psychology also has a lot of confounding variables that are difficult to take all into account.  For example, some aspects of psychology that affect just the recovery process are the support of family and friends, the was you see yourself, your level of optimism, your financial situation, your goals, and many other things.  There are a lot of factors, and I am trying to see holistically how much they affect the physical recovery of someone.

But even with this challenge I am determined to find some kind of answer.  I truly think that psychology has a huge impact of how a person can recover physically.  I have found multiple sources that hint at this correlation, but most are either from solely physical or psychological perspective.

I find my whole project interesting because from everything I have seen and a lot of sources I have found there seems to be relatively no emphasis on the mind.  It is all physical.  But I guess that should be expected because we are in a physical world.  We enjoy watching sweaty guys tackle other sweaty guys for fun.  We've only recently begun to even care about their mental health and the diseases the players can get from playing football.

One of my friends got a really really severe concussion.  One of her first concerns with her concussion was whether she would be able to play lacrosse this season.  She came back to school after about 4 weeks of staying at home in a dark room doing nothing.  She also began to go to lacrosse practice and games.  She has missed school since because it still hurts her to think sometimes.  But there is so much pressure to be well enough to play, that she sometimes ignores warning signs.  She wants to be back to normal and is persistent on getting fully recovered.  But is she physically ready to begin again?  Where is the balance between the mental and physical?

It is the balance of the mind and body.  And spirit.  We need to be able to balance these and not emphasize one more than another because that does not make a healthy person.  Is it harder to balance these than some people think?  Should there be more programs that make sure all these aspects are met and not just one?  How much does one truly help or hurt the other?  I hope to answer some of these questions and I am excited to continue my research.

Perspective

There are two general perspectives when you get in a rough place.

I’m Tired I’m worn
My heart is heavy
From the work it takes
To keep on breathing
I’ve made mistakes
I’ve let my hope fail
My soul feels crushed
By the weight of this world

Lose our way,
We get back up again,
So get up, get up,
You gonna shine again,
Never too late to get back up again,
You may be knocked down,
But not out forever

I thought these two songs captured the two perspectives we can have when we face struggles.  We can see them as wearing and beating us down or we can see them as a place where we can begin again stronger.  When someone has a  physical injury, does perspective matter that much?  I want to find that out with my project.

Successful Researcher

What does a successful researcher do?
Successful researchers have a true interest in the topic and they really want to seek out information.  I think a good researcher doesn't stop until they are able to find the answer and are always coming up with new questions to research.  Successful researchers are smart about how they get information and they are productive with their time.
 
Attributes necessary for productivity:

1. Organized- I need to keep everything in a logical order and keep my Diigo and Google docs on the same page and neat so I can use them both effectively.  Also I need to keep my annotated bibliography current so it is easier to cite everything in the end. 
2. Good Time Management Skills- I need to use my class time effectively and also set aside a little time each week at home to complete my project and to stay on top of things.   
3. Truly Questioning- I need to stay engaged in this topic, because if I am not engaged, then this will be more of a burden then a learning experience.  
4. Meet with Variety of People- I need to find time to meet with a variety of people, especially physical therapist and/or psychologists.  I have a realistic list of 5 people right now.  I think that first hand experience with the topic will be vital to make this applicable.  
5. Listen to Music- I need to listen to music while I work.  It helps me focus and block out the world.  I always have on my music when I do homework and will continue this to be productive with this project.  
6. Be Awake- I need to make sure that whenever I do work on this project, that I am awake.  If I am tired, I am probably half as productive as I could be if I were awake.
7. Limited Distractions- I need to make sure I am focused, and the most distracting thing to me, is other people talking or doing other things.  So to be productive, I work best alone.