A Glyph on Leadership

I drew a square face because I believe leadership is something that can be learned, however I do believe that some leaders are born with that trait as well. I drew small eyes because I do not think all OT’s are leaders but that does not mean they do not have the capacity to learn how to be a leader. Also, I think a person can be a leader without knowing they are a leader. This is a fun activity to complete and is very insightful.

Internal locus of control

Internal locus of control is the extent to which someone believes events in their lives happen as a result of their own actions. For example, if I randomly start to gain weight it is directly because I am not taking care of my body which is a direct result of my weight gain. I believe internal locus of control can be true, however some events happen that we do not have control over. Of course, people’s actions have an affect on what happens in their life, but a person cannot control everything that happens to them. Psychologist say that if a person has an internal locus of control mindset then they are more likely to take responsibility for their actions.

              Also, people with an internal locus of control mindset are more likely to have a higher sense of self-efficacy. It is often thought that this mindset causes people to work harder because they believe they have control of their own actions. I believe I am somewhat in between an internal locus of control and an external. I try my best to take responsibility for my actions, however there are certain circumstances where I feel I have no control over the situation. For example, when my grandfather passed away I was faced with an overwhelming feeling of grief and sadness. Even though I could not control his passing, I did have control over how I let it affect my life. Overall, I believe having an internal locus of control mindset is beneficial to a person’s life.

sim lab reflection

              Overall, I think my simulation lab today went well but there were some things I wish I could have done differently. Some of the things I did well were engaging with the mother, making eye contact and providing more than 3 sensory activities. When I first walked into the room, I introduced myself, shook the mother’s hand and sat close enough to her where I was not invading her personal space. For the first time prior to a sim lab, I did not experience nearly as many nerves as I normally do. This was a big accomplishment for me because I normally experience a great amount of anxiety before any sim lab. I prepared a lot for the sim lab by researching what SPD was and knowing how to explain what a sensory seeker meant. I think I did a good job explaining SPD and sensory seeker to the mother using lament terms.

              One area I feel I need to improve on regarding my experience today was slowing down my pace when talking to the mother. I found myself talking a lot more than I initially anticipated, which did not leave much time for the mother to ask me any questions she may have had. Although I do not think I did a “bad” job, I will work on verbally describing what I am trying to say without using saying unnecessary jargon. By unnecessary jargon, I mean not saying things just to fill the time. This could potentially confuse the parent.  

An attitude of caring can be portrayed to the parent by an OT by letting the parent know you expect her to have questions and would be more than happy to answer any she may have. It is important the parents know the OT genuinely wants to help their child and that asking questions will not be annoying. Another way for an OT to portray they care is by body position and eye contact. Sitting close enough to the parent is important when going over an evaluation so they can follow where the OT is on the evaluation. Also, the parent may become emotional when hearing something about their child they did not want to hear. Therefore, being close enough to the parent to provide comfort is crucial to show you care and to show empathy.

              After this experience, I am going to slow down when talking to future sim lab and real clients. Slowing down will give the parent more of an opportunity to ask questions and not feel so overwhelmed.  Another thing I am going to work on is verbalizing my thoughts. This is an area I have always struggled with. I am not sure why I have trouble verbalizing what I am thinking but it is something I would like to improve on! Overall, this was a great experience and I think I am getting better each sim lab!

Media project

The assignment I completed for this reflection was the media project. This project was unlike any project I have had before. The reason it was different was because I was randomly assigned a material and required to create an activity with the selected item. To make the assignment more challenging, I was assigned a client with a specific diagnosis to center the activity around.  I found this project beneficial because it required me to think outside of the box. At first, I was unsure what activity I could come up with using a hula hoop. The first activity I had come to mind was to create an obstacle course. However, my client is a 76-year-old female with Parkinson’s disease, so I had to quickly change my idea for safety reasons. This project made me realize that my creative skills are not as poor as I had once thought. It gave me the confidence to create an activity like I have never created before. As a future OT, it will be my job to create an activity out of anything. The “ah-ha” moment for me when completing this project was realizing I could wrap a bed sheet around a hula hoop to resemble a skirt that will also assist with lower body dressing. This was fascinating to me because it does not require many materials but will be beneficial to my client.

              Before completing this project, I did not realize that OT’s can make activities out of almost anything. For example, they make activities out of egg cartons, milk bottles, hula hoops, hot sauce bottles, etc. I knew that OT’s had to be creative and come up with activities, but I feel like this assignment opened my brain up to many different ideas for future activities. Also, I enjoyed talking to my classmates about what ideas they created. It was a fun topic to hear about what everyone came up with because of our unique materials we were assigned. I think this assignment will help me in the future because it required me to use problem-solving and creativity skills. Also, this assignment showed me a new side of what an OT does. I feel excited after completing this project because I know I have the potential to be a great OT!

neuro note 4

For my fourth neuro note, I chose to watch a TED talk on a woman whose father has frontotemporal lobe dementia. The woman in the videos name is Beth Malone and her father has had dementia for over a decade now. The video centers around how she copes with her father’s illness and her process of learning to heal. She considered bringing her father to Oregon to buy heroin and kill him. Although this sounds inhumane, her intentions were to put him out of his pain and not to murder him. Her family helped her realize that was not the best way to go about helping her father. They put him in many nursing homes until he was arrested for pulling women out of their wheelchairs. After that incident, he was kicked out of the nursing home and was moved into another facility. Eventually Beth went to go see a psychic to figure out what she needed to do to cope with the disease that was killing her father. The psychic told her that she needs to resume their roles as father and daughter. This advice really helped her learn to cope and made her more at peace with the situation.

Dementia is a very common disease among the geriatric population. Currently, my great-grandmother has dementia and I know first-hand the pain of seeing a loved one slowly losing their memory. However, optimism is very important in these types of situations. In the video, Beth expresses her struggles before she finally became at peace with what was happening to her father.  As an OT, I will have many encounters with client’s with dementia. My role will these clients will be to assist with their ADL’s and IADL’s. While I will not be able to aid in their memory loss, I will be able to assist in their independence. When working with a client that has dementia, I will also be working closely with their loved ones. I know how important it will be to be empathetic to not only the client but their family as well. I enjoyed this TED talk video because it showed a woman’s raw emotions surrounding her father’s disease. She was not trying to hide anything back and she wanted to be an aid for anyone going through the same or something like her situation.  I would recommend anyone interested in learning more about dementia watch this video!

Malone, B. (2017, June). Retrieved August 19, 2019, from https://www.ted.com/talks/beth_malone_how_my_dad_s_dementia_changed_my_idea_of_death_and_life#t-415812

Neuro Note 3

For my third neuro note, I chose to watch a TED talk on a woman named Danielle Valenti’s story about her mother with Huntington’s disease. Huntington’s disease is described as one of the worst diseases known to man because it makes the person lose their memory, muscle function, and coordination. Also, this disease is known to cause psychiatric behaviors. Danielle’s mother had this disease for two years prior to telling her daughter. The reason her mother kept it a secret was because she did not want to worry her and did not want to be a burden. However, when Danielle found out she quickly wanted to help as much as she could. They transferred Danielle’s mother to a specialized Huntington’s’ nursing home where she lived the remainder of her days. Her mother chose to kill herself by refusing food for 67 days. After 67 days, her body shut down and she passed away. Danielle explains that she had to make the decision to either force her mother to eat or respect her mother’s wishes and allow her to starve herself. Ultimately, she respected her mother’s wishes and did not stand in her way. Danielle explains how that was the hardest decision she probably would ever have to make but she is happy her mother is now at peace. After her mother passed away, she decided to have the genetic test done to see if she was a carrier of the disease. Unfortunately, her results came back positive meaning she will become symptomatic at some point in her life. Danielle explained how after her results she found herself feeling sorry for herself and depressed. However, she did not want to live out the rest of her life waiting to become sick and wanted to find happiness. This is one of the reasons she became a spokesperson for Huntington’s disease.

            I found this video inspiring because of how brave Danielle appeared to be. She stated how everyone advised her against the genetic testing because there is no cure for the disease, and she would 100% get it if she was a carrier. However, she could not move on from her mom’s death without knowing her fate. As an OT, I will most likely encounter a client with this disease, and I think this video helped me understand it better. I chose to do this neuro note on Huntington’s disease because it is somewhat confusing to me. However, after watching this video I feel better informed on the disease. I encourage everyone with an interest in this specific disease to watch this TED talk!



Talks, T. (2015, December 04). Retrieved August 19, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JRwCdmewl0

neuro note 2

For my second neuro note, I chose to watch a YouTube video called “Alex Coriells’ Journey with ALS.” The reason I chose to watch this video is because I wanted to learn more about this disease. This video is a tribute made by Alex’s wife showing the progression of his disease and how he was affected. Alex was diagnosed with ALS is January of 2013 and passed away roughly 3 years later in November of 2015. About eight months after his diagnosis, he required a feeding tube to eat. A few short months after losing his ability to eat and swallow, he lost his ability to walk. He relied heavily on his wife to be his caregiver, while also caring for their three sons. Alex’s family was very important to him and was a reason to find joy in the remainder of his ever-evolving new life. Also, Alex had strong faith in Jesus and believed in his plan.  Throughout his progression, he was able to talk but required assistive technology to be better understood. Alex was able to use his nose for a while but eventually had to switch to the use of his eyes. I think it is amazing there is technology in our day in age that allows communication using body parts other than mouths and hands. Once Alex lost the ability to walk, he had to switch to a wheelchair. I loved how the video was not all sad aspects of his life. For example, parts of the video showed Alex and his three children riding on his wheelchair while going into a store. One thing about ALS that sets it apart from other diseases how it hardly affects cognition. This means that the person’s body is slowing shutting down, but they are fully aware of what is going on and are essentially helpless. Because cognition is barely affected, mental health is a big part of this disease. It is important a person with ALS can hold onto hope and joy, so they do not stoop into a dark depression. Alex did a good job of not becoming too depressed by finding joy in his family and activities like sports. I could tell that he was a great husband and father and is truly missed by his family. However, he is in a better place and no longer in pain.

            Currently, we are learning about this disease in our neuro class. After watching this video, I feel that I have a better understanding of the disease because I was able to see how it affected an actual person. Although this video did not have many facts about the disease, it was beneficial to watch because observation is essential in learning. Personally, I am a visual learner and benefit more from seeing a person with a disease than learning about it through reading. I would recommend this video to people to watch because it is informative and a sweet tribute. The video is somewhat of a tear jerker, but in a positive way because it showed the good in Alex’s life as opposed to the bad.



Henderson, W. (2018, February 03). Alex Coriell's Journey With ALS. Retrieved August 13,  2019,
from https://alsnewstoday.com/2018/02/01/alex-coriells-journey-with als/?utm_source=ALSNews&utm_campaign=856209f0b7RSS_FRIDAY_EMAIL_CA            PAIGN&utm_medium=email&utmterm=0_0593028b75-856209f0b7-71721017