Occupations are not necessarily work related, as many of you might think. They are literally everything we do every day, from waking up in the morning, to making coffee, taking a shower, making meals, going to work, school, volunteering, watching a movie, sleeping, etc. I have observed that when mental health is compromised, people can become disengaged from self-care and homemaking activities, then from work, and soon they no longer want to get out of bed. Slowly, to-do lists grow, which causes overwhelm over the smaller tasks, until they feel like they can no longer catch up, and therefore resign.
As an Occupational Therapist who works in mental health, I get to see the beauty of daily occupational engagement. This means I see the power in making a plan for daily engagement in wellness activities—more specifically, things that are important to the individual; when we do what we love, we feel start to feel good. I utilize client-centred goal setting and monitoring to get my client’s life back on track. I am there to guide and support clients while keeping them accountable for the things that they find important. Whether it’s support with the smaller things like grocery shopping and meal planning, or finances and long term career/retirement planning, I can help clients achieve these goals in a realistic and effective manner.
OT’s work in interdisciplinary teams. On a mental health team, we often work hand in hand with the psychologists, medical doctors, psychiatrists, clinical counsellors, social workers and more. Together, we collaborate to provide the treatment and support that the client needs to improve their health and functioning.
I will always remember my first mental health case as an OT for a large rehabilitation company. She was grieving the loss of a close relative, and she cried every session, for the whole duration of the session. She had the support of a loving husband, a psychiatrist, her medical doctor and myself. After being off of work for 2 years, she started reengaging in crochet projects, seeking the right medication treatment, exercising, engaging in psychotherapy, normalizing her sleep patterns, as well as socializing. Occupations gave meaning to her life. She also started listening to music again and finding her love for dance and the live music scene in town.
She found herself after being buried in sadness thanks to a team of professionals, but most importantly finding her drive to love life through music and movement.
I really do enjoy seeing the small changes people make as they start feeling better and how this creates momentum in their recovery. Changes don’t have to be big to be significant.
Jessilyn Chiasson OT, Reg. BC
Comentarios