Yoga and Stretching

At ages 16-19 years old I worked at a movie theater where I was standing and walking for 4-6 hours at a time.  I also swept floors with a broom and ripped tickets which caused repetition of inappropriate wrist movements.  I had chronic pain all over my body due to muscle tightness and carpal tunnel in both wrists.

I began OT and PT to deal with the pain.  I had wrist splints made and a shoe insert (orthodic) made. I was also introduced to pain and stress management.  I learned that I had to stretch my hamstrings daily to avoid pain.  I struck an interest in this area of rehabilitation and wrote many college papers based on management of chronic pain.  However it's taken 12-15 years to realize how much managing time/stress levels and stretching my whole body is going to change and effect my life.  It requires a time commitment and life style change and is a continuous work in progress.

Since the age of 18 I have known stretching, yoga and progressive muscle relaxation is good for me and important for my overall well being.  I have tried each in "bursts."

My first exposure to yoga was a class I took alone and I ended up dropping out because I didn't know anyone and I wanted to socialize.  I also tried a video of yoga poses for elderly people (I thought the poses and movements would be easier for me).  I enjoyed the video but it was very hard to get into a routine and stick with it.  In 2013 I began taking a weekly yoga class through the YMCA.  This class actually became a routine.  Eventually it turned into a yogalates class and had pilates mixed in with the yoga.  I really enjoyed this because of the challenge it offered me.  Even though I was taking a weekly class and was getting 60 minutes of core strengthening and stretching each week, I knew this was only the tip of the iceberg for what my body needed.  It has made a big difference but I knew I wanted to keep challenging myself to improve my strength and flexibility.  I have tried a water aerobics class and also a pure barre class.

The importance of stretching comes from conversations with physical therapists I work with in the school setting.  They have been willing to give me advice and support and answer questions when I have an achy area of my body. Having them around has encouraged me and been a motivator to try new stretches and keep a routine.  However, I must admit that I usually keep a stretching routine while watching TV at night for only about 2 weeks at a time.  I have also had periods of PT where I learn a lot while I attend for about a month at a time.  In 2012 I went to PT and learned a lot about stretching my low back and lower extremities as well as the beauty of core strength.  In the winter of 2015 I attended PT for upper back/scapular strengthening and stretching.  Of course I had to experience pain first.  A Sunday afternoon on a heating pad and also the inability to inhale without extreme pain near the back of my rib cage.  I have been working on keeping a routine to complete my PT stretches as often as possible, especially when I am not attending yoga on a weekly basis.

One of my goals has been to touch my nose to my knees while stretching my hamstrings.  Currently I can barely touch my toes which is actually a huge milestone! Overall I realize it is important to stretch as often as possible.  The yoga class I have been apart of has helped with this and also really helps my stress levels.

I have attached a few links related to individuals with CP doing yoga moves.  http://cerebralpalsy.org/inspiration/athletes/ryan-mcgraw/
http://www.livestrong.com/article/367150-yoga-for-cerebral-palsy/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF5gI0bGmg4

Inspiring

A friend sent me this article a few months back and this really inspired me to keep trying new adventures and to keep taking care of myself.  What a cool story!

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/03/31/man-with-cerebral-palsy-completes-ironman-kona-conquers-mt-kilimanjaro/?cmpid=cmty_twitter_fn

Time Management for a Professional OT

CREATING A BALANCE AS A PROFESSIONAL OT

Purpose for researching and gathering information:

• A person my age will on average be working until the age of 70 (depending on personal finances/investments, pensions from their jobs, changes with social security, etc.).  
• http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/07/09/97271/no-full-social-security-benefits.html
• http://jacobaldridge.com/business/born-1978-1982-your-retirement-day-will-be-uniquely-awful/#sthash.lH2wsinD.dpbs

• I need to be smart with managing my physical limitations and stay as healthy as possible, so I can last in the working world.
• I’m an OT so technically I should be an expert at modifying jobs for someone with physical limitations.  It is my job to be innovative and always look at the true potential in all aspects of life.  
• After thinking about OT and the career path I am on, this is something I am passionate about because it is personal to me.
• I feel like researching and becoming a true example of an employee who acknowledges organization, stress reduction and body mechanics I can help others have a more enjoyable, fulfilling career.  
• Therapists and related service staff are known to be more stressed and have medical issues that are side effects from the job they have chosen.  
• Burnout for Occupational Therapists actually does exist
• http://ajot.aota.org/Article.aspx?articleid=1881622
• Frankly I am not ready to “give up” anything yet or come up with hired help for shopping, cooking and cleaning.  This will begin for me at some point and honestly it may take a few counseling sessions to realize this is what needs to happen and that’s ok.

Ideas for myself with Time Management:

• The following can be hard to do.  I have attempted a sticker chart to reward myself.  At times I feel like it is more work to make a plan to stay caught up.  However, I have noticed I just feel better keeping a routine and keeping these things in mind:
• Have a to do list for work
• set mini deadlines for this to do list
• Work in small doses/make the tasks smaller (1 hour extra each day)
• Divide up household chores and errands
• (5 chores on days off; 3 chores after work)
• write these common things down, it makes me more aware how what I spend my time doing
• Plan time each day and week for rest, relaxation, meditation (zone out).  As well as social time and time of hobbies.  These are just important as your work and chore list.
• If you are given 3 or 4 personal days - USE THEM!
• http://national.deseretnews.com/article/2169/7-benefits-of-taking-vacation-time.html
• http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/08/17/the-benefits-of-taking-time-off
• http://www.projecttimeoff.com/research/overwhelmed-america

Time Management will help with getting things done efficiently and also help with overall health and well being.

As I have thought about the importance of having a balance in life and how it relates to health, I came across this article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-dannemiller/busy-is-a-sickness_b_6761264.html

Overall Health:

• getting appropriate amounts of sleep
• http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/sdd/why
• http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20459221_2,00.html
• eating healthy and drinking appropriate amounts of water
• exercising/stretching and using appropriate body mechanics

While At Work:

• limit the amounts of bags and boxes to carry.
• I have thought about getting something similar to a shopping cart.  
• I now have a hands free lunch box that can go around my arm/neck (as long as I don’t fill it too heavy).
• I also have a roller briefcase but it fills up fast so it needs to be cleaned.
• Try and keep materials in every building you go to each week
• Copy. Paste. Proof Read.
• progress notes and monthly summaries are the same thing
• have templates ready for eval’s and screen to fill in the blanks, etc (remember to proofread, so there aren’t mistakes with names or anything else).  
• Breaking down tasks into smaller tasks
• Tienet is my attendance log.  I have 2 statements about progress made in therapy or what we worked on.  Therefore medicaid is done and info for progress notes is stored in the same location where they need to be entered.  The most time consuming thing aside from taking attendance is monthly summaries
• milage is completed every month (the OT meeting is my reminder)