Saturday, December 21, 2013

How are classes you ask?

First off, I need to tell you how excited I was to be able to attend Beyonce's 100th show in Louisville, KY, on the 12th. I have been a die hard Beyonce fan since I was 15!.15 years of loyalty! I am also critical of her too, so I feel that I look at her with a human lens opposed to a stalker lens. I went with my hubby and we originally had nose bleed section seats that I paid $144 for each, but we were able to talk a guy into giving us wrist bands to be on the FLOOR! I was standing so close to her that I felt her fans blowing my hair! MAN! I am thankful again! I have had these tickets since they went on sale back in July. I was really looking forward to that night. It was great. I was able to get some solo time with the hubby and I was able to see my favorite singer of ALL TIME! Queen Bey.

My neuro class has been pretty interesting. It is a lot of information. I have so many questions, but since we are in six week session we are not able to get to EVERYTHING that I want to know. Most of the topics we are covering are sensory, such as vestibular, somatosensory, vision, etc. I am starting to be able to put the pieces together about how our body if full of receptor sites that allows our cortex to perceive what is going on in our environment. We have smaller receptor sites for areas that receive more detailed information and larger receptor sites of other areas where we integrate information. I thought it was very interesting how vision is a big part of balance. I may have heard it before; however, when I am learning it for a skill, it has a whole other meaning. We have talked a lot about neural networks, how our brain is very plastic with an emphasis on if we do not have our clients use their skills then they will lose them. Oh, another aspect that I found very interesting was about when peripheral nerves grow back, one of the main task of sensory integration is to desensitize the nerves because the new pathways are highly sensitive to a point where the client can be sensing pain or discomfort. The is the best part of learning is that we always creating new neural pathways and are constantly become better person.

My psychosocial class is........... abnormal psych. We did read a book called "A Curious Dog in the Night Time" which was awesome. It was the story about a teenage boy who has autism. He strives to write his own mystery and tries to be placed in an A level math class. The book did a really good job on capturing the behaviors and thought patterns of someone on the autism spectrum. It is a good read. Other than that...... it is another abnormal psych class.

I will return to class on January 6 to finish my last 3 weeks of class. I am looking forward to this two week break. I will more likely try to do some reading to be prepared for when I return to class next year! Time really flies. I am still learning how to take one day at a time and enjoy every moment with my family and to try not rush for graduation because that would mean that my time with my kids is gone. I am just appreciating everything as it is. I have to remember that when I am freaking out about class. LOL

I am hoping the best for all of you!

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Back in Session

I hope everyone had a good Gobble Gobble Day! We had a blast. We stayed in and watched movies all day. Well... I fell asleep on some of them. I was tired. LOL. Today is my hubby's birthday. I am really blessed to have this man in my life. I did not have a stable father in my life. He is an amazing husband, father and friend. I have never been loved the way this man loves me. HAPPY BIRTHDAY GISBY!

Class started back on Monday. I have a really good feeling about this session. I have Neuroscience and Psychosocial. This week was an introduction to the classes. I did learn what FAOTA means. It is a person that has earner a high regard in the OT community. They have to be nominated for some achievement that they have made. My school has 3 of those members on staff. My teacher, Dr.Laura Strickland is one of the members. She was one of the people who opened the OT program at Spalding University. Her husband, who is the Dean of the program, is a member along with another teacher on staff. Dr. Laura LOVES her some neuroscience. You should see her eyes light up as she talks about the class. I am looking forward to learning from her over the next 7 weeks. My first neuro quiz opened online tonight. I have to complete that by Monday. Our second test is next Monday. I have been making a list of my readings that I need to get through. Dr. Laura recommends not read the text like a novel. She said to skim it to get the main points. She also had us complete a learning style assessments so that she can accommodate everyone in the class. I really appreciate that she takes a real interest in my learning. It makes me feel like she want me to succeed in the program. Oh by the way, in January, ACOTE is coming to do our accreditation. My teachers had to make sure to fit our course material around them coming because I take it at they need the teachers on those 2 days.

In my Psychosocial class, we have been watching documentary's on mental illnesses. I am looking forward to seeing how this class will turn out because I really like Psychology and this class seems very close to Abnormal Psychology.

That is how my week has been so far. I am still feeling so thankful to be in this program, but I am on count down to my first Level I Fieldwork which starts in May!

Hoping the best for all of you!