Skip to main content

Neuronote #5

For my last neuronote I decided to write about the book The Reason I Jump. I had to read this book for a SPED class in undergrad and decided to re-read portions that I had originally marked as reading it the first time. When I read this book it made me completely change my thought process about how those who have autism experience life. I never once stopped to think how they actually view life and everything around them.

The book is an autobiography written by a 13-year-old boy from Japan about what it is like to live with autism. The way autistic people view the world is very different than the way we may perceive them to view the world. This disconnect between how we view and treat people with autism and how they actually view the world makes living with autism is even more difficult than it already is. The book really made me question who is actually different. I feel like his perspective on life is so much more pure than my own and so much more beautiful. My biggest takeaway was that when it comes to many everyday circumstances Higashida (the author) actually gets it, but he can't act on it. Perhaps I was just ignorant about autism, but I feel that we often assume that people with autism are “out of it” and aren't really following what's going on. And how would we know when we have no outward or physical indication otherwise? But he does understand, he does get it, and he is no different than you or me. He knows what is happening even if he can't take appropriate action. I believe anyone who is pursuing a career in occupational therapy should be required to read this beautiful work of art because that’s exactly what I believe this book is.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blog Post Challenge #9

For this post I decided to discuss just what a therapeutic relationship is and what it entails. A therapeutic relationship is defined as the interaction between an occupational therapist practitioner and their client. Therapeutic relationships differ from everyday relationships, in that they are key in facilitating the healing and rehabilitation process. They also differ from the typical relationship in that it's not about both people but strictly about the client and meeting their needs. Developing and sustaining therapeutic relationships involves the ability to develop trust, demonstrate empathy, understand verbal and nonverbal communication, and the use of active listening. Trust is one of the most important aspects in any type of relationship to me. Once trust is obtained the client feels more comfortable with sharing personal information which in turn greatly benefits the intervention process. Developing empathy is another huge part of this process, the client must believe tha...
1 comment
Read more

Casestudy - Dementia - Caroline M.

Caroline did her presentation over her grandmother who had Alzheimer's.  Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Caroline talked about specifically how her grandmother stopped doing almost everything she loved to do during the middle stages.  Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia,  a general term for memory loss and other cognitive abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer's disease accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases.  Originally they weren't sure if she was just getting older or actually had an underlying issue. Caroline stated that slight symptoms began developing as early as 6 years before the diagnosis.  The most common early symptom of Alzheimer's is difficulty remembering newly learned information because Alzheimer's changes typically begin in the part of the brain that affects learning. As Alzheimer's advances through the brain it leads to increasingl...
Post a Comment
Read more

Peer-Reviewed Journal Article Reflection

Article Title: Wellness works: community service health promotion  groups  led by  occupationaltherapy  students. Brief Summary: During a Groups Process course, occupational therapy students learned health promotion skills through working on personal wellness goals and leading community based health promotion groups. The  groups  targeted topics such as smoking cessation, improving diet, reducing stress through yoga, meditation, tai chi chuan, ROM (Range of Motion) Dance, aerobics, and a variety of other activities. Students monitored their own change  process  on both their personal health lifestyle goals and their  group  leadership skills while developing a richer appreciation of the dynamics of working for change with clients in community and traditional settings. This experience was said to have provided most students with a positive initial experience with  group  leadership as they began to explore...
Post a Comment
Read more