OT 640 Debrief

Give me 12 steps

Man, I was so thankful to be a part of this meeting. It was such a human experience. Everyone removed their mask; Mr. Dunbar would be proud.

Anyway, here are the points that need to be stamped and addressed.

The role of the facilitator was hands-off. The two of them just assigned each member a portion to read-I was asked to read the preamble- set up a tentative skeleton for the flow of the group, and let that bird go! 

There was only one case of a different personality. One of the guys there, Mark, was not bashful about telling me that the 12-step members did not like us being there. The group leader responded by saying that I was welcome and that they were glad I was there. He encouraged inclusion by modeling the inclusion himself. I understood where Mark was coming from, though; I hadn't walked a mile in anyone's shoes but my own, and admittedly, mine were an arctic shade of white when juxtaposed with the others. Who was I to judge them? Mark had a point, but I assured him I had no gavel, only an open mind. Plot twist: Mark and I ended up hugging at the end and getting along really well. I think through our conversation I earned his welcome. Humility goes a long way.

The environment can impact the session in a myriad of ways. The first, second, and third of which are the personnel. Every group member's comments, actions, and body languages are interdependent on the others. Similarly, the group facilitator serves as a model and a guide for the flow of the group.

Was the group therapeutic? Of course! For everyone there-including me. Each person there was willing to spill their soul to everyone. As I said before, the whole session was just so human. Each person revealed who they were below the surface. They felt they had nothing to lose by doing so, and, in fact, they knew that this would help them grow. I think I, and we as a culture, would benefit from our own venture into vulnerability. 

In regards to what type of group this was, I believe it to be a population group. This population is made up of individuals battling with and/or recovering from addiction. I believe this is true because being from the same population is integral to success of the group. No one, I mean no one, wants to listen to me speak about addiction when I have none to speak of. People do, however, want to be with others who are on the same journey and encountering similar obstacles. Without the synergy created from this, I believe the group could not be nearly as successful.

 

Research Article Summary Thoughts

Article Summary (The boring stuff)

This article titled: "The short term effect of a group drumming intervention on aggressive
behavior among adolescent girls diagnosed with conduct disorder" utilized a experimental, randomized pre-test post-test control group design to look at the effect of drumming on aggressive behavior. The instrument used to measure the change in aggression was a self-rated measure called the Aggression Scale (AS)39. The participants of this study were 26 girls between 13 and 18 years old who were previously diagnosed with a conduct disorder. 13 of the girls were given the drumming intervention while the other 13 continued with their daily regular program. 10 drumming sessions were spread over the course of three weeks. Each girl was given a set of African Djembe drums for the duration of each drum session. After the drumming intervention, the median aggression score for the girls in the experimental group decreased from 20 to 7.

My thoughts on the study (The, hopefully, less-boring stuff)

So, from a researcher standpoint, the sample size was small, there could be other reasons why their aggression decreased (they enjoyed spending time with peers, etc.,) yada yada. So, technically, there isn't much concrete evidence here to speak of...

BUT- yes I started this sentence with a conjunction- I think that the decrease in aggression could be due to the drumming AND the socialization, AKA group therapy. This is interesting for a couple reasons: first, it shows the effectiveness of music as an emotional outlet. This is something I experience every time I pick up my guitar or sing a note. This aptitude for being an emotional outlet is not exclusive to music however; any leisure occupation has this same potential. Conveying the importance of leisure to a third-party payer may be a cumbersome process, but choosing to ignore a client's leisure pursuits and interests is a far more grave concern. Second, as illustrated by every 12-step program since Noah took Mr. and Mrs. Goat off the ark, there is strength in numbers! The synergy created by individuals working toward a common goal, in my opinion, just can't be matched by individual therapy. We are relational beings; it's the fabric of each of us. We should allow that to augment every aspect of our lives-including and especially our therapeutic practices.

References

Elize, J. R., Rialda, H., Cornel M, v. R., Monique B, C., Carina, v. M., Lucinda, P., & ... Tarina, B. (2016). The short term effect of a group drumming intervention on aggressive behaviour among adolescent girls diagnosed with conduct disorder. South African Journal Of Occupational Therapy, (2), 16. doi:10.17159/2310-3833/2016/v46n2a4

Leadership Summit

Eric, Lauren Leiser, and I all chose exercise for our group facilitation topic. Discovering this was a "duh" moment considering we see each other at the gym every day. My communication with Lauren was very brief and I just briefly touched on my plan for the group, though it was still in its infancy. Eric and I collaborated a bit more, once in class and another time while playing basketball. We talked about the various frames of reference that could fit into a group about exercise; MOHO, PEO, and PEOP seemed to be the most logical. I talked to him about my activity idea at the time and we talked about his plans for the session. It was nice to have an objective party to share my ideas with to check and see if they were any good. Coworkers are your friends.

Life Skills Small Group Reflection

Yesterday, I got the privilege of facilitating a small group on health management and maintenance- more specifically on exercise. Exercise is near and dear to me, so this choice was a natural one for me. As with my last group facilitation experience, I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation that transpired during the session. I enjoyed getting to hear the various perspectives each member had on exercise- i.e., what it looks like for them, what makes it difficult and/or easier to do, etc. Though public speaking makes me very nervous, I do think assignments like this one are very beneficial. I need to get more group experience under my belt for when I go to Greenhouse ministries on my level 2 fieldwork, and maybe when/if I decide to work in a mental health setting. Mental health is definitely a setting I could see myself in, but only time, and well, fieldwork, will tell.

Here's my evaluation of my performance.

Introduction: I let the group know what the topic for the session would be, and had the members perform a warm up activity where they drew the biggest barriers to exercise for them. I think I communicated the purpose of the group adequately, but there was room for improvement!

Activity: I did feel adequately prepared for the activity, but I soon found out that I did not do a good job articulating directions for the activity. I should have been more clear and checked to make sure each group member understood before beginning. It's funny (not) that active listening was what my last group experience was over. Maybe I should heed my own advice.

Sharing: Luckily, my group was not one I had to pry words out of; however, I did my part to give structure to the sharing and provide both verbal and non-verbal feedback to each member when they were speaking. So, I did help facilitate this, but my group's conversation was a well oiled machine before I lifted a finger, or lip to speak.

Processing: I think I succeeded in digging deeper to the emotions behind what each member was saying, but the conversation did not get into deep territory by any means. Future sessions certainly could though as the emotional components of exercise, like body image, could certainly come up.

Generalizing: I pointed out the common barriers that the group members had to exercise as well as the common motivators for them to exercise. For example, two members said accountability helped them while Netflix was a hindrance. I think this has the potential to create comfort and cohesion within the group.

Group motivation: There was no shortage of this here, and I don't think that was because of my doing. It's hard to comment on this for that reason; however, I do think that I fanned the flame once it began, but discussion was hot already. Bad joke.

Limit setting: I can't comment on the other groups, but the green group really has great chemistry.  This fostered a really positive environment, but also made side conversations and distractions much more likely and plentiful. I think I could have done more to be directive, but I think it could have possibly done more harm than good.

Application: I had each group member discuss how they can overcome the barriers to exercise they listed earlier in the session. I also talked about how exercises could be modified based on a client's diagnosis. I think I could have made this a larger part of the conversation though.

Summary: I could have done a better job summarizing what we learned and what goals were met at the end of the session. I did so briefly, but there was definitely room for improvement. I think my nerves could have definitely contributed to this.

Professional Development Group Reflection

Today, Macy and I facilitated a professional development group on the topic of active listening. I really enjoyed this assignment and the discussion it stimulated. What I found most memorable about the group is how organic the conversation felt- despite the talking technically being for an assignment. To me, this made this assignment so unique. I wasn't just spitting info back out onto a worksheet or test sheet. I was putting my didactic boots on the ground and actually getting to see my education in action. All of the words I had been seeing on powerpoint slides began to form a cohesive story, and I was the main character. It all felt very natural to me which is saying something because I am a very nervous public speaker. This experience will help me as an ot, and, even sooner, at Greenhouse Ministries during my Level II FW this fall.

Now, onto the evaluation of my performance.

Introduction: I explained the purpose of the group, and did a warm up activity where each group member talked about their strengths and weaknesses, but I definitely could have been more clear in communicating expectations and outlining the structure of the group.

Activity: I did feel adequately prepared for the activity, gave clear directions, and used appropriate timing, environment and materials.

Sharing: I ensured that each member shared, showed engaged non-verbal and verbal communication and empathized with them.

Processing: I feel that I did good job eliciting the feelings on each group member and facilitating conversation between them.

Generalizing: I pointed out difference and similarities between group members, i.e., one group member chose to withdraw when she felt not listened to, while another group member chose to try harder to get the audience's attention.

Group motivation: I felt that Macy and I both did a good job of spurring group interaction and slowing it when the train got off the rails.

Limit setting: Because my leadership style was supposed to be more directive in nature, I think I could have been a little more, well, directive! However, I think side conversations were kept to a minimum, and the humor from these conversations fostered comfort in the group.

Application: I had each group member discuss how being a good active listener will help them as future occupational therapists.

Summary: I ended the group on time, but I think I could have done a more thorough job summarizing at the end and commending each group member's performance.

My reflection on the SIM encounter

First, I would just like to say that learning experiences like the SIM encounter are, to me, fantastic. Actually performing an assessment really helps us as a class to better understand them!  So, how do I think I did? I would describe my administration of the test as good, but not very good; I'll explain. I think that I did well being friendly and comforting- that's probably what I'm most proud of. I would say that my lack of nervousness was also a plus, albeit a surprising one. My main downfalls, or struggles, were three-fold. I didn't remember to apply germ x before beginning, my verbal and non-verbal communication gave away whether she got questions correctly, and I did not ask her if she had any questions/requests for me as I left. If I could do this assignment over I would make sure to apply germ x, be more neutral in my feedback to her responses, and ensure that I asked her if she had any questions or needed anything before leaving. As for surprises or things that triggered my curiosity, my client's chasing of rabbit trails was funny and presented a surprising challenge! Being a talker myself I had to make sure I didn't follow her to far down; I am well-versed in the world of rabbit trails!

As a whole, this experience taught me a lot, and there are several things I can hang on to from this. Two of those things are: prepare, but be yourself. You can learn the playbook cover to cover, but you have to be adaptable once it is game time- I think I did a decent job at that. Second, be encouraging, but not so much so that they feel patronized and/or your feedback gives answers away. I could have definitely done a better job at that. I look forward to future SIM opportunities.