This is why I love my job.

After transporting a patient to OT...

Patient: I wanted to tell you earlier when you were in front of me.. You have the cutest little hiney.

Patti: .... thanks. Little? I think it's big!

Patient: Oh no! You're very proportional!


AHAHAHAHAHA. Pain killers will make people say anything, I swear. :)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

While chatting with a patient who was laying on a mat...

Patti: My dad retired from the Army.

Patient: What does he do now?

Patti: He drives for a company.

Patient: Oh he died?! God rest his soul.

Patti: No no... not died.. he DRIVES.

Patient: Oh god rest his soul.

Arriving at one point is the starting point to another.

I DID IT!!! I GOT INTO GRADUATE SCHOOL!!! I'M GOING TO BE AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST!!!

I wish I could put into words how I feel right now... but it's just impossible. I feel like suddenly everything is falling into place and I just feel SO GOOD! Woo! I've worked so hard for this for so long, and now it's in my hands. I know my journey has only begun and I have an incredible amount of things to learn... but to know that soon I will be helping people who've had strokes or other injuries become independent again is such an empowering feeling. I want to be the best therapist possible and I am so blessed that I have people in my life who are guiding me in the right direction.

Yes, I took a picture of my acceptance letter... because I AM that cool. ;)


Today was such an emotional day!!! I actually cried when I found out that I got into school. I never cry! But it felt so good! I feel like I can breathe again, as crazy as that sounds... I was sweatin' it for a while! :)

I'm going to OT school!

"When you discover your mission, you will feel its demand. It will fill you with enthusiasm and a burning desire to get to work on it" ~ W. Clement Stone.

Sitting, waiting, wishing...

Patti calling her 8-year-old sister to see if "The Letter" came:


Patti: Laurel, did I get any mail?
Laurel: Yep!
Patti: Are the envelopes big or small?
Laurel: Really big!
Patti: YES! Who's it from???
Laurel: Ummmm... The inter...nal... rev...a..new... serv...ice.


Ugh. Still no letters, but at least my tax return came. ;)

There and back again...

I'm waiting not-so-patiently for the acceptance/rejection letters to arrive at my doorstep. (But more importantly right now, I'm waiting not-so-patiently for my friend to get here so we can go out for sushi...)

So while I wait, I think that it's important for me to write about how I've come to the place I'm at now. And what better way to start than from the beginning... my birth. (Mini-autobiography ahead, you can stop reading now if you want, this could take a while.)

I was born Oct 22 (making me a libra and I fit every trait of it), 1984, in Mannheim, Germany. My dad was in the army, which meant that we up and moved every 3 years. We moved from Germany to Louisiana, to Pennsylvania, to Hawaii and finally to NJ. It was a hard thing as a kid to pack up and leave as soon as I felt comfortable, but it really helped me become more willing to try new things and it gave me so many life experiences. I still keep in touch with my best friend from Erie, and my best friend from Hawaii. I've found, however, as I get older, I really have a desire for consistency and comfort, if that makes sense. It took a lot of bravery for me to finally quit a job that was breaking me down, because I was so comfortable there.

As far as my family life- I was an only child for 14 years. I thought that I was perfectly happy that way, until my sister was born 8 years ago. My mom says she is exactly like me (whether that is good or bad, I'm not sure sometimes!) But to me, she is brilliant, funny and full of life. Maybe too much life... even dinnertime is a broadway production at our house. and yes, we have the same parents.. that's not something a lot of people can say! She is my little friend, comedian and personal chef, and I can only hope that as she grows older, she'll always trust me and come to me for anything.

Since first grade, I have been to 8 different schools. I always enjoyed going to school. I guess I was always a bit of a nerd, and school wasn't a chore for me. As a child, my ambition was to become an astronaut (I currently hate planes!), then it switched to a pharmacist, and finally an occupational therapist (which I feel surpasses an astronaut or pharmacist any day!).

When we moved to NJ, we were going to buy my great aunts house. When plans fell through with that, we ended up living with her for our first year and a half in NJ before building our own home. Aunt Jeanne became like a second mother to me. She was always there for me, she cheered me on at karate tournaments, she came to all my concerts and shows at school, and she would do anything for me or for my family, she's just that kind of person.

I remember sitting in my dorm one night when I received a call from my dad. He told me Aunt Jeanne was in the hospital and she was on life support and would probably not make it through the night. I remember feeling crushed and helpless. This can't happen to her, it's just not possible. Dad picked me up from Rutgers the following day and took me home to see her. I can't describe who I saw, but it just wasn't her. Weeks turned into months, and she only got worse. She was attached to a respirator and she had a feeding tube. I was losing my faith and was preparing for the worst at that point. She was in a coma for weeks, and in a way, I felt like I was in one too.

Some kind of miracle happened, though. Very slowly she seemed to come back... week by week they removed her machines... first the ventilator, then the feeding tube... she came alive again and it was incredible. She wasn't able to speak yet because of a tracheotomy and it was incredibly frustrating for her to communicate. She pulled through this, but her difficult journey had only begun.

She started rehab at HealthSouth.... which was the turning point of my life, as much as hers. This was the first time I had been exposed to occupational therapy. I remember meeting her OT, Stephanie, and all I can think was "where is she going to start?" (Speaking OT lingo here, she was definitely max A x 2!) Aunt Jeanne lived alone, she was independent, that's how she wanted it. She just came back from death, there's no way she can be alone again. Her physical therapist, Grania, got her back on her feet again and helped her regain her strength and mobility, and OT gave her back her life. She learned energy conservation techniques with assistive devices, she regained confidence in her ability to get around her home, bathroom, and kitchen. She learned medication management techniques, and she was given lots of adaptive equipment to make her recovery easier. Her OT also helped her regain the function of her hands, which were incredibly weak. Aunt Jeanne's biggest fear was that she would be unable to return home again, and OT helped her abolish that fear.

Aunt Jeanne is home now, watching soap operas and playing Slingo on the computer while her fat cat sits on her lap. She is driving and substitute nursing at the local elementary schools. She's active in the emergency management team in our community. And once again, she was there to cheer me on while I walked across the graduation stage to get my college diploma.

I never thought I'd find something in life that I would be so passionate about. Discovering OT has given my life a new meaning, and has given me such an appreciation for life and for people.

I'm so happy to be working at HealthSouth now, even if I am just a lowly technician for the time being. I learn something about OT and about myself each and every day, and that's all I could ask for. My co-workers have become my teachers, and a certain few are like big sisters that I've never had. I love to wake up in the morning and go to work because I know every day is going to bring something new to my life. I'm sure this all sounds sappy, but OT has really changed me in a lot of ways, and I'm becoming the person I want to be. I just hope that one day I can return the favor to someone, and have a positive impact on their life like they have on mine.



So that's Patti-in-a-nutshell.

Nothing in my way...

I survived my Kean and Stockton interviews. My biggest problem is that I get myself anxious over nothing. Both interviews went very well and I left both of them feeling calm and comfortable. In all honesty, I liked the Stockton interview better... I felt like they ran it more professionally. I went in and it was a group of 8 interviewees. Dr. Schindler gave a brief power point presentation about the program (Kean didn't do anything like this), and we were introduced to the faculty. We then divided into interview groups. I was interviewed by Diane Durham and Kim Furphy. They were both incredibly nice and made me feel so at ease. I had no problem answering the questions. I'll find out if I got into either school in a few weeks!!!




Oh I have to write this so I'll remember.... This morning I received a picture text from some of the OTs I work with holding a "Good luck" sign. I thought that was the nicest thing ever. I am incredibly lucky to work with such supportive people, it makes a world of difference. I've never had this kind of support before and it's the best feeling ever. I hope I can repay them someday for everything.


The best part about this pic are the 4 people in it... they are the best mentors ever.
Susan, Barb and Robin are the OT's who have really taken me under their wing, and Stephanie is the first OT I've ever met when my aunt was a patient at HealthSouth. The irony. :) I want to be like them when I'm a therapist. I appreciate so much the time they take to explain what/why they're doing certain exercises during therapy. Now that I know how much we students appreciate any advice we can get, I'll try to do the same for future OT's one day!

Carry me on my way...

I've reached another step toward my goal, and it's probably the most exciting and terrifying step so far!!! Interviews!

My first interview is tomorrow morning at Kean University. Up to this point I had decided that it's not my top choice but I feel like I'm not quite sure about that anymore. Stockton is my top choice, but I also just graduated from there. It might be a nice change to try a new school and see what else is out there. I'm sure the interviews will help me make a better decision, so we'll see what happens!

At this point, I just want to get in and get started. Either school is fine and both will lead me to my destination.... but each will bring it's own set of unique experiences, challenges and opportunties... and that will make all the difference. Or maybe i'm just too philosophical. Either way, I should be sleeping!

A little doubt goes a long way...

Wow I had a major scare yesterday. The application deadline is in less than two weeks and I found out that Admissions had never seen or received my application yet. I don't know if it got "lost" or misplaced or if there's some scam going on there (hey you never know!!!), but after some serious harassing (aka: calling every department X 2), they found it!

In the meantime I had reprinted everything and was getting ready to apply all over.

Jeeze, my little thought blog is turning into a soap opera. I guess calling it the "Envelope of Fate" earlier wasn't so dramatic after all!

... Relax, Patti... relax.

You're in the middle of the ride...

I graduated college on December 17th. It feels like a lifetime of anticipation flashed before me- before I even had the chance to understand the reality of it. Everything I have learned so far throughout my life has molded me into the person that I am today. The experiences I have had, and the new ones I now encounter make me look at the world with new eyes, with my view changing every time I blink. It's a world of change, and that's a powerful but extremely exciting thing to me.



I've been thinking a lot about my future lately (as graduating college tends to make a person do!). I've realized that I've had so many experiences in my 22 years of life, most good, some bad. Either way, every experience has taught me a lesson about who I am and where I'm going in my life. There's a poem that was read during my graduation ceremony that puts things in perspective for me. Posted below is Ithaka by Constantine P. Cavafy

As you set out for Ithaka
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
angry Poseidon-don't be afraid of them:
you'll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
wild Poseidon-you won't encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope your road is a long one.
May there be many summer mornings
when, with what pleasure, what joy,
you enter harbors you're seeing for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things, mother of pearl and
coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind-
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to learn and go on learning from their scholars.

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you're destined for.
But don't hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you're old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you've gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.
Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you wouldn't have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.
And if you find her poor, Ithaka won't have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become,
so full of experience,
you'll have understood by then
what these Ithakas mean.


I believe that this poem explains the journey that life takes, the struggles involved, the knowledge we seek and the wisdom we eventually gain. The only negativity that we experience comes when we allow it to join along for the ride. There's no reason to rush through any parts of life, because if we do, we're missing lifetime opportunities that are right in front of us. We are reminded that it's not the destination that makes us who we are, it's the experiences we've had along the journey that define us.
Ah I love poetry... I am a nerd.

~

On another note- the graduate school applications are officially mailed out! As crazy as it sounds- shipping them off was an experience in itself! It's like all my years of work were reduced to an envelope. The Envelope of Fate. ... (okay that might sound a little dramatic, even for me.) So it's out of my control for now.

Until then I wait.

The future's open wide. . .

It's incredible how one morning you're being dropped off in your dorm room for the first time, with every emotion you ever felt suddenly coming out all at once. Then the next thing you know you're applying to graduate - and all those emotions come back again. In a way, they come back for the same reasons as the first time. You're excited about the huge world ahead of you, you're terrified at the uncertainty of the future... but then again, this is a moment you've been dreaming about since you can remember.

I've decided to blog about this major transition I'm about to face. Partially so I can look back and chart my progress, and partially because I'm the only person in the world who hasn't made a blog. (I once saw a blog someone made just about their cat, so I must be way behind). Anyway- Here goes the journey from being an undergraduate, to the graduate school process, to hopefully the Occupational Therapist.