Support of the Community

ChurchHealth is a nonprofit organization that provides healthcare to people who do not have healthcare. The director of ChurchHealth's physical therapy department has started a stroke support group every 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month. Each session lasts an hour and covers a topic that people who have had a stroke may experience, like challenges in nutrition, spirituality, and adapting to life post stroke.

During my first session with the Stroke Support Group, the group talked about challenges they face. Many of them are Christians, and when the stroke first happened, they were mad at God and questioned his plan for their lives. While going through rehab and relearning basic skills, they started to appreciate the little things in life. Many of them said they grew spiritually and started thanking God for things they used to take for granted, like walking and being able to dress themselves. Luckily, most of them have a supportive family and/or had access to a caregiver to help with ADLs. Through ChurchHealth, they learned the importance of exercise and healthy eating. They learned of other resources in the community like the Kroc Center, where they can swim and avoid a lot of impact on their joints. Many of the individuals have said that their stroke was a blessing in disguise.

I really enjoyed this session because I got to listen to everyone's recovery experience. Even though everyone's journey was different, they were all high-spirited and open minded to advice from each other. In the occupational therapy world, having a negative mindset can be very detrimental in the recovery process. Motivation plays a huge role in the time frame for  recovering. Before attending these sessions, I thought many of the people would be "grumpy" and still angry from life challenges. However, everyone was so encouraging to each other, sharing his or her own recovery process and what was beneficial. Almost all of them now exercise regularly and eat healthier than pre-stroke. Some of them still experience deficits like unilateral weakness or balance difficulties, but all of them are very proactive in living a happy life.

During the most recent Stroke Support Group session, we cooked a healthy meal in the ChurchHealth kitchen. The ChurchHealth kitchen staff printed chicken stir fry recipe and provided all the necessary ingredients. All the people in the group were excited to learn a new healthy meal. The ChurchHealth staff gave tips on how to cut certain vegetables and what knives to use. The director of the group let me to suggest any modifications to people struggling with certain actions, like grasping or lifting objects.

I really enjoyed this session because it "put my brain to work." I had the opportunity to observe people with a neurological deficit and offer my expertise. I thought back to biomechanics and neurobiology in order to understand the deficit and apply the appropriate intervention.

During the sessions, I take the time to individually talk to people and learn about his or her experience. Since no two cases are the same, it is interesting to hear how everyone is affected and how he or she overcame obstacles. By talking to everyone separately, I got a better understanding of the effects a stroke has on a person and his or her entire world.

I would definitely recommend volunteering at a support group in areas of interested topics. I am interested in neurological disorders and would potentially like to work in that field one day. This opportunity has helped me apply what I have learned in the classroom to real life experiences.