It sounds like you are saying that diversionary activities helped more? I'm not sure
if diversionary is the right
description...
Mike
Ron Carson wrote:
> Hey Mike:
>
> I also thought kayaking would have been therapeutic which is why I am so
> amazed that it wasn't. Several reasons which may point to its lack of
> therapeutic effectiveness:
>
> 1. It has a link to my loss
>
> 2. It provided opportunity for failure - normally not an issue but
> during increased times of stress (for all of us) one becomes more
> hypersensitive to failure.
>
> These are probably the two biggest reasons.
>
> RC
>
> ----------
> On 05/02/2001, Mike Said:
> M> Sorry to hear about your difficulties -- glad to hear you're beginning to tackle
>them. I would be
> M> interested to know why some activities were more therapeutic than others, if you
>have any thoughts on this.
> M> I would have thought kayaking would be therapeutic, as it involves physical
>activity and a presumably
> M> pleasant outdoors environment, both of which I would have expected to have fairly
>high therapeutic levels.
> M> what do you think makes the difference? I do see your point about distraction not
>necessarily being
> M> therapeutic.
>
> M> Cheers
>
> M> Mike Griffin
> M> http://www.otdirect.co.uk
>
> M> Ron Carson wrote:
>
> >> Hello All:
> >>
> >> Recently, I experienced great tragedy in my personal life. Left with
> >> feelings of complete overwhelm and helplessness, for much of the time I
> >> did nothing but reflect on the situation. Slowly, however, I began to
> >> engage in meaningful occupations such as kayaking, yard work and
> >> woodworking. In the wake of my experience, I have made several personal
> >> observations about occupation as a therapeutic medium.
> >>
> >> 1. Not all occupations are created equal when it comes to their
> >> therapeutic effectiveness.
> >>
> >> I love to kayak and fish - it's my new found hobby. However,
> >> during this experience, I quickly learned that kayaking was not
> >> therapeutic. For me, kayaking contributed to my depression and to my
> >> negative feelings. Fishing was a setup for failure. Being unsuccessful
> >> at catching fish (a very common experience) only contribute to my
> >> negative feelings. As great as kayaking potential to be therapeutic, it
> >> was a very negative experience.
> >>
> >> 2. Occupation's ability to divert one's attention is very powerful but
> >> may not be therapeutic.
> >>
> >> During my yard and wood working, I primarily focused attention
> >> on the task at hand and not on the the problems in my life. While this
> >> has certain therapeutic effectiveness, it may not have directly helped
> >> solve the issues. However, as I write this I can see that directing my
> >> attention away from the problems may have allowed me to be more clearly
> >> focuses when I did return to addressing the problems.
> >>
> >> Clinically, I have learned a great deal about the power (or lack of)
> >> occupation.
> >>
> >> Ron
> >>
> >> (Writing this is part of my self-prescribed therapy. This list serve is
> >> one of my occupations and writing today has been very therapeutic)
> >>
> >> rC
> >>
> >> ********************
> >>
> >> Unsubscribe by sending a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the message's body,
>put the following text:
> >>
> >> unsubscribe OTlist
> >>
> >> ------
> >>
> >> OTnow messages are archived at:
> >>
> >> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] (and)
> >> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
> >>
> >> ********rC***********
>
> M> ********************
>
> M> Unsubscribe by sending a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the message's body,
>put the following text:
>
> M> unsubscribe OTlist
>
> M> ------
>
> M> OTnow messages are archived at:
>
> M> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] (and)
> M> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
>
> M> ********rC***********
>
> ********************
>
> Unsubscribe by sending a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the message's body, put
>the following text:
>
> unsubscribe OTlist
>
> ------
>
> OTnow messages are archived at:
>
> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] (and)
> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
>
> ********rC***********
********************
Unsubscribe by sending a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the message's body, put
the following text:
unsubscribe OTlist
------
OTnow messages are archived at:
http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] (and)
http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
********rC***********
