Mack’s Attack on OT

     After reading about “Man from the South,” it makes the reader question what significance the small finger performs. Most people do not realize the amount of strength and purpose the small finger actually provides. The soldier would ultimately lose a huge proportion of his grip strength due to injury of the ulnar nerve. This would prevent him from grasping larger objects, holding and squeezing a gun, and performing body weight exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, and lifting weights.   There are various adaptive equipment that could be utilized for his disability. Lifting aids, such as hooks or Velcro straps could be attached to the body or hand in some way. These could be incorporated into his daily tasks when carrying equipment or holding on to things that require a lot of grip strength. If the soldier struggles with gripping utensils, cutlery grips could be incorporated. If he is wanting a more permanent solution, there are prosthetics that are powered by the wr...

  The Scapulohumeral Rhythm is the ratio of movement between the scapula and humerus. The ratio between the scapulothoracic joint and the glenohumeral joint is 1:2. When using full 180º of motion, the scapulothoracic joint would be 60º, and the glenohumeral joint would be 120º. In order to achieve full range of motion in the shoulder, the humeral head has to rotate laterally. To allow more range of motion, the movement is distributed between those two joints. In other words, this helps evenly distribute in more than just one joint to increase stability in the shoulder. The upward rotation helps permit good length-tension relationships with muscles and it prevents insufficiencies. The joint congruency reduces shear forces by the maintain the glenoid fossa in an optimal position. If this did not exist, there would be shoulder instability by the impingement of the humerus and the acromion. This would be painful to perform extension, flexion, adduction, abduction, and external and inte...

     I recently listened to “How Can Going Blind Give You Vision?” by Isaac Lidsky. I also read the article, “The Science of Why No One Agrees on the Color of This Dress, ” by Adam Rogers. After listening and reading about the brain, I continued to find myself pausing in awe of how the brain functions and processes things differently. Both the Ted Talk and article correlate by talking about vision and how the brain processes what we are seeing in front of us.        As the eyes and brain work together to process signals into an image, it usually has no problem with distinguishing colors. With the example of the gold/white or blue/black dress, it shows us how easily our minds can deceive us. Our eyes have adjusted to seeing in daylight, but there are so many different variations of daylight and what that might look like. Since there are different answers as to which two colors the dress is, this shows us how humans are wired differently. Our eyes and br...

  As a future occupational therapy practitioner, I have been learning about Range of Motion and Manual Muscle Testing in Biomechanics, and how they are used in occupational therapy. When discussing Manual Muscle Testing (MMT), testing positioning, and Range of Motion (ROM), these terms play huge roles in the world of occupational therapy. Occupational therapists use these tools daily when assessing clients’ mobility, strength, and functioning levels. These assessments allow therapists to gauge physiological skills and see if there are any limitations.  Occupational Therapist use the goniometer to test a clients’ range of motion in individual joints of the body. We use these measurements to have baselines for clients so we can set goals for the future, assess progress, and demonstrate gains for the client. Using bony landmarks is one of the most important sets to measuring range of motion because it allows for you to find the correct positioning of the client and where the join...

  One action that is a part of my daily routine is putting in my contacts. This movement involves the elbow joint. My elbow starts in an extended position as I reach for my contacts, and my elbow flexes as I bring the contact towards my eye.  This movement occurs in the sagittal plane and frontal axis. This joint moves in flexion and extension, and it is an open chain due to the distal segment moving freely compared to the proximal portion. As I reach for the contact, my elbow is extended, which is considered eccentric contraction. Once my elbow flexes to bring my contact to my face, this creates a concentric contraction. The prime mover is the bicep. The arthrokinematics of the elbow are shown as the ulna (concave portion) rolls and glides anteriorly against the humerus (convex surface).  

     I listened to a podcast today called "Can Occupational Therapy Help with ADHD?" with Jennie Friedman and Dr. Stephanie Lancaster. When deciding what to further research today, the podcast with a topic of ADHD caught my eye due to curiosity. I recently was diagnosed with ADHD after struggling to maintain focus in simple conversations, classes, and being hyper-stimulated very easily. I did not even imagine the career path that I had chosen could work with clients that have ADHD. This goes to show that there are countless things that occupational therapists can be involved in, but people just do not realize what occupational therapy is or what it can do. I am eager to continue learning about this diagnosis and coming up with ways to help cope with symptoms and to further improve everyday life. Although, I do think that more could be done to educate people that adults can also have ADHD. I think that there should be more advocacy when discussing Occupational Therapy, but...