Be Your Own OT: Strategies for Finding Occupational Balance During OT School
Rebecca Langbein, Thomas Jefferson University
The essays are done, the GREs are taken, the days of interviewing have come and gone! You’re accepted into OT school and you’re excited, and of course nervous, to get started on this next phase of your education. But, things are about to change. For all of us, entering OT school is a time of transition. I quickly realized this last fall after I started school at Thomas Jefferson University, as I saw myself altering routines, forming new habits, and balancing my time between work, leisure, and family really differently than I ever had before. Then I thought about those words…Routines. Habits. Balance. These are OT words!
Part of what we are being trained to do is empower clients to lead occupationally balanced lives. This includes engaging in routines and habits that promote participation and well-being, in addition to taking part in diverse, meaningful occupations that are important to them. But as students, papers, exams, assignments, fieldworks, friends, clubs, and many other things make it challenging to practice what we preach. That’s why I think OT students all deserve to have their own OTs. Even better than that, I think we all deserve to be our own OTs.
I know this all sounds a little bit “meta-OT”, but I believe there are OT strategies we can use to find balance and create healthy routines and habits. I think we can use what we’re learning in school to do this!
Below are a few strategies that I (and some of my peers) used during the first year of OT school to stay committed to our values and the things we enjoy, while also being focused and dedicated students. If you’ve learned about the Ecology of Human Performance Model, you might see a few familiar words...
Five Ways to “Be Your Own OT”
1. Establish boundaries: If it is at all possible, I give myself 100% of 1 day per week off. Mostly on Saturdays, I shut down my “OT brain.” No work, no OT talk. I allow myself to just focus on other things like family, friends, and leisure. This helps me to separate my work and personal lives in a way that helps me stick to my value of balance. Don’t have time for a whole day? Set aside a few hours! Whatever works best for you, in the moment, in your context.
2. Alter habits that no longer promote success: In transitioning to graduate school, I heard so many of my classmates reflect on habits that got in the way of their success in college. We’re human—we all have them. However, transitioning to OT school is a good time to alter them and start fresh. We don’t have to tackle them all…altering just one can make a big difference. Many of my peers felt that, in college, they didn’t always study in the best environments. They’d tend to stay at home to study, even though they found it hard to focus. When they started OT school, many tried altering the context. Instead of staying home, my friends began to go to the library or local coffee shops to work and found that they were a lot more productive. This was also a great way for them to get to know the campus and explore new parts of the city.
3. Adapt old routines to fit new contexts: As we enter new situations, like graduate school, it is important to maintain values and routines that give our lives meaning. For example, my greatest value is family. However, beginning OT school meant moving away from my family. This didn’t mean that I said “sayonara” and abandoned them, though! It meant that Tuesday night dinners at my parents’ house turned into Tuesday night FaceTime dinners. We adapted what was an important routine to fit the context in which we were now living, allowing me to still feel connected to my value of family, even as so much else in my life was changing. Perhaps you’re someone who values the outdoors and nature, but OT school has brought you to a city, making it harder to spend time outside. You can use your OT creativity to maintain that value by joining (or starting!) an outdoors-focused group on campus. Or, if that’s not an option, you might even find joy exploring the city’s parks and other landscapes.
4. Prevent feeling overwhelmed by creating priorities and long-term plans: Each week, I decide on the most important things that I absolutely have to get done. I also pick out a few things that I’d like to get done, but that really can wait if necessary. I keep track of long-term assignments in my planner by always having a sticky note with the following week’s assignments, so I know what’s on the horizon—no surprises! This helps me to steer clear of the anxiety that comes with being overwhelmed when some weeks are a little busier than others.
5. Create chances to try new activities: Say yes to things! One of the most valuable lessons I learned at the AOTA Annual Conference & Expo this spring was to say yes, when it’s feasible. You never know what doors may open when you say yes, even to things that are out of your comfort zone. In fact, I wouldn’t have even been at the AOTA Conference if I hadn’t said yes to something new. When I stumbled upon the opportunity to become Thomas Jefferson University’s Assembly of Student Delegates Representative, I decided to pursue it. I knew there was a chance that it wouldn’t work out, but I told myself I had nothing to lose by saying yes to the opportunity and trying. I am thoroughly glad I did! Despite the positive outcome, I honestly still struggle with saying yes to things outside my comfort zone, but I see its value and continue to work toward it as a long-term goal.
What strategies do you use for staying connected to the values and activities that bring your life meaning? I’ll bet you’ll be surprised to find just how “OT” some of them are. I am continually challenging myself to use my developing “OT brain” to come up with ways to fulfill varied roles, continue to engage in healthy habits, and uphold my values. I do this because, as I’ve been reminded by many professors, we can’t expect to empower clients to lead meaningful and balanced lives if we aren’t allowing ourselves to do it, too.
Rebecca Langbein is entering her second year of OT school at Thomas Jefferson University this fall. An avid runner, dedicated daughter and sister, self-proclaimed “OT geek,” and bookworm, Rebecca is constantly inspired to learn about all of the things OTs can do to empower clients, and even communities. Having studied Engineering, Psychology, and Ethics during undergraduate school at Lehigh University, her dream is to someday blend her passions in order to design equipment and technologies that will enhance participation for people with varying needs. She is proud to be entering the profession at this pivotal moment and is open and excited to see where her OT journey takes her.