Stop being the Therapy Student, and think like a Student Therapist

Wisdom from my preceptor during my midterm evaluation! (This blog post is about 3 weeks late...)

My preceptor has a way with words and this phrase is just so fitting to where I am in my professional career. The reality of being in my second last fieldwork placement and with only one school term left could not have been put in more concise terms!  But until my preceptor spoke those words, I was still very much thinking of myself as "just" a student studying occupational therapy.

I feel that I've still stuck in the student mindset because I am unsure about how I feel about my Masters program coming to an end in about 6 months. The prospect of stepping out into the workforce as a professional, working in a "real career" job, triggers a mix of excitement and nervousness. And this nervousness makes me hang on tighter to the fact that I am, at this present moment, still a student.

Sometimes I'm so slow... Like another kind of OT: an Obese Turtle.

But I know that my preceptor is right. I need to Think like a Student Therapist! Beyond the idea of taking my responsibilities more seriously is understanding that in the very near future, I will be doing therapy with clients "for real" (for lack of better words) without another person to double check my ideas and work. Who knows if I'll be lucky enough to be in a team along with another experienced OT to consult with on my first job?? I should take advantage of this placement as an opportunity to "play the therapist" while I still have my preceptor and other voices of experience that are willing to teach and guide me before I mess up.

Nervousness is often associated with a lack of confidence and that's one of the many things that I have learned from this placement. The confidence in knowing that I really Do want to work with kids! Before this placement, I had minimal experience working with infants and young children (preschoolers), but always thought that I would like working with these little guys. I am thankful for this new found confidence, knowing that it's no longer just an idea that I dream about, but I really can see myself working with kids!

And as I come close to the end of my placement, I find that this confidence is helping me think more like a Therapist, rather than just a student. This has most certainly been a great feeling and I look forward to seeing more of the Therapist in myself.