Convulsive Disorders

The TR program adequately empowers, informs, and protects individuals with various types of convulsive disorders by providing an environment that is encouraging and inclusive so that individuals with these disorders can experience true recreational activities in a non-judgmental authentic environment that is not only going to teach those with these disorders, but also the people that interact with them how to be accepting of every part of a person's character.

Multiple Sclerosis and Normalization

In this article about Multiple Sclerosis, it was interesting to see that people who have this condition benefited dramatically from the amount of physical activity that they were involved in no matter what stage of the disease they were in. As recreation professionals we can provide low intensity cardiovascular exercise programs that will assist in the development and strengthening of the clients’ hearts, muscle structure, and mind. In conducting these exercises we must constantly be aware of the conditions that these clients are facing and be willing to cater to their individual needs in a way that projects patience and encouragement. In the article it states that as a professional you must be willing to “alter a program dependent on changes in disability status” (Benyas, 1999). This statement shows that as professionals we need to be flexible in our working with MS clients and developing their specific and unique exercise programs. In order to create a specialized program for these individuals you will first need to assess the abilities and limitations of the various people that will be participating. I would suggest that clients with various stages of the disease be separated out into different programs so that way a recreation professional can effectively work with a group that is all on the same level. First, you should start with the low intensity cardio workouts that allow for clients to develop their cardio health while decreasing their level of fatigue over time. As your group continues to gain strength then you can add various elements to the program; however, every exercise within your program depends on the willingness and ability of your participants. The underlying point of all of this therapeutic recreation is that the “engaging in more recreational and social activities” will improve the amount of energy and overall mood of people who have this disease.

Spinal cord injuries plague the lives of many people across age groups, but the active lifestyles of young and middle age adults creates some of the most strain on the body and the most opportunity for extreme injury. Since most people that suffer a spinal cord injury suffer it doing physical activity, it is of the upmost importance for recreation professionals to adequately create opportunities for these injury survivors to experience thrills in life again. There are various recreational activities that people with spinal cord injuries can still participate in, but it all depends on the severity of the injury. One activity that I believe would be beneficial for individuals who have spinal cord injuries that limit movement only in the lower half of the body is any form of wheelchair sports. Although there is diversity in the amount of wheelchair sports offered, they are extremely competitive activities that would intrigue people who are as active as those who have experienced spinal cord injuries. Activities such as basketball, hockey, and even Olympic sports can all be done by paraplegics who have suffered from a spinal cord injury. As recreation professionals we must not only make these activities available to people with spinal cord injuries, but we must be able to effectively market these activities so that they can be aware of their opportunities without having to search desperately for something that meets their needs.

Participant Interview

On October 4th, 2009, I interviewed an eleven year old student named Steven. I was introduced to Steven while working at a church camp this past summer. Steven is an energetic fun loving child who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy; however, he enjoys being active with friends and family. I was able to interact with Steven and his father on this occasion to discuss the leisure in which Steven participates on a regular basis.
Steven was very excited to see me again after camp and was very energetic throughout my time there. He wanted to talk and have fun with me and after playing a game of Yahtzee we began to go through the assessment process together with the help of his father. Steven and his father wanted to see if there were any other forms of leisure in which they could participate in together or even allow Steven to do on his own. Also, they wanted to assess Steven’s physical abilities.
Assessment. After the interview, I came to the conclusion that Steven is a very interpersonal individual that loves to hang out with friends and participate in activities. However, he is unable to often be involved in all of the activities because of becoming very tired and having limited mobility because of his medical condition. Steven wants to be heavily involved in activities with his friends and like any eleven year old he wants to play any chance that he can. Since Steven is homeschooled by his parents in order to achieve a quality education, he is limited to playing with friends at church, cub scouts, or after school. Steven’s father does a great job of allowing friends to come over when possible, but often times because of the long day it is difficult for Steven to have quality play time with others. Quality time with family is very abundant for Steven; however, there is continued need for allowing others to be around him as well.
According to the Leisure Interests Survey, Steven enjoys outdoor activities and socializing with others. I have personally seen Steven interact with others in an outdoor setting and it is surely an environment where he finds joy and thrives. Steven has very little interest in pursuing hobbies and having a general concern for his health, but like most children they are uninterested in such health factors because their parents will take care of their needs. Steven has very limited regular leisure activities, but when he gets an opportunity to participate in them he immediately seeks them out. I believe that there is growth for Steven to become involved in various hobbies and low energy leisure activities because he has some expressed interest in them, but he really does not know about all of the opportunities that are available to him.

Priorities: The biggest priority for Steven is to increase the amount of knowledge that he and his father have of leisure opportunities and activities so that Steven can still participate efficiently and still experience great joy while participating.

Professional Interview Experience

For this interview, like several of you, I interviewed Lane Jeppesen who is the executive director of a recreation center out in Mesa and is also heavily involved with Arizona Disabled Sports. What I admired most about this interview and the facilities was Lane herself. She has managed and operated this entire recreation facility as the only full-time staff member for a long time and she has tons of responsibilities. I admire her courage and work ethic to take on so many tasks and to do all of the work that is asked of her with great joy. No matter what we talked about she always had a smile on her face and shows her passion for the job that she is doing. Here is an excerpt from my paper:

At this facility, Lane has a vast spectrum of responsibilities in order to upkeep the facility and programs that are offered that go along with the Arizona Disabled Sports organization that she also is heavily involved with. Lane’s main duties include but are not limited to: sponsorship and fundraising, marketing, managing the recreation center, planning and implementing events, and creating public awareness of the facility and the various programs that are offered. Despite having all of these duties Lane has been able to successfully serve the various clients that come to the recreation center. The center serves anyone who has either a mental disability or physical impairment no matter what their age. Clients that participate in some of the various programs are as young as six and even as old as 93.

I hope that everyone enjoyed their interview experience and learned as much about the vast spectrum of therapeutic recreation as I did.

Resources Awareness

Since I am a RTM major that is looking to work at a youth camp, I searched for therapeutic recreation camps that offer programs and services to their guests. The organization that I found was called Alabama's Special Camp for Children and Adults. There website is http://campascca.org/.

ASCCA offers a wide variety of outdoor activities for both youth and adults to participate in while they are in an inclusive environment. These various outdoor activities offer fun and challenge to bring both joy and empowerment to the guests at the camp. ASCCA offers weekend and week long camp programs for their guests so that they can participate in these activities while also incorporating various educational aspects. The camp just recently updated their website so there was not a lot of detailed information, but it is definitely an organization that peaks my interest because of the incorporation of outdoor activities with the educational fundamentals so that these children and even adults can feel a sense of accomplishment while having fun.

Tenet Discussion

The tenet that I felt resonated most with me was number four. The tenet states, "The actualization tendency motivates clients toward health promotion. Thereapeutic recreation specialists engage in mutual participation with clients motivated by the actualization tendency but move toward giving more and more control to clients as they become healthier." That is a long mouthful of a tenet, but to me it resonates with the idea that as a professional you can motivate the people that you are interacting with in order to get them to realize their own personal potential with the various activtity. I think that this one resonates so soundly with me because it allows for people to learn to do these activities on their own and give them confidence in something that is important to them and that they are in control of to give them a healthier outlook on life. Within the youth camp industry this idea can be used not only with people with various disabilities, but also with the young youth who feel that they aren't good at anything. When you teach them how to do an activity and motivate them on how to do it, they will be encouraged and learn how they can succeed in the activity and be mentally happier after they discover this new found talent and skill.

Fall 2009

Hey Everyone! My name is Robert Newton and I am a senior in the Recreation and Tourism Management Program. I am looking to finish up my undergraduate degree this semester and graduate in December. I look forward to interacting with all of you this upcoming semester and hope that we all have an awesome time.