Many of you know I'm an occupational therapist. I am a purveyor of hope who sees people not for their brokenness but for their wholeness. For all that they've been, are currently, and will be. It is a sacred gift handed down to me by a group of amazing women clinicians who sought opportunities to teach the next generation of OTs. They taught me that OT is the imperfect blend of science and art. Of healing with your ears and heart along with your hands. They taught me the value of occupation. How function and adaptation can work together to propagate opportunity. They also taught me that mental health is physical health. And, to care for one's mental health gives you the ability to care for others.
For the last 4 years, I have spent a good portion of my time teaching my students the value of valuing mental health. As OTs, it is the center, the very heart of who we are and what we do. You encounter mental health in every setting, every stage of life, in every culture, in every physical place and person we come into contact with. I have also tried to teach them that THEIR mental health matters. As care providers, we are guilty of not practicing what we preach. We talk a big game about protecting and nurturing mental health among our clients, but we do not nurture it among ourselves. We work ridiculous hours. We see patients on the weekends. We take care of our families and partners. We overwork, overschedule, and we do it because we are also taskmasters. We have been trained to do that. See a problem, work on fixing it, attack said problem until you've reached maximum functional outcomes, discharge. We do this over and over again to everyone and everything. Except, we don't do a great job of taking care of ourselves, and we are often pouring from a nearly empty cup.
As the pandemic raged on, I felt the need to switch gears. I wanted my students to know that their mental health and well-being mattered to me. First and foremost. I wanted them to know that their performance concerning their worth was not ever going to be a question for me. I knew they were good people who deserved to be told regularly that they were cared for, intelligent, and, when necessary, gently but truthfully redirected to what needed to happen. The results, y'all, are amazing. Students giving their best efforts and often exceeding my expectations. They know I care about them. They know I am available to be that listening ear. That caring heart. If they get a bad grade, I don't think less of them, I see, and they see an opportunity for improvement. They also know that I don't do this for evaluation lauding but because if they are going to be healthy therapists, they have to fill their cup/put on their own oxygen mask first. Yes, they need to show proficiency, but as they say, many roads to Rome. I want them to not only pass the test, but I want them to know what they know and what they need to learn more about, and I need them to know that they don't have to know it all. Just enough for now, and trust that they'll get more later. And above all, I FREAKING CARE THAT THEY KNOW I'M PROUD OF THEM EVERY SINGLE DAY.
We say a lot about the Millenial and Gen Z generations. Some of it is just cranky older people who can't imagine that people are different from them and that it is okay to be different. Some of it is genuine. What I know of them, they process differently. They need truth and honesty, but they also need to be nurtured. Both are ok. The world will harden them all on its own. I don't need to do that as well. I hope my former and current students, and most definitely my future students know that I care about them, not for their grades or evaluations, but because we are in this boat together. As I walk about you, I see myself, and I'm reminded that my professors cared with a fierceness that helped me navigate all the ups and downs to come.
So if you need to hear this today, I think you are smart. I think you are worthy of being where you are; it isn't a competition. Everything is figure-out-able! Go forth and be excellent to each other. You can put that on a sticky note!
