Occupational Therapy

By -

“ Be Strong When You are Weak, Be Brave When You are Scared, Be Humble When You are Victorious” (Author unknown)


The quotation caught my eyes as I looked at the poster on the wall.

The first time I saw the quotation was around 8 to 9 months after my accident. That was when I didn’t even have the strength to get up from the wheelchair on my own and needed help.  I remembered that day. The burn ward had been so cold. They wheeled me into the occupational therapist work room; it felt so good to feel the warm air.

Staring at the quotation, I wondered, when I could feel victorious? If I am “strong” and “brave” would I be able to get through this? Whether I could fake the “strong” and “brave” part?  I tried to remember this quotation and write it down, to recite it whenever I feel weak and afraid.

I didn’t have the strength to lift both my arms to my ears and my palm grip was weak. The occupational therapist gave me a device with two bottles attached to it, when one bottle was squeezed, the liquid would be transferred to the other bottle. I recalled that I was trying to squeeze as hard as I could, but nothing happened, the liquid moved a little, then slowly fell back to the original bottle. Even when I squeezed with 2 hands, it hardly moved. I was feeling tired and frustrated.

Today, I saw the device on the table. Just for the heck of it, I squeezed the bottle. It didn’t take much effort. It was a good feeling for me to see the blue liquid being transferred from one bottle to the other.  I am grateful that I have the strength to do so. 

An occupational therapist was looking at me, she used to be a student here. She smiled at me. I called her name. She was surprised that I could remember her name. We chatted for a while. She was happy to see that I have progressed well and that I was looking much better now.

I then moved to a machine that looks like an old sewing machine.  It had a wide board beneath to press on with both legs. It felt good pressing on the board making it move steadily and sometimes fast. While adjusting to a higher resistance, I had a flashback. I remembered the first time pressing my foot on the board more than a year ago; it felt painful. The board felt hard. I didn’t have the strength and could hardly make it move.

After more than a year, the same poster and the same machines are still here. Nothing seemed to change much in the room. I wondered how many had been inspired by the quotation? Whether the person who pasted the poster had any realisation of the impact it had on others? Looking at this quotation, mixed feelings overwhelmed me.

Finally, I am feeling victorious.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bleeding Again

By -
Image
During updating Patrick's status to a friend of mine today, Patrick called out from the bed. I looked up to his dancing eyes and smiling face. This would usually put me in smiles. Instead, I watched his face more closely than usual. Much earlier this morning, closer to 2am, his vomit was mixed with blood. He was down with flu and cough since late last week. Earlier this week since Monday, the past couple of nights had been trying to us both. He woke up a few times coughing that caused him to vomit out his milk. For my readers who have not been aware, every night his nasogastric tube attached to a machine that pumped in milk throughout the night. I do this upon the doctor's advice to assist him to gain weight. HIs running nose irritated Patrick when its mucus dripped onto his upper lip. His body temperature did not appear to reach 37.5C and beyond. He has been active, as per his normal self except during the night he appeared to be more fussy than usual. He also appeared to
Read more

Surgery On My Baby

By -
Image
The birth of Patrick changed my marriage life from the two of us to the three of us, a family. We were excited, happy, worried followed by all kind of emotions for our baby son. So many things to learn, to experience. Breastfeeding, constant thoughts on our baby's well being especially when his jaundice appeared to rise during his first month. The lacking of sleep. There were moments I observed his breathing while he slept. We were amazed by every new mannerisms that Patrick displayed. We were so charmed when he first smiled to us. I would observed how gently my husband would treat Patrick and how Patrick would looked up to him, listening to his every word. Mummy supporting and loving baby We were enjoying ourselves as new parents until something happened in the middle of November 2017 that changed our lives forever. "There is something not right with his stools." My sister in law remarked to me while I tiredly changed Patrick's diapers. Menta
Read more

Bario Cinnamon - From the Land of a Hundred Handshakes

By -
Image
By: Chong Sheau Ching July 10, 2018 What is it? When you buy Bario cinnamon, you get it in the form of a two and half foot - long stick. They are harvested by a group of farmers from ‘Bario Agro Biodiversity Hub,’ Bario, Kelabit Highlands in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. It is trucked along a grueling logging road for twelve hours from Bario to Miri City, and then by sea freight from Miri Port to Port Klang before being transported to Kuala Lumpur, or from Miri Airport to KLIA and then transported to the city. The cinnamon trees are of the Cassia variety. They grow wild in pristine, lush, primary jungles among the flora and fauna such as those in the Bario Communal Park. The cinnamon bark harvested is thus 100% organic with ABSOLUTELY no chemicals as the trees grow in the thick Bornean jungle. Cinnamon is a traditional medicine used especially to ‘warm’ the stomach.   The Kelabits (main inhabitants in the Kelabit Highlands) also use the cinnamon bark in teas and i
Read more