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Where I spend a majority of my time when I am off my mat-
You can find me in either yoga clothes or scrubs, but I realize that I think I actually spend more time in scrubs. To give you some background, I graduated with a degree in recreation therapy from East Carolina University. Most people question what recreation therapy is so to give you a better idea– recreation therapy is a systematic process that utilizes recreation and other activity-based interventions to address the assessed needs of individuals with illness or disabling conditions, as a means to psychological and physical health, recovery and well-being. This type of therapy can include helping others through a variety of things such as yoga, meditation, mindfulness, art, music, games, dance, animals and movement.
About 3 years ago, I was offered the opportunity to bring recreation therapy to Stamford Hospital in Stamford, CT. When taking this job, my main goal was to spread the holistic approach into the medical field. I got my yoga certification previously for a recreation therapy internship so I wanted to combine what I had learned in my recreation therapy program and what I learned from my yoga certification course to help patients at the hospital. I wanted to be able to tie in the mind, body and soul into the healing or rehabilitation of an individual.
When I first started this job, recreation therapy was only offered in the physical rehabilitation unit. It has now spread to every part of the hospital such as psychiatry, pediatrics, pain management, and in the inpatient hospital. This week they have recently made it so every staff member of the hospital can place an order for a patient to receive recreation therapy. This news made me ecstatic, I felt so excited that my goals and dreams with this program were coming to real life.
It has been an extremely fulfilling experiences to watch recreation therapy grow throughout the hospital as well as share what I have learned in my yoga certification course in the medical field. I have experienced a variety of circumstances with different populations where the holistic approach has been extremely beneficial in the healing process of a patient.
Through this experience as a whole, it has taught me to never stop believing. Never stop believing in yourself or the universe to help you accomplish your goals and dreams. Allow yourself to look at your goals as something that will come easy to you. You can achieve whatever you set your mind to.