Apologies for the lateness of this post. It should have been out on Thursday but as you will see while you continue reading life has been a hectic lately.
Being able to heal athletes and patients and getting them back to sport, work or their regular daily activities always brings me joy. Being able to help my family and loved ones brings me even more. I always want to be able to fix what is wrong with you. Be it stretching and working out any tightness or providing exercises to ensure proper strength. However for the last three years I have not been able to "fix" someone most dear to me. Three years ago my dad was diagnosed with liver and lung cancer. From day one we always knew it was terminal and were grateful for all the time we have been given since that day. Watching him go through rounds and rounds of chemotherapy, trying to ensure that his quality of life remained at a level he wanted has been difficult. In saying that, he was blessed for the majority of his treatment, he did not have many side effects and until the last year still golfed and helped out at the farm. It has been in the last six months where I have felt useless. During his final round of chemotherapy he became very tired and lost his appetite. It finally came the time where he started to open up to different options. I am very thankful for all my colleagues who have helped me grow as an athletic therapist. For teaching me about nutrition, acupuncture, and all the medical stuff that I now know to help understand what is going on with him.
Unfortunately two weeks ago my dad took a turn, his body just could no longer fight the cancer and handle the chemo going through his body. He has spent the last two weeks between two hospitals, wanting to come home. I live away from my parents and for the first week getting the information on his condition through phone calls and emails made it very hard, seeing and hearing the numbers and knowing what was going on in his body made me ache to help him more. Knowing that he was in no condition to come home and not wanting to be the one to tell him that.
This is where I am not sure if he has given me a gift or I have given him one. He has extremely swollen feet and legs. The edema is putting lots of pressure on his nerves and causing phantom pain. He describes it as though his feet are being drawn together like magnets. So the man who never asks for treatment, or pain meds wants me to work on him. The first treatment didn't go as well as I had hoped. I thought he was sleeping and he was wanting me to use less pressure. Compared to normal pressure I was going pretty light, so I thought that was that. However, it helped a little and he wanted it more. I need to send a huge thank you out to my cousin who helped guide me in regards to some better acupressure treatments. So today was the fourth treatment. I was able to do full leg flushing and moved a bunch of fluid out of his feet and ankles. Being able to see noticeable results and having even the doctor notice was a huge goal for me. What gave me even more was when he said he felt better and that the phantom sensation was gone.
Dad I hope that me being able to help relieve your discomfort while you are still with us is a gift. I do know that you have given me a great gift, being able to help you feel better while I can.
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Sunday, 9 February 2014
Friday, 3 January 2014
What I Have Gotten Back
To give more of an insight as to why I do what I do, I thought I would give you a glimpse inside.
The athletes have always been my reason? As an athlete I suffered through injuries that effected my performance and still effect my day to day life. I had an amazing Chiropractor who helped me through so many of my injuries and led me to becoming an Athletic Therapist. I wanted to be there for other athletes, to help them achieve their best.
As an Athletic Therapist you are there with your athletes through everything. We see them at their highs and lows, both on the playing field or in their personal life. It is not only the physical injuries that can cause devastating blows to athletes. The loss of a girlfriend or boyfriend, family member or even teammate can effect athletes in so many ways. Getting to know my athletes both on a physical, mental and personal level has helped me gain a better understanding of what makes them "tick". Developing these relationships is what makes me good at what I do. Knowing that I have been there for my athletes in their time of need means a lot.
The relationships that continue after athletes have graduated help me realize that I did make a difference in their lives. Getting to watch my athletes get married and have babies, graduate from college or university, get drafted into the NHL and even play professional hockey gives me great joy. Even greater joy is watching my children be able to enjoy the benefits of their mom being away for long hours and for all the time put in before they were born.
Being able to have my 6 week old son meet Nail Yakupov was pretty cool. I know at the moment this picture means nothing to him but give it a few years and I think he will thank me. I am also very grateful to Nail for being so wonderful and willing to hold him. I am also grateful for C being so good at hanging out at the rink with me that weekend for the Stollery event.
The other picture is now one of my favorites. Jaynen is a former athlete of mine who now plays for the Calgary Hitmen. Q has decided that he is her favorite player and her Christmas present was getting to meet him. For so many reasons I am grateful that this could happen. Being able to watch Jaynen grow into an amazing young man who I am proud that my daughter looks up to is great. The smile on both their faces says it all.
I hope that I have at helped all my former and current athletes in some way but mostly I would like you all to know that I am thank full for all of you. You have all taught me something in some way, be it due to an injury, something you were studying on the bus or what music I should be listening to, you have taught me something. Thank you.
This has been a short list of what I have gotten back because I truly have to be thankful for so many things in my life that I have gotten from sport and being an Athletic Therapist. Being able to help athletes achieve their goals, working through the physical struggles of injuries is just the tip of the iceberg as to what I have gotten back.
The athletes have always been my reason? As an athlete I suffered through injuries that effected my performance and still effect my day to day life. I had an amazing Chiropractor who helped me through so many of my injuries and led me to becoming an Athletic Therapist. I wanted to be there for other athletes, to help them achieve their best.
As an Athletic Therapist you are there with your athletes through everything. We see them at their highs and lows, both on the playing field or in their personal life. It is not only the physical injuries that can cause devastating blows to athletes. The loss of a girlfriend or boyfriend, family member or even teammate can effect athletes in so many ways. Getting to know my athletes both on a physical, mental and personal level has helped me gain a better understanding of what makes them "tick". Developing these relationships is what makes me good at what I do. Knowing that I have been there for my athletes in their time of need means a lot.
The relationships that continue after athletes have graduated help me realize that I did make a difference in their lives. Getting to watch my athletes get married and have babies, graduate from college or university, get drafted into the NHL and even play professional hockey gives me great joy. Even greater joy is watching my children be able to enjoy the benefits of their mom being away for long hours and for all the time put in before they were born.
Being able to have my 6 week old son meet Nail Yakupov was pretty cool. I know at the moment this picture means nothing to him but give it a few years and I think he will thank me. I am also very grateful to Nail for being so wonderful and willing to hold him. I am also grateful for C being so good at hanging out at the rink with me that weekend for the Stollery event.
The other picture is now one of my favorites. Jaynen is a former athlete of mine who now plays for the Calgary Hitmen. Q has decided that he is her favorite player and her Christmas present was getting to meet him. For so many reasons I am grateful that this could happen. Being able to watch Jaynen grow into an amazing young man who I am proud that my daughter looks up to is great. The smile on both their faces says it all.
I hope that I have at helped all my former and current athletes in some way but mostly I would like you all to know that I am thank full for all of you. You have all taught me something in some way, be it due to an injury, something you were studying on the bus or what music I should be listening to, you have taught me something. Thank you.
This has been a short list of what I have gotten back because I truly have to be thankful for so many things in my life that I have gotten from sport and being an Athletic Therapist. Being able to help athletes achieve their goals, working through the physical struggles of injuries is just the tip of the iceberg as to what I have gotten back.
Thursday, 19 December 2013
Female Athlete - Their Why
The why. This is extremely important to all who participate in sport. It is what gives athletes their drive and purpose. They why can change from beginning to end but performance can be effected if it is not truly from within. With the female athlete, their reasons to start participation vary especially from their male counterparts.
Friends are one of the greatest reasons for females to start sport participation. The adage if your friends jumped off a bridge would you? Holds true in this case. Many young female athletes either start participating in sport as a group of friends or because their friends are already involved. Compared to their male counterparts females are not inclined to join a sport group or team by themselves. They also are more likely to quit if they no longer have friends at sport or if they become bullied in any way.
Both male and female athletes feel a lot of pressure from family to participate, the female athlete however more so. Females see it as a sense of duty to their family to participate, whether they are happy or not.
Females will choose to participate in sport as a means of exercise and weight loss, especially as they grow older. This is one of the main reasons for females past their teenage years to restart or start participation in sport.
Another difference between males and females is the desire to compete. Females will continue in sport participation not due to the competitive drive of beating their opponents but the internal drive of accomplishing the task and improving themselves. This is one of the main points that keep females involved. They want to continually improve themselves. The sense of accomplishment over weighs that of besting their opponent if there is one.
One thing that everyone involved with female athletes needs to keep in mind is that their is a higher drop out rate compared to males. We need to remove boundaries that interfere with female participation in sport. Be it gender biases, the emphasis on the body or sport stereotypes, we need to encourage females to participate in sport.
Friends are one of the greatest reasons for females to start sport participation. The adage if your friends jumped off a bridge would you? Holds true in this case. Many young female athletes either start participating in sport as a group of friends or because their friends are already involved. Compared to their male counterparts females are not inclined to join a sport group or team by themselves. They also are more likely to quit if they no longer have friends at sport or if they become bullied in any way.
Both male and female athletes feel a lot of pressure from family to participate, the female athlete however more so. Females see it as a sense of duty to their family to participate, whether they are happy or not.
Females will choose to participate in sport as a means of exercise and weight loss, especially as they grow older. This is one of the main reasons for females past their teenage years to restart or start participation in sport.
Another difference between males and females is the desire to compete. Females will continue in sport participation not due to the competitive drive of beating their opponents but the internal drive of accomplishing the task and improving themselves. This is one of the main points that keep females involved. They want to continually improve themselves. The sense of accomplishment over weighs that of besting their opponent if there is one.
One thing that everyone involved with female athletes needs to keep in mind is that their is a higher drop out rate compared to males. We need to remove boundaries that interfere with female participation in sport. Be it gender biases, the emphasis on the body or sport stereotypes, we need to encourage females to participate in sport.
Thursday, 12 September 2013
Balancing the Scales: Sport, School and Life
Being a student athlete is hard work. The amount of time and dedication it takes to compete at any level can at times leave little room for anything else. Finding time to schedule in school work, friends and family soon leaves many athletes overwhelmed and unsure of how to deal with all that is on their plate. The majority of young athletes that excel in their sporting venue also excel in school because of their internal drive to succeed. It is also what makes them say yes to student council, yearbook and many other school activities. Creating an environment for the athletes to succeed is job held by many and each of them have specific roles.
As the parent you are the master conductor and scheduler. You shuttle the kids from school to practices and games and back home again, watching them do homework in the back seat or in the stands while waiting for their siblings to be done. You see them texting their friends or talking to them after school. Part of your job as master scheduler is to put time in each day for your children to complete their school work. Try to give them uninterrupted time and space to complete their homework for the day. When planning for weekends away, have the children speak to their teachers in advance to get their assignments and reading for that period. Schedule time each week for them to have friend time, family time and down time. It is very easy for everyone to get caught up in the rat race of classes and sport, even young athletes need time to spend with their friends. It may be they end up playing street hockey, a pick up game of basketball or doing cartwheels in the basement but it needs to unstructured socialization time with their friends. Family is important, as you will be who they fall back on when things get tough in life. Spend at least one night a week together as a family to reconnect, turn off the phones and find out how everyone's week has been. Each person needs some me time, so let them have it. This time will be useful as your athletes will discover how they are feeling both physically and mentally when the world slows down around them.
Coaches need to remember that sport is not their athletes full time occupation, school is. Schedule enough time for your athletes to rest, do school work and have fun. Athletes who are both mentally and physically fatigued will not be able to focus on the skills expected of them. You should encourage your athletes to excel at school, as the problem solving and critical thinking skills they gain there will help improve their on field performance.
As an athlete you may feel the pressure to say yes to every request you get. Learn to say NO and to find a way to schedule time for yourself. Using a day timer or calendar to organize and write down when assignments, tests and games are will allow you to manage your time wisely. You don't want to have to worry about doing the ten page essay after family supper on Sunday night. Talk to your friends, find time to hang out with them away from school or gym. Your friends and family will help you out when you start feeling like everything is too much, keep them close so they are their for you when it happens.
Usually as a teacher you are probably doubling as teacher during the day and coach at night. Be understanding of your student athletes when they let you know they will be away, let them know what work they will miss so they don't fall behind. Students who exercise typically do better in class, help them excel at both school and sport.
Everyone involved in student athletes lives needs to pay attention to how much pressure they are putting them under to complete everything asked up them. We all need to be realistic in our expectations of them and to pay attention to the signs of burn out. If they are getting burnt out, be there for them and help them adjust as need to so they can live that balanced lifestyle where they gain the full benefits of school, sport, family and friends.
Symptoms of Burn Out
low motivation, decreased energy, concentration problems, loss of desire to play, lack of caring, sleep disturbances, physical and mental exhaustion, lowered self-esteem, negative affect, mood changes, substance abuse, change in values and beliefs, increased anxiety, highs and lows.
As the parent you are the master conductor and scheduler. You shuttle the kids from school to practices and games and back home again, watching them do homework in the back seat or in the stands while waiting for their siblings to be done. You see them texting their friends or talking to them after school. Part of your job as master scheduler is to put time in each day for your children to complete their school work. Try to give them uninterrupted time and space to complete their homework for the day. When planning for weekends away, have the children speak to their teachers in advance to get their assignments and reading for that period. Schedule time each week for them to have friend time, family time and down time. It is very easy for everyone to get caught up in the rat race of classes and sport, even young athletes need time to spend with their friends. It may be they end up playing street hockey, a pick up game of basketball or doing cartwheels in the basement but it needs to unstructured socialization time with their friends. Family is important, as you will be who they fall back on when things get tough in life. Spend at least one night a week together as a family to reconnect, turn off the phones and find out how everyone's week has been. Each person needs some me time, so let them have it. This time will be useful as your athletes will discover how they are feeling both physically and mentally when the world slows down around them.
Coaches need to remember that sport is not their athletes full time occupation, school is. Schedule enough time for your athletes to rest, do school work and have fun. Athletes who are both mentally and physically fatigued will not be able to focus on the skills expected of them. You should encourage your athletes to excel at school, as the problem solving and critical thinking skills they gain there will help improve their on field performance.
As an athlete you may feel the pressure to say yes to every request you get. Learn to say NO and to find a way to schedule time for yourself. Using a day timer or calendar to organize and write down when assignments, tests and games are will allow you to manage your time wisely. You don't want to have to worry about doing the ten page essay after family supper on Sunday night. Talk to your friends, find time to hang out with them away from school or gym. Your friends and family will help you out when you start feeling like everything is too much, keep them close so they are their for you when it happens.
Usually as a teacher you are probably doubling as teacher during the day and coach at night. Be understanding of your student athletes when they let you know they will be away, let them know what work they will miss so they don't fall behind. Students who exercise typically do better in class, help them excel at both school and sport.
Everyone involved in student athletes lives needs to pay attention to how much pressure they are putting them under to complete everything asked up them. We all need to be realistic in our expectations of them and to pay attention to the signs of burn out. If they are getting burnt out, be there for them and help them adjust as need to so they can live that balanced lifestyle where they gain the full benefits of school, sport, family and friends.
Symptoms of Burn Out
low motivation, decreased energy, concentration problems, loss of desire to play, lack of caring, sleep disturbances, physical and mental exhaustion, lowered self-esteem, negative affect, mood changes, substance abuse, change in values and beliefs, increased anxiety, highs and lows.
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