Blog 10

 When looking back at the beginning of my new occupation I begin to realize how much has changed in this short amount of time. I chose bowling as my occupation to be able to practice an occupation that I had previously disliked in my childhood. I did this to challenge myself in a way that I normally would not. I am so glad I did this. Through this experience, my thoughts towards bowling have completely shifted. Now instead of it being an activity I dislike and purposely avoid it is something I have found joy in doing.

This week for my occupation I had the opportunity to bowl in my hometown bowling alley. I have not been to this bowling alley since my 6th grade P.E. class. The building has not changed at all. They still have the paper scoring with a projector to show your score above you. The last time I bowled here bowling was something I dreaded. This time I was actually able to enjoy the experience because of the different perspective I have adapted to when it comes to the game. 

Being a first-year grad student has challenged me in many ways. A big part of being in grad school is simply scheduling and finding time to do all the things that need to get done. When it comes to the experience with my new occupation I feel like I have surprisingly been able to balance both the occupation and school well. I think I was able to do this because I simply set a plausible goal of going bowling once a week. If I were to have picked an occupation that required participation multiple days a week I do not think I would have found balance as easy. At the beginning of the semester, I did find it easier to go bowling during the week, but as the semester went on and tests and papers were due I found this harder. I found that on weeks when big assignments were due, it was easier for me to focus on school during the week and my occupation on the weekend. While there have been weeks where it was hard for me to find time to bowl for the most part my new occupation has been a way to debrief outside of school. Most importantly I have learned the importance of participating in occupations outside of school and allowing myself to enjoy these occupations without thinking about my next assignment. 

   

Blog 9: Occupational Balance

     When thinking about a time in my life when I experienced occupational balance I actually think back to the very beginning of covid. While the rest of the world probably felt an occupational imbalance, it was the first time in a long time that I felt balanced. During this time I wasn't playing a sport, so all I had to do was go to work and do my online school. This left me way more time for the recreational occupations I wanted to do. I used this time to do things I hadn't had time to do in a while like hammocking, hiking, fishing, etc. 

    Since starting graduate school, I am not sure that I have experienced occupational balance yet. My everyday schedule consists of school and work. I think right now I truly only make time to eat once in a while. I have implemented scheduling out my day better to try and create occupational balance. This has helped, but I need to stick with it better to see true results. 

    I think my participation in my occupation this week truly fits within the concept of occupational balance. This week I brought along four of my cohort members to bowl as well. After a tough week with our big tests and essays, I think taking a break to participate in a co-occupation was needed. It was a lot of fun for all of us to be able to hang out outside of school. I personally felt like it was an occupation where I was able to just relax and have fun. This goes to show how important occupational balance is. 

   As far as how bowling went we all did really well. The first game was a bit rough for everyone, but we just considered this to be our "warmup." The second game was a lot better and every person was able to improve their score from the first game. Overall, it was a lot of fun to include some of my classmates in my occupation and truly be able to take a break to experience occupational balance. 

Blog 8: Boredom

My occupation experience has gone a lot better than I thought it would in the beginning. Bowling has become something I enjoy to do. Could this be because I got better? Or is it just simply the fact that I have found more to enjoy in the game than my performance? I truly think its the second one. I enjoy going bowling for the aspects of getting up and doing something other than work and school. This occupation has gotten me out of the house on days I know I would have just stayed home and worked. While technically this occupation is for school, I think bowling has truly reminded me of the importance between school/work/life balance. 

When it comes to bowling I think people will experience many different types from the model within Wesgate & Steidel (2020).  However, bowling for me tends to land under F (Enjoyment, Low Boredom.) I believe that bowling fits best under this because it has a high meaning to me but a low demand. Bowling is meaningful to me because it is something I remember my family always doing growing up. When I go bowling there is very little demand. I truly just go and play a few games not really thinking or worrying about anything else. 

The concept of boredom is a big part of our occupational influence. Personally, I think I tend to enjoy boredom now more than I used to in the past. In the past being bored was the worst for me. I would always try to find little things to do just to avoid boredom. I feel like my current life is so busy that sometimes I search for the concept of boredom just to give my body and mind time to relax. When it comes to my current occupation; I can see bowling being an occupation that I go and do in the future to fix my boredom. 

Westgate, E. C., & Steidle, B. (2020). Lost by definition: Why boredom matters for psychology and                   society. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 14(11), Article                                                           e12562. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12562

Blog 7: Co-occupation

     This week I went bowling with three other friends. This was a lot of fun. We played two games. The first game started off really well for all of us, but the second game wasn't as good. It was nice to have other people around to talk to in between throws and made bowling two games feel less exhausting with the breaks in between. I finally was able to hit two strikes in a row. I learned from a friend that this is called a double. I almost had three but ended up with a spare instead. The more I continue to bowl the more it begins to feel like a natural motion for me. I no longer have to constantly think about the positioning of my body and arm when I throw because it just comes naturally. I have found that there is a general response when I tell people I go bowling every week and it is usually something like... "I love to bowl, but I am not very good at it."

    With this being the common response I think it is easy to say that bowling is a co-occupation. People usually go bowling for the physical, emotional, and intentional aspects. Bowling brings people together physically to share the experience of a common occupation. The emotional aspect comes from the enjoyment of being there with the people they enjoy being around plus playing the game. I think the shared intentional aspect is naturally there as well because everyone is there with the same common goal. These three aspects are typically what the bowling atmosphere looks like for most people. 

    With that being said, I think bowling has had its challenges for me because I tend to go alone and disrupt the co-occupation of it. Depending on other people, working with others' schedules, and outreach were all barriers that seemed to disrupt the co-occupation in bowling. I think this is important to note because while I was able to take something that is normally seen as a co-occupation and switch it to a solo occupation there are many people in the world who do not have the opportunity to simply not have co-occupations. Co-occupations are important for those who rely on others because without them their occupational well-being is truly at risk. Overall, I think bowling is a sport that people play with the intent of it being a co-occupation. I do not believe that most people simply go bowling because they are stellar bowlers. 

     I don't know how well you can see it, but my double came on the 7th and 8th frames. 

Blog 6: Contextual Restrictions

    Halfway through the semester and halfway through my new occupation I can truly say that bowling has grown on me. I never thought I would actually enjoy bowling, but here I am actively looking forward to it each week. I think this change has truly come from the switch from being focused on my occupational performance to focusing more on my occupational engagement. When I focus on my occupational engagement I have found that I get excited just to go to the bowling alley. I started to focus more on each frame and my form rather than focusing on my score. This week's bowling went really well for me. I am starting to like going alone more and more. This week I had the whole bowling alley to myself (other than the workers) and it was truly nice. I wasn't worried about what anyone else was thinking or if anyone was watching my score... I was just bowling and that was really nice. 

     There are some things that could potentially be contextual restrictions when it comes to bowling. One contextual restriction would be if the bowling alley was closed or full. This has happened to me a few different times. The first time I went to bowl alone I went on a Monday night because I figured that no one would be there. However, I was wrong it was league night and every single lane was full. This caused a contextual restriction because I wasn't able to bowl that night. Another contextual restriction could come from finances. Considering that you have to pay when you bowl if one did not have the money to pay for this then it would cause a threat to the engagement within this occupation. I think there are always going to be things that could threaten/risk your engagement in your occupations, but I think that it is more important to focus on the way you can work around these restrictions. 

Have you ever had a bowling alley to yourself?

Blog 5: Flow

 This week I did some recruiting to try and get others to participate in my occupation with me. My roommate Emma and I went to the bowling alley. I noticed how much more I enjoyed bowling and having someone with me. However, I don't think it was as fun for her. Emma was in a ski accident last year and suffered from a T.B.I. This was her first time going bowling again since her accident. I could see her getting frustrated as we bowled more and more. At first, I found myself not saying anything because I knew how frustrated I used to get when people would make comments or try and give me advice. I realized that maybe what Emma needed wasn't pointers, but just some encouragement. Through encouraging Emma and letting her talk about her frustration I watched as she slowly got better and better. I found myself thinking about what I would do if I were her Occupational Therapist... maybe that's just becoming our way of thinking now lol. 

When it comes to the concept of flow, I have never truly put much thought into what flow is. When thinking about if I experience flow in my new occupation the answer was immediately no. I think this has to do with a lot of outside factors. Normally when I bowl, I am alone. This makes me constantly think about everything else that is going on around me. I noticed I was closer to flow when bowling with Emma. I wasn't worried about what or who was around me I was simply just bowling. This brought me a sense of peace. It was probably the first time I genuinely enjoyed bowling. I think this is what flow does for oneself. Being in flow simply makes the activity that you are doing more enjoyable because it is as if the mind is on pause. As someone with ADHD my mind never truly stops thinking, but I realized when I experience flow my mind is at peace because all it is thinking about is the occupation at hand. 

I truly don't know if I will ever experience flow within my new occupation. I think that in order to experience flow when bowling. I would need to be at a bowling alley with one lane and no workers, but considering this is unrealistic I am not sure if I will ever experience it. I definitely noticed I was closer to the experience of flow when bowling with someone. I think this was because it was the first time I truly got to challenge my new skills with someone else there. I am excited to see as I get more consistent with bowling if I begin to experience flow more often,

Staying consistent with the 100 range

Blog #4

 Woah! First of all, I never thought one would need to stretch or prepare the body before bowling, but I was totally wrong. I am sore. This week I convinced myself to go bowling alone again. While I still sat in the parking lot for a minute boosting myself up to go in. It seemed to be a lot easier this week, and I felt less embarrassed to be doing it alone this time. My occupation with bowling went well this week. I was able to maintain breaking 100, and feel like I am starting to develop the knowledge to know how my release should be in order to through a straight ball. I have yet to bowl two strikes in a row, so I feel like this is my next goal. 

When it comes to self-determination, motivation, and autonomy each plays a very important role in my participation in my occupation. Each week I have to schedule a time when it would be best to participate in my occupation. At first, I would wait for others to have an open time so I wouldn't have to go alone. I realized quickly that I would need to start going alone in order to accomplish my goal of bowling once a week. My self-determination in participating in my new occupation was truly what drove me to be able to bowl alone. Motivation has also been a big factor for me in my new occupation. I would say that at the beginning I lacked motivation to go bowling. It wasn't that I necessarily didn't want to go, but felt more like a hassle on top of everything else I needed to get done. Once I started scheduling my weeks better and making time for my new occupation, I noticed that my motivation to participate in my occupation went up. To be completely honest, I struggle with the concept of autonomy. After really looking into autonomy and learning about other's personal experiences I realized that my autonomy is truly the reason I even picked bowling as my new occupation. The day I decided to choose bowling as my occupation was the day I decided that I would no longer allow myself to not participate in something because I wasn't good at it. I believe that autonomy is a big part of being able to act on your own values and interests. Considering this, it was because of my own personal autonomy that I picked bowling to be my occupation. When I really think about it all three of these factors play a part in my participation within my new occupation. When my motivation was lacking my self-determination kicked in. However, without my autonomy, I wouldn't be here in the first place.