Ready to Dive In

Looking back to the beginning of the semester I felt comfortable going to work with children knowing I would be working with 5 & 6 year olds that were not officially referred to OT. I was a bit more nervous working with children with autism. It was uncomfortable not making that eye contact and not getting that interaction when playing with them. What I came to understand was that my reaction was just inexperience and I as realized their response to me wasn't personal, I could interact more naturally with them and treat them like other children despite not getting the usual response. I know I have the knowledge to come up with good treatment sessions but what I lack is the experience to feel confident and fluent with my skills. Each FW experience has sharpened my abilities to analyze activities and see the foundational skills required and it's not so hard anymore to come up with treatment ideas and go with the flow and change direction in the middle of a session when things don't go as planned. I'm glad we ended with kids since they are the most fickle and need the most flexibility when working with them. I don't think I could have thought on my feet if this had been my first FW experience. I still don't feel ready for FW2 but I know that it's time to get in there and do it. It's my inexperience that makes me feel unconfident and the only way to remedy that is to hold my breath and just dive in. I expect that when I come up for air I'll be swimming along nicely....for the most part.