What the heck is OT anyway?  The definition is long and sure does encompass a litany of focus areas that bring well being and quality of life to the forefront.  When listening to this episode of the podcast, you will see how similar your role as a caregiver is to what an OT does.  Without the advantage of the collegiate degree that OT's pursue, you are providing a service to the one(s) you care for that looks a lot like what an OT does.   I truly believe that caregivers hold the power to be as effective as a clinician with the right approaches used consistently over time on a daily basis.  You can do that right? 

This is part one of a 2 part series that goes over what OT is all about and how you can be more effective in your caregiving while improving your own well being and quality of life by adapting the mindset of OT.  Here are the basic areas discussed in this episode: 

• occupation means the art or act of "doing" or being engaged in a task
• promotion of health and wellness 
• addressing the risk for developing an illness, injury, disease, disorder, condition, impairment, disability, activity limitation, or participation restriction. 
• Occupational therapy addresses the physical, cognitive, psychosocial, sensory-perceptual, and other aspects of performance in a variety of contexts and environments to support engagement in occupations that affect 
• physical and mental health, well-being, and quality of life. 
• activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), 

The overlap between OT and caregiver is wide and there is so much to be gained in the journey of a caregiver by adopting a mindset along the OT focus areas.   I encourage you to make a visual list of the characteristics addressed by OT ( listed above)  of the one you care for and another column describing yourself.  Your well being and quality of life are vitally important and must be put at the top of the list.  You have to be a priority. 

Here is a tool to help you develop the OT mindset and shift the trajectory of your caregiving journey .  A 3 part video training series, one video per day for 3 days, will give you a jump start on making the transition you and your loved one need. https://www.caregiverbydesign.com/training-series

Let me know what you need to know more about to make your caregiving journey less stressful https://www.caregiverbydesign.com/

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If you need more help/support on your caregiving journey, you can find it over at https://www.caregiverbydesign.com/coaching
Free training now : watch a short free video I created on coaching vs caregiving https://www.caregiverbydesign.com/freetraining