Bits from Week 6's reflection journal:
__________________________
It’s a bittersweet end to my
six-week placement! On one hand, I feel good about the experiences I’ve had and
all that I’ve learnt so far. I am definitely more comfortable and confident in
my work, and I feel a sense of achievement that I’ve made it through! On the
other hand, it was very hard to say goodbye to everyone at the centre. Beyond
just being colleagues, I feel that we’ve become teammates and friends. Also, I
am a little sad that my experience with the pediatric population has come to an
end (for now). I really did enjoy working with children and their parents, and
it taught me many lessons.
.
.
.
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As child placement comes to
an end, I am reminded of some lessons I’ve learnt.
1.
From effortful to effortless – for children with speech issues, we often remind
them of the need for practice. At first, it’s difficult and you have to be
conscious of the placement and each movement. The more you do it, the more
you’ll get used to it and over time, it’ll be easier and less effortful. While planning/implementing
therapy sessions are far from effortless for me at this point, I think I got
the hang of it as time passed, and the thought process became clearer and more
automatic for me. If I keep at it and continue trying, I know I’ll get better at
it.
2.
“It’s always good to have something as a
motivator” – for children who have difficulty with task completion and
transition, it helps to have a toy/item they really like to use as a motivator.
Having that as an end goal may motivate the child to do the hard work in order
to get it. It’s not often the case that the journey to being a Speech Therapist
is a smooth one – there are so many challenges in this course and many
instances of discouragement. But I guess the motivation and end-goal for me is
to be a good Speech Therapist, who is able to help others. It reminds me of why
I do what I do, and spurs me on to work hard and give my best.
3.
It takes a village – I love seeing parents and caregivers who attend therapy with their
children and make an effort to participate and be involved in their children’s
development. It’s really heartwarming to see the child have so many people
concerned over them, and to see the child grow and make progress. Similarly, I
know that all the growth I’ve experienced in the past 6 weeks (and 1.5 years)
is a result of other people taking the effort to teach me, sharing their
knowledge and time with me, and being honest about how I can improve. I’m very thankful to have awesome teachers, mentors,
CEs, colleagues, and friends, from whom I’ve learnt so much.
The journey has been nothing
short of great so far, and now, it continues!
__________________________
God is good and He gives us much more than we ask for. Thankful for every day and every experience (good and bad) I've had so far, and insanely grateful for the awesome people I get to have breakfast with / work with / talk to / laugh with / ? cry with (hahaha)
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| With my CE - the awesome Charlotte! :) She is kind, generous, and truly inspiring |
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| With the STs and LSP :) |
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| :) |
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| Overwhelmed by their kindness - look at that peanut butter Prima Deli waffle!! |
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| The "dysphagia bag" they got me - will really be useful when I walk in the wards in future! |
#idonotwanttosayfarewell
