Participation In Occupation 2 - Week One

"The analytic process are ways of thinking used by occupational therapy practitioners to understand activities and occupations, their demands and therapeutic potential, the skills required to do them, and the potential meaning ascribed to them” ( Crepeau, 2003) 

 As part of participation in occupation 2 we were asked to think of an activity that we already participate in and analyse it. To truly experience it rather than just do it. We must engage in the activity for 2 hours a week and then report back in our blogs about a certain aspect of it. My activity I choose was TV viewing. It’s not your conventional knitting or cooking, but it’s what I do for enjoyment.  I was told when I choose this activity I would be a hard one, however I firmly believe watching TV offers so much and I by the end of my blog  I hope you will agree.

This Week talked about the idea of Play, Paper and food. Play being something that brings us together in the human world, paper, what makes up the human world and food, all we consume or system activities. We were asked to think of an activity that we already do which falls under one of these 3 categories.Tv viewing falls under play as it is an activity which brings people together.
 For me watching TV can offer different things, sometimes it is a chance to escape my reality and enter into someone else’s, It relaxes me and helps me to forget about any stressor in my life for that short half hour or hour. More often it provides a point of conversation amongst myself and friends and family. Take for example the News, in my life growing up and now in my life flatting away from home, 6 o’clock is a time we all gather to watch the news. We discuss events and debate about articles. This is followed by Shortland street where we all have a laugh at the terrible acting and story lines. It is the only time during the day we are all together and relating to one common activity.
From a OT's perspective watching TV may not seem like an activity which hold much relevance in our field, However I propose that its educational properties would disagree with this. Watching an educational documentary may be far more beneficial to someone rather than having someone stand in front of them and talk to them about the same topic. TV also provides messages such as you are not alone. seeing others on TV going through similar experience as patients may be will give them a sense of comfort and may even provide them with motivation.
As for practical considerations....although it will be hard i am positive i will find 2 hours in my week to watch TV.

Crepeau E. ( 2003 ). Analyzing occupation and activity: A way of thinking about occupational performance. In Crepeau E., Cohn E, & Schell B (Eds.), Willard and Spackman’s occupational therapy ( 10th ed., pp.189-198). Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins