Smiles and Storms

I started my psychology internship at Ellisville State School today. Before I went out there I had no idea how all-encompassing their care was. They have on-campus dorms, a Special Education school, work programs, recreational programs, rehabilitation programs, care for geriatrics, pediatrics, and everyone between with a wide variety of special needs. Most of the clients are mentally handicapped and psychiatric diagnoses are secondary from what I can tell.

The facility is much cleaner, calmer, and prettier than I expected. There is a pond, lots of green grass, and some really fascinating architectural detail. Inside the buildings were clean, organized, and had a much warmer feel than I expected. It does have the same smell as a hospital unit would. I think it is mostly due to the wide use of PEG tubes for feeding the clients. There is a distinct aroma that goes along with the nutritional supplement they use.

Today was my first day to work in the SPED school, where I will do the rest of my 80 hours this summer. It was a wonderful experience. The teacher was very friendly and well-spoken. She didn't have that air of working too long at a mental health institution like some of the employees I have met. One woman I met yesterday exhibited several behaviors of her clients and although I'm sure she is completely healthy and capable of doing her job, I think she could benefit from some time away from the institution.

The children were a pleasure to be around. It truly is something amazing to see the innocent joy in their faces when you say a kind word or they know they did something correctly. Those uninhibited smiles are something only a special child could give. It was sad, though, to see how quickly a smile could fade and a storm would take over the mind. The retreat inward often looked painful and chaotic. I found myself compelled to try to keep the kids I was interacting with focused on the world outside their minds, like the best thing I could do was to keep them distracted. But who knows if that is truly the case?

I know that this is going to be a huge part of my summer and I will probably be writing about it often. Forgive me if my posts become obtuse, as I am not allowed to talk about clients due to the HIPAA law. I will, however, be sharing my feelings about the experience as the summer goes on.

Motherhood VS Career

I have finally finished a semester-long psychology project. When I signed up for Experimental Psychology I expected to read a plethora of journal articles (we did) and learn about famous experiments in the history of psychology like The Stanford Prison Experiment. I had no idea I would be conducting my own psychology experiment from the ground up. I came up with the plan, did the researched, performed the test, got the statistical results, wrote the conclusion and put it all together in APA format (which I'm getting quite used to after writing 4 papers in it over the past six weeks).

My study was to see if the women at a conservative Christian college in the Deep South would view themselves as more motherly or career oriented. I gave each participant a small strip of white paper and told the group that it was a PTC strip. I told them that a study found that motherly women tasted sweetness and career-oriented women tasted sourness then asked them to record what they tasted. They were forced to choose between sweet and sour. I found out that 61% of the participants chose the option associated with careers. Mothers were only slightly more likely to say they tasted sweetness than non-mothers and African Americans tasted sourness at a much higher frequency than Caucasians.

In my research I found that only 55% of working mothers spend more than three hours an evening with their children but more working mothers breast-feed more often than non-working mothers.

How do you feel about the work vs. home debate?

Alcohol Study

Right now I am in the alcohol studies lab at USM. They are testing to see if there is a genetic component to how alcohol effects your motor skills. I am in a little room with two computers, two chairs, and blank walls. There is another person in a similar room and a grad student giving the tests. We will be playing against each other to see who has the faster reaction time in computer games. So far I have peed in a cup, taken psych battery tests, and started to drink spiked OJ. They don't tell us how much we are getting, but I'd imagine I have a shot of alcohol in there. I've been given permission to goof around on the computer while I drink, so here we are.

In other news, I went to a conference yesterday for the Mississippi Student Nurse Association. There were five keynote speakers (four were interesting, one was useful) and recruiters from several Mississippi hospitals. I can't remember the word for the trinkets they give out, but I got lots of those. I'm such a sucker for that stuff. I still have all of the pamphlets and goodies from Episcopal General Convention last summer that I swear I'm going to read 'one of these days.'

I visited with Mamaw and my mom's parents whom I refer to as Dranmomma and Roy C. It was great to see them all.

There is a chance that I will be going to California for the National Student Nurse Association Conference in a week. I'll post more about that later. Until then, bottoms up!

Update

I got to see snow- real, powdery snow- for the first time. Saturday night it snowed in Asheville. Wesley and I had gone walking around downtown when it first started coming down. It was soft and subtle, and I dare say, romantic. We went to see Casino Royale (awesome, btw) later on in the evening and then stayed up playing poker (for chips, not clothes) until around 3AM when I noticed that the snow was really starting to accumulate. Wesley was so sweet. He put on his coat and hat and took me outside to play in the fluffy white goodness. He even let me hurl a few snowballs in his general direction and made a snow angel for our amusement. The whole experience was had a dreamy quality to it.

I drove home to face reality yesterday. My first class of the new semester was last night. I can't believe I am taking 14 (which counts out to 19) hours this trimester. I must have lost my effing mind.

This is the semester I have to retake Dosages and Calculations, the class that put me six months behind when I made an 86 on the first test thereby failing the class. Today was the second day of the semester. I spent all morning in class and all afternoon in the library. Then I came home and did some more work tonight. I haven't even touched my Dosages yet (don't worry, the first test isn't for another 2 1/2 weeks).

Not one to leave well enough alone, I am flying to California at 5:45 Thursday morning. I will drive the hour and a half to the airport early in the AM and I will be gone until Monday night. I am looking forward to the trip and seeing my friends that I met at the Episcopal General Convention last summer. I am also looking forward to seeing Wesley again so soon and getting to see what the other side of the country looks like. The furthest west I have ever been was Dallas, TX and Lincoln, NE.

Oh! And I got my grades in. I made A's in Pathophysiology and Professional Nursing. I worked very hard for those A's and was ecstatic to see it pay off. Claire, I made an 88 on the APA paper. All of my red marks were on the References page because I used the wrong style example for my online journals. Not too bad for my first APA paper, if I do say so myself.

Psych Majors

I have big news. Well, semi-big. I have decided to pursue a second degree in psychology and I am taking 13 hours of psych classes in the spring semester (mid-Feb to May). It's going to be a lot of hard work, but I feel I am ready for the challenge and I think that if I'm going to be in school for six years, I Better have two degrees to show for it.

I had to promise my advisor that I would keep my nursing classes first, and not let my grades slip. The only nursing class I am taking this spring is my re-take of Dosages and Calculations. I feel like I am prepared to ace it. Truth is, I HAVE to ace it- so I will.

While a psych degree may not help me be more marketable as a nurse, as some have suggested, I think that it will help me be a better nurse once I get a job. I believe it will also help me with interpersonal relations and understanding where others are coming from. Who knows, maybe it will even make me a better mother when the time comes. Regardless, I think it is a much better choice than taking fluff-classes that will get me nowhere just so I can have my required hours for each semester.

Next semester I am taking Abnormal Psych (which should be fascinating), Educational Pysch (Boring!), Experimental Psych (not sure), and Counseling Psych (which I think will be the most beneficial). Then, this summer I will do two days of 8-hour internships while taking Med-surg1. I'm going to be busting my butt from here on out and I can't wait. It will be good to feel like I am making progress again.

Mania

And this is why I NEVER EVER want to work in psych. Good Lord Almighty!

This is a video with audio in Austrian and English subtitles. There is cussing and screaming and even a little bit of manic laughter.

The website says the boy is German, but I've been told that is incorrect.

Angry Austrian Kid

A smart man once said...

Maslow was a humanist who suggested that humans have a hierarchy of five basic needs which culminate in self-actualization. He thought educators should strive to impart this wisdom:

1. We should teach people to be authentic, to be aware of their inner selves and to hear their inner-feeling voices.
2. We should teach people to transcend their cultural conditioning and become world citizens.
3. We should help people discover their vocation in life, their calling, fate or destiny. This is especially focused on finding the right career and the right mate.
4. We should teach people that life is precious, that there is joy to be experienced in life, and if people are open to seeing the good and joyous in all kinds of situations, it makes life worth living.
5. We must accept the person as he or she is and help the person learn their inner nature. From real knowledge of aptitudes and limitations we can know what to build upon, what potentials are really there.
6. We must see that the person's basic needs are satisfied. This includes safety, belongingness, and esteem needs.
7. We should refreshen consciousness, teaching the person to appreciate beauty and the other good things in nature and in living.
8. We should teach people that controls are good, and complete abandon is bad. It takes control to improve the quality of life in all areas.
9. We should teach people to transcend the trifling problems and grapple with the serious problems in life. These include the problems of injustice, of pain, suffering, and death.
10. We must teach people to be good choosers. They must be given practice in making good choices.

I think it is beautiful in its simplicity, even if it is a little grandiose. Too bad it's not small or trendy enough to turn into a bumper sticker or catchy logo. The people around here have a lot to learn from Dr. Maslow. Myself included.

Read more about Maslow here: Dr. Maslow