Activities of Daily Living
Caitlin Koob
Abstract
When I was on my second Level II fieldwork, I worked in a rehabilitation hospital. Due to my interest in children, any pediatric (the facility admitted adolescents) cases that came in were often assigned to me. I had a patient with acute intermittent porphyria. One of the many symptoms is severe muscle weakness. This young lady, Caroline, was 14 years old. When she was admitted, she was very weak and very depressed. Is there any 14-year-old child who wants to be in the hospital, unable to do much of anything, even the most basic activities of daily living, without assistance? I worked ceaselessly with Caroline to increase her ability to participate in self-care skills, something that she desperately wanted to have control over. This was a very tough case; not only was I working on self-care skills but I also had to navigate through Caroline’s depression and lack of affect. No matter: I was encouraging and positive, praising every miniscule gain she achieved. She never seemed to react to my praise. She never smiled.