My OT Adventure

One of the most important aspects of an individual’s daily function is good body mechanics and proper posture. These aspects have a large influence on performance and abilities which is why it is important for us to teach our clients about it. Good body mechanics and proper posture allows for greater stability and balance when conducting activities, and allows individuals to avoid injury and pain. One of the main influences of good body mechanics is on an individual’s back, and how if it is positioned incorrectly during activities can cause a great deal of pain or injury. Additionally, having poor posture can increase likelihood of a spinal deformity or curvature which, in turn, over-stretches and tightens the muscles and connective tissues and decreases the strength in surrounding muscles. This can happen just from sitting poorly at a desk on a daily basis. There are many ways that a therapist can provide intervention for proper posture and good body mechanics but one specif...

In the short story, “Man from the South,” a soldier makes a bet and if lost, could lose his little finger or 5th phalange. He makes a comment that it would not matter to him if the finger was lost as he does not use it very often, but he would be wrong. Most people do not realize the importance of the little finger and the amount of mobility it can add to your hand.   Each finger contributes greatly to the strength of an individual’s hand. If the little finger were lost, one of the major disadvantages would be that this would decrease someone’s prehension. Prehension can be categorized as grasping on object, which requires the use of all 5 fingers. The loss of a little finger can affect many parts of an individuals daily routine, such as using a power grip to grasp a water bottle. Additionally, in the life of a soldier, losing his little finger may be even more critical as he will not be able to grasp certain tools (i.e. gun) needed to accomplish his job.   Some adapt...