April Extra Blog Post

Content:

Over the course of the month of April I have been conducting group therapy sessions with some participants and I even created certificates of completion. They allowed me to teach them the ways of stress relief and trusted me with their inner most personal information.

Additional March Post

Content:

As it already is evident that my essential question and research is all based off stress, I decided to research some potential activities that I can use for my Final presentation activity time. I came across gold when researching, because I think that I found a pretty cool activity that demonstrates the whole "limiting" concept that I go over in my first answer.

The activity would consist of the class forming a circle with their seats, a rather tight circle (as tight as possible). I would then begin to throw balloons in the middle of the circle (the objective is to keep the balloons from hitting the ground). Each balloon would be labeled with "homework", "work", friends" and etc. I would throw in as much balloons as possible that it takes for them to finally let a balloon hit the floor. Then I would conclude by explaining how the balloons represented everyday obstacles and how we need to learn how to limit ourselves and what we take on in order to avoid being stressed out. I mean it is obvious, the more you have on your plate, the more energy its going to require for you to complete the tasks, and once the energy runs out you end up relying on stress as a survival last resort. In conclusion, I believe I have found a pretty neat activity for my final lesson.

 

February Extra Blog Post

Content:

During this month of February i didn't do too much mentorship, I could have done more if I wasn't so busy with the soccer season. However I did see my mentor on occasions this month and she helped me come up with my 2nd answer for my Essential Question which includes relaxation skills. She even showed me this really cool relaxation app on her Ipad called Breathe2Relax.

The app was pretty cool because it has a lot of interactive functions that help you with breathing exercises, and it can help you pinpoint a certain part of your body to mentally work out and relax.

I am considering using the Ipoly IPads to be able to utilize this app during my senior presentation and using it as an activity. Maybe I will, maybe I won't. Right now it is a possibility that I'm pondering.

December Extra Blog Post

Monthly Post:

     Change occurs at the oddest of times for better or for worse. This month of December has been a mixed month in terms of my mentorship. For instance the "Anger Management"  group and concept basically got shot down and we will no longer be going further with it (and now I need to change my EQ). However there is a form of silver lining. Now that the anger management will not be continuing my mentor spoke to me of other "projects" in which her and I can begin.

     We have been talking about a potential LGBTQ group. In case there are people who don't know, the abbreviation stands for "L"esbian, "B"isexual, "G"ay, "T"ransgender, and "Q"ueer. Here is a list that we both came up with, in which her and I will complete and compile our research together.

     Find resources in the local community for LGBTQ (e.g. planned parenthood, community centers, clubs etc.) Also want to find online resources for adolescents.
Here are some of the resources I was looking for:
1) understanding attraction towards the opposite sex/ feeling comfortable with your identity
2) how to/ support for youth that are thinking about "coming out"
3) what is "coming out"?
4) common reactions of the person coming out and reactions of loved ones
5) how do I compromise between religion (parent's religious beliefs) and my true identity?

     We understand obviously that this whole concept is a very delicate subject.We are not sure if this potential project will in fact develop into an actual group. For now we are in the building process by obtaining research that we need. I will continue to contribute to the research along with my mentor Karla in order to hopefully establish this group.

November Extra Blog Post

     My mentor, Karla Vallejo Rodriguez, assigned me to research a theory she has always found interesting: Whether or not certain foods affect one's moods. She assigned me to find several research on the theory. With all the research, she told me to than format the important facts of research and create a nifty and appealing pamphlet that she could hand out to certain people in her sessions that have unhealthy food patterns. I am currently in the process of assembling research and creating the pamphlet for Karla.

Through my research so far I have found somewhat of a correlation between eating habits and moods of people. According to reported research by NBC News, people should eat at least every 5 hours to keep their blood levels steady. Eating at this rate would ensure that your body gets necessary fuel, which may ultimately keep your mood stable. Also eating protein can slow the absorption of carbohydrates in your blood flow, which can improve your overall mood for various hours after a meal. On the other hand, meals with more fiber could slow the absorption of carbohydrates in your bloodstream which can decrease mood-swings. I will continue to research this topic and ultimately create a pamphlet for my mentor Karla.  

Monthly Post for October: Book Work

Monthly Post:
So throughout most of my time with my Karla Rodriguez Vallejo (my mentor)  I can expect to complete the task of reading her books and extracting the important info from the books. One of the books that I'm most familiar with is Seeking Safety: A Treatment Manual for PTSD and Substance Abuse by Lisa M. Najavits. I have worked on this book the past couple of months. It's a very informational piece of text and I'm pretty sure that I'm going to add it to my working bibliography for senior project research.

Here is a picture of the book:

 The book has chapters that each are specific to a process in the works of successful therapy. For example:
chapter 1-Intro to treatment, chapter 2-Safety, chapter 3-Detaching from emotional pain, etc.
Thus I read through each chapter and I highlight the main points and I than jot them down in a notebook.
After  have jotted down enough information I than transfer the writing into typed form and print it out.
The printed information is than used and integrated into packets that Karla and I create for our group therapy sessions. Overall this book has been tons of help in guiding me through information, as well as giving me information to integrate into my packets.

Monthly Post: Research

Monthly Post: 

         During my summer mentorship I worked with a marriage and family therapist named Karla Rodriguez Vallejo. Due to confidentiality I was not able to witness individual sessions with her and patients. However I was able to sit with and participate in her group therapy sessions. The two sessions I was able to participate in we're a parenting session with pure adults that covered how to communicate with their children and be a better parent. The other session consisted of discussing relationships, sex, and trust with high school couples. 

         I actually helped her prepare for her sessions by assisting her in the collecting of research and work sheets in order to assemble packets that would be handed to those individuals participating in the group sessions. For example in the picture above, there is a worksheet for the high school couples therapy session. I assisted her in the research of healthy relationships, safe sex, and abuse prevention. Afterwards I compacted the info into neat packets for the patients. It was a really exciting experience and I felt fulfilled when I would see all the patients utilizing the packets that I helped create, because I knew I made a difference and really contributed to the therapy session.