Future OT 2020

                                                I recently had the opportunity to go with my class to watch the Memphis Rollin' Grizzlies at one of their practices.  Before starting occupational therapy school, I had not heard much about wheelchair basketball and had never had the opportunity to watch a team play before.  Watching the Rollin' Grizzlies practice was amazing, and I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to watch this team in action.     The Memphis Rollin' Grizzlies are a Division 1 team and Memphis' first nationally ranked wheelchair basketball team.  The rules of wheelchair basketball are much like regular basketball with a few modifications.  I was in awe of all the factors that go into playing wheelchair basketball.  Not only are they playing the game, but they are also controlling their wheelchair's speed...

         I decided to watch some of the videos in a video series done by a son, Joey Daley,  whose mother, Molly,  has Lewy Body Dementia.  I remember seeing one of these videos on social media a while ago and remember feeling shocked by how much the disease affected Molly.  I was really interested in watching more videos once I found out there was a series.  Joey creates weekly videos with a mission to educate others about Dementia and the effects that it can have on people.  One thing Joey says on the website is "it's impossible to simply read about Dementia and understand the magnitude of this disease."  I find this so true and for me it always helps to watch real-life individuals and see the effects first hand.  I found this video series to be a true representation of the disease and full of raw emotion.          I watched several of the videos with the first one being when Molly forgets ho...

Retrieved from: https://www.gofundme.com/CareFundForAlex I watched a video that described Alex Coriell's journey with ALS.  Alex was diagnosed with ALS in January of 2013 at 29 years old.  As is common with ALS, the progression of the disease happened quickly.  In September of 2013, he lost the ability to eat by mouth.  His arms and hands got weaker and he eventually lost so much muscle in his arms that he could no longer use them.  Ten months after his diagnosis, walking became difficult which lead him to use a cane and then a wheelchair.  Through his journey, Alex never lost his spirit or gave up.  He never stopped trying to keep moving.  He was always sharing his story with others.  One way he facilitated this was through blogging.  Even when he lost the use of both of his hands, he used his nose to type on an iPad.  When that became difficult, he used a device where he could use his eyes to type.  When Alex cou...