Chris teaching the manual therapy techniques to the the NAB students while they feel his hands to learn the proper hand placement and movements.
Friday morning was a bit of a "relaxing" morning...if you can call any of our days relaxing! There's just so much to see and do so we can get it all in! On Friday one group went to the Bombay Store to peruse and buy various gifts and Indian "knick-knacks" while the rest of the group went to get the chiffon Indian-style shirts (described by members of our group as the "ultimate wicking material" and "Indian UnderArmor"). These shirts were desired by many of the group members, to combat the heat experienced the day before. A room can get even hotter with 50+ participants performing manual therapy techniques in "what feels like" 100 degree weather (heat and humidity). Though the fans were surprisingly helpful, the shirts helped to cool our bodies during the teaching sessions. So this was our last day at NAB, the National Association for the Blind. Claire led the teaching of manual techniques for the spine, hip, and sacroiliac joint while everyone else continued to lead their small group of participants in hands on training.
So we are going to jump back to Friday, as we finish up our experiences with the NAB.
Friday morning was a bit of a "relaxing" morning...if you can call any of our days relaxing! There's just so much to see and do so we can get it all in! On Friday one group went to the Bombay Store to peruse and buy various gifts and Indian "knick-knacks" while the rest of the group went to get the chiffon Indian-style shirts (described by members of our group as the "ultimate wicking material" and "Indian UnderArmor"). These shirts were desired by many of the group members, to combat the heat experienced the day before. A room can get even hotter with 50+ participants performing manual therapy techniques in "what feels like" 100 degree weather (heat and humidity). Though the fans were surprisingly helpful, the shirts helped to cool our bodies during the teaching sessions. So this was our last day at NAB, the National Association for the Blind. Claire led the teaching of manual techniques for the spine, hip, and sacroiliac joint while everyone else continued to lead their small group of participants in hands on training.
Some comments from the group about our experiences at NAB:
Claire and Brienne: It was so fun to finally meet the people we have been corresponding with for over a year! Everyone was so humble and generous, and extremely gracious and inviting. It was interesting to see the differences between how we imagined things to be like and how they really were. We had been concerned about how the actual teaching of the visually impaired was going to go since none of have really done this before and didn't know what to expect. Working with a small group was good to give everyone the chance to both feel the technique as we were doing it, as well as try the technique on each other. It was surprising at first to have so many hands automatically feeling all over your own hands to "see" the technique. But after a while it became natural for us. I think as physical therapists we are used to using our hands a lot, so we were able to quickly adapt to teaching those with visual impairments. At the same time, it was impressive how quickly the participants caught on. It makes sense though, since they are so used to using their hands to interpret the world around them that they would learn quickly how to manage new technqiues with their hands to be applied to the human body. Finally, this group of current and future physiotherapists were inspiring. They in no way let their impairment limit them. We were so impressed with not only their knowledge and skills, but mostly their thirst for new knowledge. It was motivational for us as newly graudated students just coming out of school and feeling somewhat burned out -- we were able to see how excited it can be to have new experiences in physical therapy even beyond our formal education.
Melissa: One student (who was totally blind) asked Melissa to "take a picture" which really meant he wanted to video record her on his phone while doing a mini-interview to include information about herself so that he could remember her! During our tea break, we recieved umpa, which we could only describe as tasting like grits with veggies (but not so liquidy as you're probably imagining). It was made by "Mousey" (not sure on the spelling--but it means "Auntie").
June: Actually, I would suggest that the umpa could also be described similarly to chicken pot pie. Just thinking about it now makes my mouth water. The staff and students at NAB were extremely warm and friendly, as they opened up their school for us for three days and we will always be grateful for his experience! They provided us with everything we needed and gave us back much more! I hope that we get this opportunity again, as it was fun and rewarding for everyone involved!
Chris: Several of us received mahendi on our hands at the end. We spent over an hour giving out business cards and taking pictures (even the camera men wanted to pose in pictures with us!), and during this time Dr. Purnima (one of the NAB faculty) drew henna-like designs on our hands or forearms. She gave us the remainder of the cone so we could do more for the people that didn't have a chance to do it. Kara even tried her own hand at it and drew Rachel's design!
Mike: One of Mike's group members asked about pursuing further education as a physical therapist in the US. He was totally blind, but he probably had some of the best manual therapy skills of anyone in his small group! Mike was very encouraging and told him not to let go of this pursuit but to never take "no" for an answer.
At the end of the day, we left NAB meet the Mathurs at Bombay Blue for a mix of continental and Indian cuisine. The highlight: puffy balloons of fried dough (similar to puri, but I can't remember the name) and sizzling brownies from Mrs. Mathur (as a congratulations for completing our service at NAB!) Again, a very filling meal at 10:30 PM, but most enjoyable as Mr. and Mrs. Mathur made great suggestions on appetizer and entree choices.
Claire and Brienne: It was so fun to finally meet the people we have been corresponding with for over a year! Everyone was so humble and generous, and extremely gracious and inviting. It was interesting to see the differences between how we imagined things to be like and how they really were. We had been concerned about how the actual teaching of the visually impaired was going to go since none of have really done this before and didn't know what to expect. Working with a small group was good to give everyone the chance to both feel the technique as we were doing it, as well as try the technique on each other. It was surprising at first to have so many hands automatically feeling all over your own hands to "see" the technique. But after a while it became natural for us. I think as physical therapists we are used to using our hands a lot, so we were able to quickly adapt to teaching those with visual impairments. At the same time, it was impressive how quickly the participants caught on. It makes sense though, since they are so used to using their hands to interpret the world around them that they would learn quickly how to manage new technqiues with their hands to be applied to the human body. Finally, this group of current and future physiotherapists were inspiring. They in no way let their impairment limit them. We were so impressed with not only their knowledge and skills, but mostly their thirst for new knowledge. It was motivational for us as newly graudated students just coming out of school and feeling somewhat burned out -- we were able to see how excited it can be to have new experiences in physical therapy even beyond our formal education.
Melissa: One student (who was totally blind) asked Melissa to "take a picture" which really meant he wanted to video record her on his phone while doing a mini-interview to include information about herself so that he could remember her! During our tea break, we recieved umpa, which we could only describe as tasting like grits with veggies (but not so liquidy as you're probably imagining). It was made by "Mousey" (not sure on the spelling--but it means "Auntie").
June: Actually, I would suggest that the umpa could also be described similarly to chicken pot pie. Just thinking about it now makes my mouth water. The staff and students at NAB were extremely warm and friendly, as they opened up their school for us for three days and we will always be grateful for his experience! They provided us with everything we needed and gave us back much more! I hope that we get this opportunity again, as it was fun and rewarding for everyone involved!
Chris: Several of us received mahendi on our hands at the end. We spent over an hour giving out business cards and taking pictures (even the camera men wanted to pose in pictures with us!), and during this time Dr. Purnima (one of the NAB faculty) drew henna-like designs on our hands or forearms. She gave us the remainder of the cone so we could do more for the people that didn't have a chance to do it. Kara even tried her own hand at it and drew Rachel's design!
Mike: One of Mike's group members asked about pursuing further education as a physical therapist in the US. He was totally blind, but he probably had some of the best manual therapy skills of anyone in his small group! Mike was very encouraging and told him not to let go of this pursuit but to never take "no" for an answer.
At the end of the day, we left NAB meet the Mathurs at Bombay Blue for a mix of continental and Indian cuisine. The highlight: puffy balloons of fried dough (similar to puri, but I can't remember the name) and sizzling brownies from Mrs. Mathur (as a congratulations for completing our service at NAB!) Again, a very filling meal at 10:30 PM, but most enjoyable as Mr. and Mrs. Mathur made great suggestions on appetizer and entree choices.
Sincerely, Brienne & Claire
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