To Independence... and Beyond!!

Today in OCP Older Adults class, we learned about aging and sexual health from Jennifer Valli, an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist. It was a very insightful lecture for such a sensitive topic, and I think it was a great opportunity to learn more about it in order to gain a better perspective of OT’s role in this subject. My key takeaways from this lecture were as follows: • It is a myth that older populations are asexual is later life. They do experience a gradual decline in sexual activity, but the majority of healthy people with partners remain sexual into their later years. • Orgasm results in pain relief, stress reduction, and improvements sleep and cognitive functioning in older adults. • Masturbation can have the same affect as practicing mindfulness as it sharpens the mind even when others are not engaged. • During menopause, women’s levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone levels fluctuate, which has a direct impact on their sexual health (i.e., lubrication and ...

This past week in OCP Older Adults, we had the chance to hear Cody Stovall, MOT, OTR/L, CDRS lecture on his experience and certification in driving and community mobility. There were several takeaway points from this lecture: A driving program involves a thorough assessment of a person’s performance skills/client factors needed to drive a vehicle. An adaptive driving program has 3 purposes:                1. Assess individuals for safety and potential to drive               2. Evaluate persons with physical disabilities for appropriate AE                3. Train individuals in the use of AE and/or compensation techniques for driving If a person has any additional/modified equipment that did not come with his/her original vehicle, that person must have a restriction placed on his or her license for that. This ensures safety in using that modification while d...