Helping 2013

Interviewee: Priscilla West
April 24, 2012 1:50PM


 What ideas do you have for your senior project and why?

• Priscila: I was thinking of doing film, but specifically documentaries. If not, I could do cheer because I'm going to be in cheer throughout senior year. I was in cheer for nine years and I love it so it wouldn't be a problem. If I do documentaries, I would like to focus on social issues like the California Public School System, or rather the state of it. 
• Me: You already know how you're getting your hours?
• Priscilla: Yes, for cheer I know a place and I could volunteer to get my rates deducted. 
• Me: How about for film?
• Pris:  I don't know how I would get hours for film, but I want to get into sociology so it would help me. I could take a film class, but I'm in ROP this year, so I wouldn't be able to do that.
• Me: You could take a class at Cal Poly.
• Pris: Yes, but I don't know if I can get one for both semesters. 
• Me: Make sure to look into before you give up on it. 

 What do you plan to do to complete the 10 hours of service learning (working with an expert) which is due prior to senior year starting?  

• Pris: I have two hours for cheer already. I have a private lesson for it. For film, I have a friend that knows the director, and I've met him before so I can call him up and see if I can help out on the set or do anything. It needs to be with a professional right?
• Me: Service learning needs to be done with a pro, but if you really, for film, you can make your own as your independent component. If you met with a professional to get feedback on your work you could document it and present it as evidence of work. 

 What do you hope to see or expect to see when watching the class of 2012 present their two hour presentations?

• Pris: I hope to see things I can learn from, whether it is about their topic or how to present. I hope that it's hands on and we don't just sit there for an hour and a half doing nothing. 
• Me: I like that you want it to be hands on, because some people don't want to do anything. Please, encourage your classmates to bring the required materials. I would cry if I was expecting people to bring something and they showed up empty handed. Also, come on time for everyone's sake because it looks bad on you, and it distracts the presenter. 

Do you have any other questions?

• Pris: How many different components are there?
• Me: It's hard to count them because there are components that go on through out the whole year. Basically there are Independent Components 1 and 2, four interviews, science fair, and research is counted as a components. 
• Pris: How crazy is the work schedule?
• Me: Personally, I have been on a really crazy work schedule because everything just snow balled. You look at the schedule and you think "Oh, this isn't due until next month," and you focus on what's due at the moment. The problem is that these projects take weeks and you end up waiting until the last minute. If I could redo this whole year, I would have sat down and planned out how and when I was going to finish each thing. It's really up to you if you want to take this advice, but I really wish someone would have warned ma about how easy it is to get caught up in the daily work and forget that you need to do 30 hours worth of work for independent components or how busy your interviewee's schedule may be, or even that finding reliable research material can take a while unless you can buy a book. Try to never underestimate how long something will take. Ask the current seniors how long it took them to do these things to get an idea of the average time. Prepare yourself!

Answer 3: Relaxation Therapy

My essential question is: What is the most effective way to treat PTSD?

Thesis:  When a person with PTSD is taught to respond to stessors by using the techniques they use in relaxation therapy, they are able to continue with their daily lives.

•  PTSD is primarily an anxiety disorder that is triggered by stressors. They way that the brain stores a traumatic memory is different than a regular one, which is why the memory is remembered in bits and pieces. When those bits and pieces come back in a flashback, the person having the flashback begins to show signs of a panic attack. (www.medicinenet.com)
• Even once a person has gone through therapy, the flashbacks can reoccur, and there are no medications on the market that specifically combat flashbacks. ( The PTSD Breakthrough by Frank Lawlis) This means that although there are some SSRI's that help people combat anxiety, there aren't any that help combat the flashbacks themselves. If a person does not know they have the power to stop them, they will continue having them. 
• Relaxation therapy teaches people to stop intrusive thoughts, and control their minds using their body (Dr. Shahin). When a person is panics, it is normal for them to stop breathing. When this happens, their body furthers the extent of the anxiety by sending off fight-or-flight signals. This can lead to a very scary reexperience, which can leave a patient weak and feeling unsafe. 

Independent Component 1

I, Jo, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.
I completed thirty hours worth of research on PTSD. This means treatments, stories, the military's effort to combat it, and traumatic narratives.

My independent component allowed me to take a deeper look into the mind of a person with PTSD with both sympathy and scrutiny. The various sources I collected during this time helped me acquire a wider range of perspectives and approaches. I have learned how to be sympathetic and still be able to search for key words that demonstrate the presence of a symptom. I had to make sure I was taking the most thorough notes possible because my sources were mostly library materials.

The vast amount of research I studied help me get a better grasp of symptoms and treatments for PTSD. This research changed my perspective of the disorder so far as to convince me that pharmaceutical approaches were necessary. Before taking a deeper look into PTSD, I truly believed that it should be up to the person. With the survival stories I have encountered throughout my research I now know the importance of approaching the disorder with every resource available.

3-Column Chart

3-Column Chart.

Room Creativity

1. To meet the room creativity requirement I plan on making a relaxing environment by using aroma therapy and having lamps instead of using the lights. In every psychologist's office I have ever walked into there is a calm and relaxing atmosphere. I believe this is important to making people feel safe and comfortable. 
2. For my answer one (Biological Approach) I want to have people find the spot in the brain that is responsible for each action. I think I could print out some accurately draw picture of the brain and have them label them. For my second answer (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) I want to give them a worksheet.

Answer 2

What is the most effective way to treat PTSD?

If a person is suffering with PTSD, then they should receive Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy to help them cope with their emotions and feelings of loss of control.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is one of the fastest working therapies. It takes about 16 sessions. (National Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists) This is great for people who cannot afford going talk therapy that can take years before any progress is developed, and it also helps people get back on their feet at a more reasonable speed.

Focuses on establishing a feeling of control on how one feels and reacts rather than external forces. This allows people to cope with guilt, and get past their experience and think about the future, which are often major obstacles with PTSD patients.(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder by Peggy Thomas)

Because CBT uses homework assignments and stresses the importance of practicing the skills learned, the knowledge acquired is learned more effectively. It’s like trying to learn a social science concept; it doesn’t really make sense until you relate it back to the real world. (The Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Sourcebook by Glenn R. Schiraldi)

The Product

As of March, the product of my senior project is that I can now look at a traumatic narrative and not feel as emotionally involved with it. This is a product of both the information that I have been gathering for the past six months and peer mediation.

The research I have been doing has been helping look at PTSD as a medical problem. It is almost like when a small child breaks their arm. Of course, the child is going to be in a great deal of emotional distress, but unless someone can give that child medical attention neither the arm nor the distress will be relieved. Before looking into the medical aspects of PTSD, I could only see myself as a person who wanted nothing more but to relieve the child from the emotional distress. Now, I feel I am at a state where I want to do both, because I realized how connected they are. Peer mediation helped me get started on the idea that what may seem like something minor for me can be very important for another person. This reminded me of a video I watched about the Baby Briana Lopez story (a law-changing child abuse case from New Mexico) where one of the first responders said, "You'll either become too callous, or you'll become jello. You can't do this job well unless you're in the middle." This helped me get more to the middle. Now, I can look at a traumatic narrative and see what symptoms it may produce, or listen to people's problems without thinking they are over-exaggerating.