Saturday, May 28, 2016

Blog 24: Last Presentation Reflection

(1) Positive Statement: What are you most proud of in your block presentation and/or your senior project? Why?
From this presentation, I am most proud of the fact that I was able to use more interactive games and was able to make it more of a competition. Even though they went a bit shorter than i had estimated, they worked out to keep a competitive spirit throughout my presentation. Since my topic was serious, the fact that i was able to work some competition into my project worked out. Essentially this the fact that my topic was so serious worried me the most, and i wasn’t sure if the competition would even go well. In my presentation what I believed worked the best for me was when I covered body language and was able to be more interactive with the audience. I had them move around and separated suicide from my presentation. I would have them move around and practice different movements and practice it individually.


(2) Questions to Consider
a. What assessment would you give yourself on your block presentation?  Use the component contract to defend that assessment.
P       - I was able to meet all of the P qualifications for my project. In reality I do not believe I did anything above and beyond to deserve an AE, or higher than a P. For my hook I did have a problem using the clicker so it didn't go as i had planned and unfortunately that backfired on me because my hook ran shorter than I had estimated which ran my presentation shorter than I had anticipated overall. Towards the end I was elaborating more on my third answer in order to meet time which was not very professional on my behalf and it hurt my time.

b. What assessment would you give yourself on your overall senior project? Use the component contract to defend that assessment.
P - For my overall senior project I would give myself a high P or low AE because I was able to keep a solid P for the semester work but received an AE on my first lesson and an E on my second presentation and an AE for my exit interview. Throughout this year I have put in a lot of effort into my work and done what is necessary for the major projects.

(3) What worked for you in your senior project?
For the overall senior project what worked the best was the fact that I had a personal connection to my topic. I had a personal connection to suicide prevention because of a friend who was having suicidal thoughts and had made an attempt and it was a very emotional scenario, but because of this I wanted to make a difference. There were so many things that I did not know, and I because of that I wanted to educate others, even if it was on 30 people.

(4) (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your senior project?
If I had a time machine I wish I had found out about the SAFEtalk program and Suicide Training earlier than December, because they had sign ups for the course in October at the Didi Hirsch Suicide Prevention Center which would take around 30 hours to complete ad itself would’ve been a great Independent Component. My biggest regret was not being able to find out about it earlier, and I would have done more research on that earlier. It would have better provided me with a foundation and more of a base to work off of than what I had to find for myself.

(5) Finding Value: How has the senior project been helpful to you in your future endeavors?   Be specific and use examples.
My senior topic allowed me to find out what I would like to do for a career. I have had my eye in the mental health section, but after looking into suicide prevention for about a year I realized that this is not something I want to do career-wise, however it will be something I do for volunteering, and perhaps become a speaker for it in the future. I hope to be able to talk about suicide to different schools so that everyone has an opportunity to learn about suicide on a larger scale and more importantly allow everyone to understand what suicide prevention is, and that they shouldn’t be scared of talking about it to their loved ones, friends or even peers. It is not a joke, but they shouldn’t be afraid to talk about it in a serious perspective. It can save a life in the long run, and everyone can be a hero, just not everyone knows how to be.

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Exit Interview

(1) What is your essential question, and what are your answers?  What is your best answer and why?(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?

EQ: What are the primary factors to consider when approaching someone who may be experiencing suicidal ideation?
Answer 1: Before approaching an individual you think may be suicidal,  it is essential to first be able to identify the risk factors and warning sigs that the individual is experiencing in order to pick upon telltale signs.
Answer 2: After identifying the major risk factors, warning signs and risk level, it is necessary to learn the appropriate body and verbal language to appropriately convey our message of concern.
Answer 3: As one begin to help someone recover from suicidal ideation, it is crucial to identify appropriate social support for the person at risk, and the helper.


(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?
I believe that my best answer is my third answer because it is the one that is forgotten the most when it comes to helping another person. People tend to forget that the situation is stressful to be involved in, and often times the “helper” is unaware that it is necessary for them to have their own support, just as much as it is for the person at risk to have them as well. In addition to this, support systems (i.e. online chats, hotlines, support groups, individual therapy, etc.) play a big part in the recover of the person at risk, because they create a social movement to help an individual, have it be familial or strangers.
This answer was first inspired when i did my third interview with Lizette Martinez from the Didi Hirsch Suicide Prevention Center. When has entered the discussion on the importance of support systems when the topic of support group and therapy effectiveness for those who are suicidal and the steps to ensure the best results when approaching and individual. After this initial discussion, I continued and began to look into different issues and benefits from different forms of social support including: individual therapy, support groups, online chats, hotlines, and family relationships, all as different mediums for which people could use as social support.
(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?
Throughout the course of the year, the biggest problem that I faced as in the beginning stage of the project because several groups that I has tried to interview or mentor with did not find it appropriate for me to take part in me mentoring because of my age, which also made interviews difficult initially. By being rejected during my initial attempts, I was able to see the stigma against suicide first hand, which demonstrated how even those involved with suicide prevention failed to set aside the idea that death can play a part of suicide prevention. For this, all that is took was more motivation to find people who were willing to help me grow on my knowledge so I could uphold the best result.  
(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?
My most significant sources would be my third interview and my course on The Suicide Prevention and Intervention course provided by Wild Iris Education meant to educate nurses in the work field to face suicidal patients. The Wild Iris course, provided me with a professional touch to suicide prevention by addressing how to identify suicide within those who are at risk within the medical community. My third interview played as a gateway throughout my entire project and motivated me to continue looking into social support as a potential answer to my topic.