what is recreation therapy
What does all that mean?
Well…therapeutic recreation or recreation therapy comprises a set of services directed at increasing client freedom and responsibility in order to facilitate attainment of human happiness.
This is accomplished by empowering clients to overcome constraints that arise from illness, disability, oppression, etc.
An individual has a barrier to participating in their leisure optimally and recreation therapists work with the person to identify (through assessment) the barriers and problem solve their way through it.
That sounds great, but…
What is leisure?
I’m glad you asked.
Leisure provides the opportunity for intrinsic motivation , mastery, self-determination , competence and leads to feelings of self efficacy, empowerment, pleasure and enjoyment.
Its feelings of connection and belonging , teaching and expression.
It is a state of mind, a lifestyle, something entirely voluntary, something beyond the activity itself. Its balance and gives life meaning
And Recreation?
Recreation is the experiences occurring WITHIN leisure.
Recreation is seen as constructive and meeting socially accepted goals.
Its seen as ACTIVE.
As I’ve written about before leisure, recreation and play are vital to our experience of happiness.
Isn’t it just a fancy way to say “group leader”
Recreation Therapists are experts in recreation and leisure and have the skills to effectively select and use specific activities to achieve participant outcomes.
This added dimension of understanding the nature of the recreation experience in relation to the growth and change of participants is what differentiates TR professionals from a typical group leader.
Tailoring recreation activities to leverage participant strengths and ensure quality outcomes is at the core of TR practice in mental healthcare.
How much “work” can it really be though?
These experiences/interventions may not be enjoyable at the time of engagement, but upon reflection they are seen as meaningful and enjoyable.
Pleasure is important but it does not bring happiness. Pleasure may be achieved without focused attention. Flow activities, are sought for their intrinsic value.
But people are bored
Therapeutic Recreation is not the business of busyness (if I could trademark that line, I would!)
While recreation activities are experiences that anyone can do, they are unlikely to help people achieve their outcomes and fulfill their potential without:
individualized assessment
comprehensive program design
activity analysis
effective delivery
program evaluation.
TR’s can adjust activities (activity analysis) through the TR process and provide needed support. This support leads to a greater chance of success and ensures that people experience challenge by the activity, as opposed to becoming bored or overwhelmed, and ultimately provide an opportunity to increase wellbeing through flow !
The presence of leisure does not improve quality of life alone; a person must know how to use it effectively!
Evidence in flow research states that leisure needs to have structure with goals in order for it to be meaningful. That’s why it’s so important to make realistic yet powerful goals.
How do you know you’re done?
The intervention has lead to individual meaning and enrichment. Then we start all over again, building on the foundation we just made.
Profiles…
Consider posting/providing a profile for the families and clients to look at so they know members of their treatment team.
It’s an easy way to show off what you’re about and what you have to offer on the person’s road to recovery.
So next time someone asks you- who are those people having all that fun? You’ll know how serious all this is.
References:
Personal Benefits of TR for Persons with Mental Illness
recreation therapy therapeutic recreation recreationl eisure flow intrinsic motivation