Misc

It has been challenging, but I accomplished a lot (both professionally and personally) over the past six months:

- In late July, I successfully defended my thesis

- In mid-September, I climbed Pikes Peak

- In November, I got engaged to my best friend

- In late December, I passed my comprehensive exam.

It feels good to have two out of the three major hurdles in my program
finished (after the thesis and comps, there's just the dissertation). I
had a great, relaxing winter vacation, but now it is time to get back
to work....

Thought I'd share this piece from the DailyOM about transitioning through life's phases. I especially love the last sentence about changing as we grow older: "When we anchor our identity in our spiritual nature, we understand that physical change does not change who we are, but only offers another perspective from which to experience, understand, and celebate life."

An interesting article from the New York Times about relationships between children of older adults and their parents.

An interesting, but also disturbing, article on the complex issue of dementia and sex.

This week-end I hiked to the top of Pikes Peak with 2 friends from school and one of our professors to raise money for the Brain Injury Association of Colorado. We trained for the hike all summer and the fact that climbing a really big mountain is a great metaphor for graduate school wasn't lost on any of us. Here's what the hike taught me:

- Adequate preparation before you begin is useful (e.g., having the right equipment, knowing at least a little bit about what you are getting yourself into)

- The path can be really steep at first, but eventually it levels off a bit

- There are often many different routes you can take to get to the top

- You never know what is around the next corner and there may be many obstacles blocking your path along the way

- Having others with you on the journey makes the whole adventure more fun

- There will always be others who are climbing more slowly and more quickly than you, so it's helpful to focus on going your own pace

- It's easy to get bogged down by what is right in front of you and lose sight of the reasons for why you are climbing

- Finally, it takes a lot of determination and persistence to reach the summit, and the only way to get there is to take it one step at a time.

Interesting opinion article on the training medical doctors receive for working with older adults. Much of the same can be said about the training that most psychologists obtain as students and interns.

I finished the second year of my PhD program last week (that's me in the photo jumping for joy). Julio and I celebrated by camping at the Sand Dunes over the week-end.

I had never heard of the "conscious competence" theory of learning before, but I've run into it twice in the past week (the universe must be telling me something!). Apparently, it's unclear as to who first developed this model and exactly how many stages are involved (see this website for more information). The basic framework is the following...

Stage 1: Unconscious Incompetence - The person is not aware of the existence or relevance of the skill, nor of any skill deficit.

Stage 2: Conscious Incompetence - The person is aware of the existence and relevance of the skill, as well as deficiency in this area. This stage is uncomfortable for most (nobody likes feeling incompetent!).

Stage 3: Conscious Competence - The person can perform the skill, but it takes a lot of effort and concentration.

Stage 4: Unconscious Competence - The person becomes so practiced at the skill, it begins to feel like "second nature."

So far, graduate school has felt like one long period of conscious incompetence. It seems worse at the beginning of the semester when I'm starting new classes, new practicum rotations, and new phases of research projects. Then, just as I begin to feel like I have some idea of what I'm doing, we start a new semester all over again. This spring I've been focusing on taking a lot of deep breaths to calm my inner critic. I'm also pretty good at exercising to deal with stress. I'd love to hear about what other graduate students do to cope with their own conscious incompetence.

I've been in my PhD program for just over 3 semesters now. Last year was a huge transition for me and it took a while to adjust to being a student again and living in a new part of the country. But what made the transition go more smoothly were the other students in my program.

We had our PhD applicant interviews last week. As I was getting to know each of the applicants, I thought about what it was like to be in that position two years ago. It's a bit of a leap of faith to pick up and start a new life in a new city where you know no one, which is what many of us do for graduate school.

I feel really lucky to have found a program where I've been able to form great friendships. Very often, the support I get (and give) to my peers (some of whom are in the photo) is what has helped me through the inevitable rough spots of progressing through a graduate program.

I love coming across individuals who have figured out how to age successfully, whether I know them personally or learn about them in some other way.

Adolph "Sonny Boy" Kiefer is most likely the swimming legend you never heard of. A gold-medal winner in the 1936 Olympics, his swimming career was cut short by World War II. He went on to become a naval officer, invent the nylon swimsuit, and faciliate the construction of public pools across Chicago. Today, at age 90, he swims 45 minutes every morning before going into his office!