March 15, 1917, in a small village in Upstate New York, five people gathered: Eleanor Clarke Slagle,  a social welfare reformer; George Edward Barton, an architect; William Rush Dunton Jr., a psychiatrist; Susan Cox Johnson, a teacher; and Thomas B. Kidner, an architect.  Those five, along with Susan Tracy, a nurse, were the founders of Occupational Therapy.  On that day, what is now the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), became legally incorporated. The founders had a profound belief in the therapeutic value of occupations used to help individuals “reclaim dignity and self-respect; to heal the body, mind, and spirit; and to become productive members of society (Eleanor Clarke Slagle Lecture: Reclaiming our Heritage: Connecting the Founding Vision to the Centennial Vision. Kathleen Barker Schwartz, EdD, OTR, FAOTA). Occupational therapy was and continues to be a holistic profession, looking at each client through the lens of emotional and spiritual health, social life, work-life, education, and family, along with whatever particular symptom or condition brings them to seek therapy. It is a profession steeped in science and medicine, yet without losing sight of the person as an individual. 

So what is meant by “occupations”? In modern language, when we think of occupations, we think of jobs or professions. But in an older vernacular, occupations referred to how one spent one’s time. In occupational therapy, occupations are defined as life activities in which individuals, groups, or populations engage, including activities of daily living (ADL’s), instrumental activities of daily living (IADL’s), rest and sleep, education, work, play, leisure, and social participation.

How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.

– Annie Dillard from The Writing Life

When we engage in occupations, we engage in living.

When looking closer at pelvic floor health, there are two ADL’s that are often impacted by the functioning of the pelvic floor muscles: toileting and sexual activity. Toileting is inclusive of urinary and bowel continence. Sexual activity speaks to sexual satisfaction, relationship needs, and reproductive needs. Although we appear to be in the midst of cultural/societal change in terms of disorders in these two areas, many people continue to face issues of incontinence or sexual function in isolation, shame, and/or embarrassment; keeping these issues in the dark, instead of bringing them into the light and seeking help. Undoubtedly, concerns in any of these areas may have implications on all areas of occupational performance: and therefore the ability to live one’s life.

Occupational therapy practitioners ask,

“what matters to you?” not,

“what’s the matter with you?” 

-Ginny Stoffel, AOTA president