Knot Today

This Week

I did not really spend a lot of time with my new occupation this week. Honestly, I kind of got frustrated with it because I’m having problems with my machine jamming and breaking my thread constantly like I was during my first week. I know it’s not the bobbin size because I already made that adjustment, and I have been trying to troubleshoot and figure out what could be causing this, but no luck so far. I am planning on calling my aunt this week to see if she has any other ideas than what I’ve found on the internet.

Out of the 8 rows that I finished a couple weeks ago, I’ve stitched 5 of them together, which is a lot less than I was planning on doing this week. I had to redo each of them at least 3-4 times, and I eventually got frustrated and bored of trying to fix things and having them not work-- so I gave up (for the time being). Here’s a look at where I am at now:

The rows that I currently have sewn together, which will form the front panel of my pillow cover once finished. 5 of 8 of the rows are pictured.

Boredom and Occupations

From the Meaning and Attentional Components (MAC) Model (see below) in the Westgate & Steidle (2020) article we read this past week, I feel that my participation in this new occupation can fall into a few categories of emotions. It has typically fallen in the categories of enjoyment, interest, or attentional boredom, depending on the situation and the exact task I am performing. This is because sewing/quilting is something that I feel fits within my valued goals, but my level of stimulation or attention changes during the task. This occupation is something that I have wanted to learn/try for a while, is valued by my family members and by myself through its associated meaning, and I also value completing this because of its effect on my education, (the Self-Exploration in Occupation class being part of the motivation to actually start this occupation), as my education and future as an occupational therapist is a valued goal for me.

The Meaning and Attentional Components (MAC) Model (Westgate & Steidle, 2020 p. 6)

However, my level of attention varies widely. I think a lot of it is associated with the types of tasks I am doing while working on my sewing projects. For example, I don’t like picking out my seams, which to me seems like low-level engagement or understimulation, putting me in the categories of enjoyment or attentional boredom with a need to increase demand. I also enjoy actually sewing with my machine more than I enjoy cutting pieces of fabric. I feel that for me, sewing involves a higher level of engagement, and if I am repeatedly cutting the same size of pieces like I have been, it is a lower level of engagement. I feel that these could range depending on how complex the task gets, or if I am learning something new, but this has been my experience over the last few weeks.

In addition, I feel that I sometimes get overstimulated while trying to work on my sewing projects, because the demand gets greater than my resources (my knowledge, my skills, physical resources, etc.). For example, this week I felt this because the machine kept jamming and breaking my thread and I had no idea what was going on, or how to fix it, no matter how many things from the internet I tried. At first I think I was in a state of attentional boredom, after having these problems happen a couple of times, because I was still doing the task and wanting to do it, but starting to feel that restlessness and negative feeling that comes along with boredom. Eventually, I just got frustrated and annoyed that it was not working and I did not know how to fix it, so I just moved on and found a new task, (even through I would have liked to have finished it). This week I am hoping to increase my resources for the demand of this situation by researching more about what could be causing this mechanical problem and talking to my aunt to get her knowledge.

In my life, I feel that I was more likely to feel boredom when I was younger. I have to say that the discussion around constrained environments influencing boredom within our lecture and the Westgate and Steidle reading (2020), really resonated with me. I was often bored at school and did not have a lot of other occupations. Also as a child and teen I had less options for access to resources for creating occupational choice, in comparison to what I have now. As a child or teen I think I would find myself more likely to tell someone and complain of being bored, versus now I am more able to resolve that on my own. Being a kid or a teenager you are still learning about how to be independent, and you also have access to less choices. 

Now as an adult, I can solve my boredom in a variety of ways. I’ve picked up a lot of hobbies including crochet, reading, baking/cooking, doing crafts, listening to music, being outdoors, playing board/card games, and now sewing! Depending on the resources available to me, I might choose one of those hobbies to participate in to resolve my boredom, in comparison to teenage or child me needing to ask permission to do some of these things or not having a way to get the resources I needed by myself. As an adult, I also have a lot of access to technology through my phone, social media, television, and more. These types of stimulation are often the thing I choose to resolve by boredom, because they are almost always available to me. (Though they are maybe not the best choice for my mental and physical health)

References

Westgate, E.C. & Steidle, B. (2020). Lost by definition: Why boredom matters for psychology and society. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 14(11), 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12562