Tuesday, December 14, 2010
What? Deviate?
A recurring topic in our class discussions has been routines; whether they are necessary, whether we like them, and whether they help the patients. I am thinking about them right now because of my dog and his routines. My dog, Riley, has an annoying habit of whining about almost anything, at any time of day. His whining reaches a crescendo around dinner time as he loudly insists that it is not fair for us to eat a hot meal while he has dry kibble and that if we had any kind of compassion we would pull up a chair and let him help himself. At least that is what I think he is saying. We thought we could train him out of this behavior, by teaching him to quietly sit in his bed in return for a treat when we finished eating and cleaning the kitchen. Although Riley appreciates the treats, he does not feel that they alleviate the injustice of the situation and so he still whines. In fact, he whines even more than he used to because now he is so desperate to receive his treat that he works himself into a state of anxiety while he waits. Today we decided to weigh him to check if he is getting fat (turns out he gained a couple pounds) and I thought after dinner would be the perfect time. In my mind, removing him from the kitchen was a wonderful plan because it would take up some of the wait time that usually makes him so upset. However, Riley refused to leave the kitchen, I carried him up the stairs but as soon as I set him down he ran back down them. My dad then sent him back upstairs and I carried him to the scale. As soon as I finished weighing him he sprinted to the kitchen and made a beeline for his bed. This desperation to participate in a routine which seems to cause him stress initially surprised me, but after thinking about it for a while I realized it is not that unusual. Paradoxically, routines can simultaneously cause stress and provide comfort. They might restrict us or, as in Riley's case, create anxiety, but they are much less stressful than facing the unknown. Riley would rather wait in a state of apprehension than leave the kitchen and risk an unknown outcome to his evening. His reliance on routine helped me understand why so many patients on the ward would stay on even though they are not committed. As human beings, we fear unknown outcomes, and will often endure unpleasant routines to avoid them.
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Kaleigh, what an interesting observation! The crazy thing, for me, about your post, is that I could come up with multiple situations in which I would act the same. Sometimes I think I am so adventurous and carefree, and then when one little thing changes with routine or tradition, I become anxious. This past week for example my mother informed me that our Christmas tree will not be going up this year. I became enraged and questioned why, he points proved logical, not enough time, we will be in Florida for Christmas, your brothers are not home, etc. So why did I have such difficulty with the idea? I feel that if I make a change in routine by choice, I can adapt. If something is sprung upon me, my anxiety attacks! By the way, I posted about my dog as well!
ReplyDeleteThis little anecdote about your dog is so relatable to my dog that's funny. My dog has pretty much an insatiable appetite, and one little scrap of food is never enough. If we gave her a huge bowl of her food she would keep eating it until she explodes, rather than pace herself out. But what really connects both of them and connects to the book is that almost involuntary devotion to routines. At 3:00, she knows its dinner time and will bother you until she is fed. After she eats, she runs right the screen door to be let outside. The connection to the patients you make from this situation is brilliant, and the fact that it even illuminated something else about the story to you is even more impressive.
ReplyDeleteKaleigh, my dog does the same thing! However, my family was too lazy to ever try to train him out of the habit. At the same time, I believe that routines can be a good thing. Without a schedule in school, the whole day would be complete chaos. And if there was no schedule in an insane asylum, there would be crazy people running everywhere! However, there is a limit to the strictness that can be imposed in many situations, like the mental hospital. If the patients had had more freedom throughout the day, then perhaps they would have gotten better quicker, or not felt the need to start an uprising.
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