What is the daily life like for an occupational therapist?

I started out my career as an Occupational Therapist, and I think it is the most dynamic of the primary therapeutic services (Physical Therapy, Speech and Language Pathology, Recreation Therapy). There is a lot of variety to choose from because OTs work in psychiatry, physical rehabilitation, and acute care (with patients who are not super stable medically), school systems, just to name a few.

In the regular hospital setting you spend your day teaching patients/clients and their families how to be independent after surgery, an accident, or some other incident. You teach people to care for themselves and set up treatment sessions that enable increasing independence as they recover, and you provide treatment that helps them recover. In OT this is comprehensive - if your patient has had surgery, they may need to be taught how to conserve energy so they have the stamina to get through a shower, brushing their teeth, and getting dressed, and then go on with other daily activities. If your patient has had a brain injury, you will want to make sure they can properly sequence tasks, such as remembering to get dressed after a shower, remembering to turn off the stove during a cooking activity, being able to make a shopping list and find items in a store, and if they can't you work with them to achieve that. In the psychiatric setting you often focus on being able to attend to and complete activities, teach and apply coping mechanisms for the stressors in life. In the school setting you often work on focusing in class, fine motor skills. Sensory integration is a really fun area to work in with kids as well - and fascinating.

I recommend you volunteer with area OT departments or private practices and be sure to try out different settings OTs work in because your day to day is very different depending on what setting you choose. You can inquire at local hospitals and school systems, or look up Occupational Therapy in your area and you might also find some private practice.