2 Years of Not So Terrible Palsy

Today though, I not here to talk about 2020 (I couldn’t even sum it up if I tried) I am here to celebrate 2 years of NSTP!!!

I know that 2 years of blogging isn’t a lot, and believe you me I still have a lot more to learn, but it’s still very special to me. I really didn’t think that I’d still be blogging and that I would have gone on as many adventures as I have done with my blog in the last 2 years.

Unlike my post I did to mark my 1st year, I don’t want to talk about what I was up to in 2020 because let’s face it, it would just be a recap of my virtual placement and sitting on zoom! So instead, I thought I would tell you what blogging means to me, and why I started Not So Terrible Palsy back in 2019.

Story time! Are you sitting comfortably? Then we will begin…

So, here’s for the part where I look very unorganised- believe it or not, NSTP wasn’t planned (I promise you I’m more organised with my content now).

I’d been guest blogging here and there for around 18 months and I started to get more involved in disabled online communities and disabled advocacy. 2018 was a really hard year for me and I wanted 2019 to be fun so I went for it!

I’d been reading a lot of disability blogs before setting up my site, and as mentioned, I’d been guest blogging, so I knew that I wanted to do something to take my advocacy further. But, I never saw myself as a potential blogger, because I’m a numbers girl, always have been, and never really been good at writing. However, I enjoyed writing guest blogs and talking about disability as even from being young I’d always been open about my CP so I just thought let’s give it a shot!

I didn’t have anything planned and had never designed a website or anything before so I didn’t know what I was doing. I had to think back to my ICT skills I used at GSCE. I knew I wanted a site identity icon but not knowing where the site would go I decided I would create one myself as for all I knew I might have deleted the site a few weeks later.

I created the green piano as I love green with it representing both CP and OT and I decided I would create the piano as I’d done a piano video for World CP Day a few months earlier that got quite a good response. At the time it was all I needed, but I’m aware that this icon was extremely blurry. I know I’ve only had the new look a few months now, but looking back I can’t believe I set up the site the way I did. I’m so picky now with my images and have actually been updating some badly edited ones over Christmas so it would take me months to create a new site now!

Although I was very bad at first, and I was, when thinking about how vigorously I check things now on a Friday afternoon compared to then is laughable -it was a start and I’m very fortunate that I’m here 2 years later! It just shows you that you just need to start sometimes without waiting for things to be perfect.

I’m really glad that I’ve grown as a blogger. I have gained so many skills around social media and blogging. The key as with most things is practice, practice, practice, and that’s what I hoped would happen after I got my head into all the blogging books. Something I never expected to happen, was for my audience to grow the way it has! Even when I think of this time last year I still can’t believe how many of you have joined “Little G” (as my friends would say) on my occupational therapy journey this past year.

I never thought of combining OT and blogging and refocusing on what it means to be a disabled OT student. I remember when Margaret was asking about my blog and suggested I write something about being an OT student, I’d never even considered this. I was only in my first year of university at the time. What did I know about OT to write a blog about it? But I had the experience of OT from a service user perspective, which is why I was studying OT, and that was my starting point and to my surprise Why I Study Occupational Therapy was the most viewed blog of 2019!

The seed was planted and that continued into 2020!

Now, don’t worry I’m not going to recap my placement again. I just didn’t think that it would take off the way it did and that I would be sat here a completely different blogger to the blogger I was 2 years ago. I have you all to thank for being on this journey with me and helping me find my niche.

I now get approached by people who want me to write a blog or guest on a podcast, and I still can’t get my head around others wanting “Little G’s” content. Blogs by a girl who’s always been better with numbers!

So, I would just like to say thank you! 2020 has certainly been a testing year for us all, in different ways, and despite all this, you have still supported me and read my what is now (I hope) more professional content.

So what will year number 3 bring for NSTP? We shall find out together!!

Thank you for reading and your continuous support. I always ensure I end a post with ‘Thank you for reading’ because I truly mean it!!

I hope 2021 is a better year for everyone,

Georgia x 
@georgiavine4213
@GeorgiaVineOT