Waiting on the first fermentation

I tasted the first fermentation of the kombucha, it tastes really good but it is still a bit too sweet so it needs to ferment longer. I will start the second fermentation next week.

Translational nature of occupation and the self refers to the role of occupation in an individual’s life. People shape their occupations from their environment and the occupations in turn shape the individual, occupation is “a transaction that joins the individual and the situation" (Carlson et al., 2012). This relates to my new occupation well; I drink a lot of kombucha because I appreciate the probiotics in kombucha. After traveling internationally, I picked up some less than friendly gut bacteria and wanted to find a natural way to develop a healthier microbiome. In this way my environment and other occupations I enjoy are what brought me to drink kombucha, and drinking kombucha positively effected how I feel by helping me maintain a healthy microbiome. Kombucha is expensive to buy at the store- this is what prompted me to learn to make kombucha. Making my own kombucha will relieve the costs of buying kombucha at the store and will still provide me with probiotics to maintain a healthy gut microbiome.

My choice in a new occupation was influenced by self-awareness because I was able to reflect on my values of health and my self-knowledge that making things homemade is important. My self-esteem gave me the confidence that I could successfully learn how to make a SCOBY and home-brew kombucha. My self-perception shows this occupation aligns with the conclusions I have reached about my own knowledge, attitudes, and feelings towards health and making things from scratch so I can control the ingredients I am consuming. It also shows my self-perception that saving money is important.

Home-brewing kombucha fits into occupation as a servant perspective because it achieves a goal of being healthy and allows me to control the ingredients in the kombucha I drink. My occupation of making kombucha acts as a recruiter perspective because of the natural results of this activity including a calming activity, a distraction from other stressors (namely assignments and anatomy class), and it also will provide probiotics and vitamins which will have a positive impact on my health. My new occupation acts as a mirror that reflects my personal being because it shows the importance I place on health with the benefits kombucha brings, it also gives me a creative outlet because I am able to control the flavors of the kombucha and how much it ferments. 

Works Cited

Mike Carlson (Research Professor), Daniel J. Park (Assistant Professor), Ann Kuo (PhD student) & Florence Clark (Professor and Associate Dean) (2014) Occupation in Relation to the Self, Journal of Occupational Science, 21:2, 117-129, DOI: 10.1080/14427591.2012.727356