Community News
Painful Ingrown Toenails

Q: What are ingrown toenails? A: These almost always occur on the big toe, and can cause significant pain, as well have the potential for infection. Causes can include tight shoes, poor or improper nail care, and genetic predisposition. Treating ingrown toenails involves clearing up any infection that might be present and removing the part of the nail that is growing into the toe. Having a podiatrist do it, under local anesthesia, if necessary, is the best way. To avoid ingrown toenails, cut your toenails regularly straight across instead of rounding the corners or edges, and wear shoes that have adequate width and depth, and are not too tight.

Learning Difficulties and After-School Programs

Does your child seem to be putting forth more energy at school than their peers are? Is it starting to affect their self-esteem, grades, and social connections? There are programs that can help to strengthen your child’s ability by aiding their brain to change and grow through the principle of neuroplasticity. After-school options can help you and your child to boost their brain power and set them on a path of academic success. If you’re willing to put them in after-school sports programs to help exercise their bodies, why not place them in after-school programs that can help stimulate their minds?

New Addition to the Team

Warmest welcome to our newest addition to the veterinary team – Dr. Hebe Lin of Crescent Beach, BC. Dr. Lin brings years of experience breeding border collies to our team, and has special interest in ophthalmology as well. We have been fortunate enough to have her intern with us and get special training with our specialist referral team. For those of you wanting to communicate in Mandarin, that is Dr. Lin’s native tongue. Please help us welcome her to the practice as we build more relationships with you and your pets.

Restore Your Energy Circuits

The human body is an electrical being and the health of it depends on the energy currents that run through it. When the body suffers a trauma (sprain, fatigue, infection, etc.), it encapsulates itself in some manner for healing purposes (inflammation, swelling, spasm, etc.). Normally free-flowing currents are disrupted and will circumvent the area of trauma and travel around it. This happens because electrical currents always take the path of least resistance (best conduction), so the flow of electricity in the traumatized area is significantly reduced. Enhanced micro-current treatment applied appropriately to the involved tissues or organ pathways can restore and recover optimal self-regulation functions.

Switch On Your Child’s Brain

Are you sick and tired of fights about homework? Is your child in his own world or struggling with anxiety? Does she have dyslexia, ADHD, or difficulty with math? All of these kinds of challenges are perpetuated by dysregulation in the brain. Imagine trying something new. Brain Gym exercises act as simple energy switches that release the blocks in the brain. They also activate different areas and functions of the brain. This can result in immediate, far-reaching, and lasting changes. Consider giving your child a revolutionary chance to experience more ease in learning and in life… merely through movement!

We Are All Electrosensitive

According to the Physicians for Safe Technology, we are all electrosensitive. Those of us who have a severe reaction to electrical energy are known as being electro hypersensitive. These people react to exposure to electrical devices, whether a kitchen appliance or a cell phone, but this reaction is not necessarily due to the person being ill. In fact, physically reacting to manmade electromagnetic radiation (EMR) is a healthy response to a foreign toxic form of radiation. Humans, like all living species, are tuned to the healthy radiation of the sun. Our bodies, however, have a hard time differentiating between the good radiation of the sun and harmful manmade electromagnetic radiation. That is when over-exposure can cause the body to break down and become ill.

Field Notes From a Music Therapist

Our bodies are like finely tuned instruments. Sam is in middle-stage of Alzheimer’s disease. Once in our weekly session Sam had a maraca in hand and there was a tambourine and some rhythm sticks within easy reach. An activity we often did together, “Switch” was now in progress: I was playing guitar while singing a country song, and I said “Switch!”. I noticed that Sam made the switch to tambourine without missing a beat, literally. How did this happen? Neurobiologically-speaking, a synergy developed between the musical pulse and Sam’s inner body rhythms: His body movements strove to match that pulse. This triggered his circulation by increasing the blood flow to meet the demand. Amazing?! Yes! A mystery? No longer, yet, it does not cease to amaze.

Planning Ahead For Holiday Expenses

With the holidays coming up and Black Friday sales just around the corner, it’s important to plan how you’ll be paying for the upcoming season’s extra expenses. If you’ve previously adjusted your budget to reflect the added costs, you should have enough cash already put aside. However, the holiday season can sneak up on us, and many forget to plan ahead financially. If you need to reach for credit, remember there is nothing wrong with using credit cards to pay for your expenses, as long as you have a plan in place to pay back the debt in full, within a reasonable amount of time.

Feeling Confident

Sometimes we can feel able to handle whatever life brings. But life can bring challenges! When we’re stressed or overwhelmed, it can be hard to bounce back. Maybe we feel disappointed in ourselves – or sad and anxious. Or maybe we feel misunderstood and undermined. What do you do when there’s little left to give? When you aren’t sure you can rely on yourself? What do you do at a practical level, and what do you do with your uncomfortable feelings? Counselling provides a safe and non-judgmental place to talk, to consider options, and to help you proceed with confidence.

Hyperbaric Oxygen for Brain Health

Hyperbaric Oxygen improves Dementia, Alzheimers, Stroke, MS and Brain Injuries. Recent studies have confirmed that Hyperbaric Oxygen can substantially improve brain health and can prevent and stop the progression of these disorders. By increasing neuronal stem cells and decreasing brain inflammation HBOT can improve memory, cognitive speed, brain fog, headaches and migraines. With enough treatments HBOT can create new blood vessels, work around damaged cells and have long-term benefits. In combination with exercise and nutrition, HBOT can mantain and improve your brain health even as we get older. There is no limit to the brains plasticity and growth with the right environment.

Acne Scars Are Like Diamonds

All types of acne can scar; some mild, some severe…but all scars are like diamonds; they are forever.
Modern acne scar therapy with skin resurfacing by lasers, radio frequency, and microneedling can reduce the scarring, but usually a 50 percent improvement is seen as a good result, and the cost can be significant. It follows then that early, active treatment of acne to prevent scarring makes the most sense. Yet it is hard to see a dermatologist, even to get a referral, until the acne is advanced, and scarring has been established. The impact of acne is not limited to physical scarring; the emotional and psychological scars can run much deeper…with social, self-esteem, and even employment consequences. Seek help with acne as soon as you can.