Community News
Disability Tax Credit for Type 1 Diabetes

The Disability Tax Credit is a program designed to help those with disabilities or their caregivers reduce the amount of income tax they pay, offsetting some of the significant medical and treatment expenses. What diabetes-related activities are covered? According to CRA, the following activities qualify in the 14-hour-per-week calculation:

• Checking blood glucose levels
• Preparing and administering the insulin
• Calibrating necessary equipment
• Testing ketones
• Keeping a log book of blood glucose levels

With children, the 14-hour-per-week eligibility criteria can usually be met by combining the parent and child’s time.

T1D is an expensive disease and the disability tax credit can provide some financial relief for those who qualify.

Complications from Prostate Enlargement

Prostate enlargement is quite common among male adults who are 50 or older. It often causes various problems in urination, including a weak or slow flowing stream, a feeling of incomplete bladder emptying, and sleep disturbance called nocturia. There are prescription drugs and natural treatments for this prostate problem, which can be used together to help shrink the prostate and solve urination issues associated with an enlarged prostate. Saw palmetto, a well-known natural treatment for prostate problems, is one example that may slow down the enlargement of the organ, though it isn’t usually used for problems with urination.

How Our Defense System Works

We all have access to 7 core emotions: fear, anger, grief, joy, excitement, disgust and sexual excitement says Hilary Jacobs Hendel. Some of us learn at an early age the freedom to express them, others learn to bottle them up to keep the homeostasis in our families growing up. The more access we have to these emotions the more fluid our wellbeing will be. Everyone has 3 inhibitory emotions; anxiety, shame and guilt. These feelings are way too much to bear so we instinctively create defenses to avoid them at all costs. Our defenses are our creative protection that helps us avoid fully feeling overwhelmed and the intolerable. They also create walls between ourselves and others which prevent intimacy, loving and healthy communication. The more we have access to expressing all of our feelings safely, the more connected, compassionate, confident and loving we can be to ourselves and others.

Product Review: Pure Green Energy

Kickstart your day with a super clean, raw and nutritionally dense organic drink that increases alertness and stamina. Coconut MCT, Maca super-food, Matcha green tea and many other key juiced powders, together with zero calorie Monk fruit, and even human strain probiotics round out this fantastic Kickstarter! A health-packed alternative to coffee & conventional energy-boosting drinks, PURE GREEN ENERGY gives vigor without potentially harmful effects of excess stimulants. It is also a perfect pre-and-post-workout supplement to replenish essential nutrients, improve cardio performance, and revive your workday energy drain.

Need Help Getting Physically Active?

Individuals who are physically active have a lower risk of obtaining health conditions including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity. Physical activity has been shown to improve mental health by having a positive impact on depression, anxiety, and stress. Kinesiologists are heavily involved in facilitating and improving physical activity levels of individuals of varying goals and capabilities. Kinesiologists are experts in the field of human movement, exercise prescription, fitness training and conditioning. A Kinesiologist uses evidence-based research to develop exercise programs for individuals looking to increase their physical activity levels. Many fitness and wellness centers in the city employ Kinesiologists as personal trainers who can guide and provide you with the tools to become healthier and more physically active.

When to Seek an Energy Healer

Energy healing is a holistic practice that activates the body’s subtle energy systems to remove blocks. By breaking through these energetic blocks, the body’s inherent ability to heal itself is stimulated.
Any time is a good time to visit an energy healer. If you are stressed, anxious, or physically drained, an energy healing session can help you relax and feel more balanced.
Energy healing is totally accessible. There are many different types of energy healers, and you can find them practically everywhere.
All you need to begin your energy healing journey is curiosity and a willingness to learn. Who knows, you may get hooked!

What Exactly is Pain?

The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) has defined pain as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with ACTUAL or POTENTIAL tissue damage”.
Pain is personal, difficult for an outsider to understand fully, but it is not unusual—all of us have some understanding of pain. Each individual learns through experiences related to injury early in life.
Acute pain is usually adaptive and can alert us to something that is harmful.
Persistent pain is not adaptive. This may not indicate tissue damage, but it also triggers those psychological responses that have been learned at an early age and with past painful events.

Letting Go of Stress

Did you know stress is energy-based and one cannot see stress in the body under a microscope? We can only see the effects of stress and what it does to the body and mind. Never relaxing fully, never truly breathing deeply – your body is unable to go into parasympathetic mode, which means there is no healing and no digesting. What are you doing daily to allow your body to de-stress? Bars sessions are like cleaning out the hard drive of your brain to be more in the now and to think clearer. Are you ready to let go of stress now?

Boost Immunity with Echinacea

Many of Echinacea’s chemical constituents are powerful immune system stimulants that can provide significant therapeutic value. How does Echinacea help with colds? The University of Connecticut performed a meta-analysis study that determined that Echinacea cuts the chances of catching a common cold by 58%. It also reduces the duration of the common cold by almost one-and-a-half days. Craig Coleman, Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice and lead author of the study, added that, “The take home message from our study is that Echinacea does indeed have powerful cold prevention and cold treatment benefits.” It can be used as one of several effective natural cold remedies.

Essential Oils for Winter Wellness

Cold and flu season is here! Many naturally occurring essential oils from plants and spices, such as clove, cinnamon, and tea tree, can ward off unwanted germs. Citrus oils that contain limonene, like lemon or orange, are great for supporting the immune system. Some oils like oregano and thyme have natural anti-viral properties that are important when faced with viral infections. Essential oils can also speed recovery and help relieve symptoms. For example, peppermint provides a cooling sensation for fevers. Eucalyptus is helpful for chest congestion, and oils of myrtle and pine will help clear a stuffy nose.

Control Your Diet

Those with a lower-limb amputation, in many cases, will initially be less active than they were prior to their amputation. As such, having a sedentary lifestyle will often result in weight gain. It is important for amputees to understand this and to adjust their nutritional intake to match their activity level so that they do not gain appreciable amounts of weight during the early stages of initial prosthetic fittings. If an amputee’s weight fluctuates significantly, either up or down, after being fitted with a prosthesis, intimate socket fit can be greatly compromised with more adjustments being needed.