Community News
February is Heart & Stroke Awareness Month

Did you know that heart disease Is the second leading causes of death in Canada? The good news is that 80 per cent of cardiovascular diseases are preventable through healthy lifestyle and diet. By adopting a healthier lifestyle, you can delay the onset of heart disease or stroke by as much as 14 years! You can further reduce your risk by considering these heart-healthy steps: • Be smoke-free • Be physically active • Control your blood pressure • Keep your blood cholesterol levels in check • Eat a healthy diet • Achieve and maintain a healthy weight • Limit alcohol use and look for healthy ways to reduce your stress.

Angie’s LOVE YOURSELF Weight Loss Challenge!

February is a time to celebrate love, and what better way to show yourself the LOVE than by making time to look and feel healthier! Weight loss challenges are great cost-effective self-love options that create laser focus on your goals, increase personal accountability, offer CASH prizes and teach & encourage you to create new lifestyle changes that includes online fitness classes, strength training, online coaching and new healthy eating habits. Working towards your goals within a community of like-minded people can help you feel more in control of your mind & body and give you the support you need to succeed!

Diabetes Foot Care

Foot care is an important part of managing your diabetes. High blood sugar levels associated with Diabetes causes potential damage to the nervous and circulatory systems. Wearing well-fitting shoes and quality socks are a key part of foot care. Use socks that will keep your feet warm and dry, as well as provide protection from foot injuries. Keeping your feet warm can help improve blood circulation and is beneficial to the health of the nerves in the feet. Look for socks that provide extra cushioning in the heel and bottom of the foot and are non-binding at the top.

Does Getting Dental Implants Hurt?

The placement of dental implants causes only minor surgical discomfort because the jaw bones have few nerve endings, Bone grafting may have a little more discomfort associated with it. Many patients are able to work within a day of surgery. Any post-operative discomfort is controlled with prescription pain medication. Patients are placed on a soft diet and antibiotics for a few days and told to use an antiseptic mouth rinse several times daily. If sutures are necessary, they will be removed 7 to 14 days after the implants are placed. New techniques developed are always geared to improving patient comfort.

Shovelling Snow? Injury Prevention

In our area, winters usually mean rain, but there are days when we need to do some snow shovelling. With that comes an increased risk of sprains and strains. Prevent injuries by employing a few tips: *Do a 5 minute full body warm up before shovelling. *Scoop and push small amounts of snow. *Lift and move weight with your legs. *Engage core muscles to assist in stability, balance and limb movement. *Check your posture. As we tire our posture tends to fail. Take a break, sip hot cocoa and reset yourself. For instruction on effective posture and core awareness, ask your Physiotherapist!

Let’s Drive Our Brain

Driving is a privilege. RoadSafetyBC mandates every person at age 80, and every two years following, undergo a Driver Medical Examination Report. The report is the primary tool to assess conditions such as mental ability to drive. Anyone (19+) who needs their license reinstated due to a stroke, brain injury or other situation also requires this report. Cowichan Brain Injury Society offers a program, ‘Let’s Drive Our Brain’, for cognitive training. It has a brain workout to prepare for this test. Testing and training include verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, abstract, deductive, and inductive reasoning to evaluate logic skills. To learn more contact Tracey Nyhan.

Is it Hard to Relax?

Sound healing therapy uses aspects of music or voice to improve physical and emotional health and well-being. It helps restore balance in the body. By releasing fear and grief, it can cleanse unwanted emotions present during stressful times. The healing music frequencies also increase the amount of dopamine that the brain needs such as oxytocin, which is a natural painkiller. You can experience healing sound music while laying on a warm healing mat during a Reiki treatment. An hour of deep relaxation will do wonders for your wellbeing. Call for more information.

Ozone Therapy Increases Oxygen Utilization

What makes us healthy and invulnerable to disease? Discover this for yourself right now. Hold your breath for 60 seconds. What happened? Clearly there is absolutely nothing as critical to our health as oxygen metabolism. Oxygen utilization is the single most important predictor of your risk for degenerative disease and premature aging. As we get older our cells become less able to efficiently use the oxygen we breathe, some as much as 50%! Ozone therapy activates the immune system, prevents free radical damage and helps the body detoxify, the ultimate preventative tool to stay healthy and happy into old age.

Do You Have a Heart Wall?

Have you had heartache in your life? Have you experienced emotional stress? During times of emotional pain or distress, our hearts can be hurt or injured. Your subconscious will put up an invisible wall, called a Heart Wall to protect your heart. Over time, this wall will compromise relationships and success in life. The organs that may be affected are the Heart and the Small Intestine. A Body Code session can find your Heart Wall and release it along with any negative feelings or unprocessed negative (trapped) emotions. Complimentary consultations are available. Contact for details.

It Is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month

Do you know someone with Alzheimer’s? As a friend, neighbour or extended family member, you are an important sources of support for the family. You can assist caregivers by: *Being there for them with a friendly ear, *Offering assistance such as running errands or complete household tasks, and *Stepping in to help with daily tasks to give them a break. The Alzheimer Society of BC want you to know that people with dementia are just like you and I. They *Need to feel valued, *Need companionship, *Strive to maintain an active and independent life and *Have abilities, skills and aspirations.

Pharmacy at Home Program

Today we are all staying at home as much as possible so it is comforting to know that a pharmacist can come to you. The Pharmacy at Home Program brings a pharmacist to your home at no additional cost. The pharmacist will identify all the prescription and non-prescription medication you take, discuss how they are best taken and will create a medication management plan. This may mean being able to stay in your own home longer, reduced number of hospital visits and improved quality of life for you and your caregiver. Contact us to book a medication review with your pharmacist.