The holiday season often brings about the feeling of “home” and family traditions. Many activities can be enjoyed by everyone in the family. The holidays provide an opportunity to reminisce about special ornaments acquired over the years and decorations that have been part of many special occasions. It is a perfect time to bring out old photo albums so that you can re-live past gatherings through pictures. Sing along with traditional and modern holiday favourites is always a crowd pleaser. The gift of time is the most thoughtful present you can give! Spending time with family and friends is priceless.
Community News
Socks for Christmas
What are you getting your family and friends for Christmas this year? How about a gift of Wellness? This year, give your loved ones a pair of socks. But not just any sock. Socks with wearable technology that works with the brain to reduce pain, increase strength and endurance and enhance stability and balance for months to come. Knee-high socks with mild compression are great for the travellers on your list. For the hikers, chose wool socks that hug the feet and keeps them warm in the outdoors. And don’t forget yourself, you too deserve a gift of wellness
Revitalize Your Skin
It is the holiday season, the time that we all want to look our best as we celebrate with friends and family. This is the perfect time for an AFA chemical peel that can stimulate new skin growth so your skin feels smoother and your skin tone appears brighter. It removes the damaged top layers, speeds up cell turnover and boosts collagen growth through the use of a naturally acidic solution. Once the peel penetrates the outer layer of the skin, it’s easier to exfoliate, hydrate, and anti-oxidate to keep your skin looking its best all season long.
Making New Holiday Traditions
The first holiday season after a move to a senior community can sometimes be stressful and difficult for your senior loved one. Creating new traditions can help with the transition and make the holiday season less stressful for everyone. Although your family holiday events may have been held at your senior loved one’s home in the past, holding gatherings at another family member’s home going forward can make things easier. Have your senior loved one help with one or two tasks that keep them involved without overwhelming them and take advantage of the many holiday events.
Do You Feel Emotional?
The holiday season can be an emotional time. It may be a time of loving reunions, heartfelt connections and joy or it can be filled with obligations, expectations and old memories. You may feel a full range of emotions from happy to sad. Be gentle with yourself in allowing any emotions you feel at this time. The holidays are an opportunity to nurture ourselves while giving and receiving. A Certified Body Code/Emotion Code Practitioner can help you release any unprocessed negative (trapped) emotions to make this season easier for you. Holiday Special: 2 Body Code Sessions for the price of 1.
Making Christmas Magic for Residents in Need
For more than 50 years, the SOS Caring for Community at Christmas program has been creating the magic of Christmas for District 69 residents. With community support, we can make sure local children find a special gift under their tree and that families and individuals can choose food that is important to them over the holidays, using grocery store gift cards. To help fill the SOS Toy Shop, find an SOS Angel Tree at participating local businesses or drop off a new, unwrapped gift or donation to the SOS Community Services Centre in Parksville. For registration information, please visit the SOS website.
Boost Your Immunity
It seems like this cold and flu season is off to a particularly aggressive start! Here are some things that we can all do to strengthen our immune systems. *When the sun is shining, soak it up. *Stay active. *Limit sugar and processed foods in your diet. *Stay hydrated. *Get lots of rest. Prioritize sleep more than ever. *Get the flu shot. If you do get sick, contact your pharmacist. They are equipped with the advice you need to feel better as soon as possible. They can recommend over-the-counter remedies for your symptoms and ensure they don’t interact with your other medications.
A Really Useful Gift
At Christmas time, it can be hard to find a suitable gift for elderly loved ones. This year, give them and yourself the feeling of security while honoring their request to age in place. Installing a medical alarm system in their home can increase their independence and reduce the risks of living alone or being left alone in their home. With a locally monitored system, they may be able to remain in their own home. You can be comforted by the fact that if something should happen, help is just a button push away.
Are You Taking Good Enough Care Of Your …?
The liver doesn’t get enough attention when it comes to our health and vitality. The health of your liver impacts most of the organs in your body. At any given moment, it holds over 10% of your body’s blood supply and, depending on its health, it filters roughly 1.5 liters of blood per minute. It stores our primary energy source (glycogen) and many vitamins. It is also a major detoxification organ (mycotoxins, chemicals, heavy metals…) and helps maintain a healthy hormone balance. Come for a Bio-Well Scan to check areas of stress and energetic imbalance in your body.
Aronia Berries are Powerful Antioxidants
Today more than ever, a healthy immune system is important. According to Healthline, Aronia berries may strengthen the immune system and even counteract some infections. Aronia –grown in BC – contains powerful antioxidants that remove harmful free oxygen radicals from cells. In the spectrum of nutrition, berries rank near the top, and among berries, none are more nutritious than the Aronia berry. Research shows that in diabetics, Aronia berry juice, when taken regularly, reduced blood glucose. Aronia extracts have also reduced inflammation and improved immunity. In hard-to-treat cancers, combining Aronia with chemotherapy improved the effectiveness of conventional drugs.
Thank You & Happy Holidays
As another year draws to a close, we give thanks for the many blessings that we have received. We hosted our Women’s Wellness Expo once again after a two-and-a-half-year pause and look forward to hosting another Expo in February. We continue to publish this newsletter, along with four additional local ones here on the island, and continue to grow the WellnessHub, our local online resource. We thank our advertisers, readers, subscribers, distributors and community partners for helping us to continue to spread the wellness message. We wish everyone Peace, Happiness and Good Health this Holiday Season.
