It’s important that we track multiple income streams properly to ensure we don’t end up with a large bill at tax time. Use a spreadsheet that includes these categories: Employer, Gross Income, Income Tax, CPP, EI, and Net Income (for each income stream). Total all streams so that you can calculate the total earnings, tax, CPP, and EI deducted so far. Then determine what the actual deductions should be, based on the combined income. The Canada Revenue Agency has an online calculator that is useful for this (http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/esrvc-srvce/tx/bsnss/pdoc-eng.html). A qualified accountant can also help with any questions you might have.
Community News
To the Heart of the Matter
Research shows that there are nerve fibres that directly link the heart to the brain. More specifically directly to the part of the brain called the amygdala (the part of the brain that is linked to our fight or flight emotions). The power of love is real, as is the power of love to heal yourself! When we open our hearts, free the past and forgive ourselves, we can create a new create a new life for ourselves. In this month where you’re surrounded by commercial symbols of love, why not start with loving yourself?
What Causes Flat Feet?
Flat feet or “fallen arches” are caused chiefly by weak flexor muscles. The major flexor muscles of the foot are meant to propel you forward by pushing against the earth behind you as you walk or run barefoot. However, lifelong use of shoes allows these muscles to atrophy and become weak. As these muscles weaken, they stretch out, allowing the ball of the foot to creep forward, resulting in the eventual collapse of the underside of the foot. Custom orthotics or dynamic rehabilitative orthotics are designed to recruit and strengthen the flexor muscles while you stand, walk, or run.
Service Your Dentures Regularily!
Many people believe that dentures last forever but the reality is that they need to be serviced regularily and replaced about every five years. Wearing the same dentures for more than five years without having them checked can result in; softening of the gums, painful and irritated gums, accelerated bone loss, more laborious chewing and difficult digestion and a crumpled mouth. It can also lead to headaches, ear aches, neck pain and joint problems as well as a whole host of other issues. Regular consultation with your denturist to have your dentures checked and cleaned may prevent problems in the future.
Avoiding Manmade Electrical Energy
Our bodies are made up of billions of cells that communicate with each other using minute electrical signals. Our brains function at the exact same frequency as the planet Earth. All life forms function in the same manner in exquisite balance with the universe. This fine-tuning has been disrupted by manmade electrical energy that operates at power levels and frequencies billions of times higher than those in nature. Exposure of all living beings to manmade electromagnetic radiation can be avoided when one becomes aware of and educated on how it all works.
Young Children and Grief
Are you struggling with a grieving child? Bereaved young children don’t have our understanding of death, nor the language to say how they are feeling. However, they definitely experience feelings of loss and separation, and pick up on the distress of those around them. Providing them with options of drawing or playing with puppets can help, as can using storybooks and pictures. Sharing your feelings of loss with a child can help them express their own sadness. Children tend to grieve in bursts, and at other times will look for reassurance and comfort in their normal routines and activities.
Hearing Loss and the Risk of Falling
A study led by Frank Lin, an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, suggests that hearing loss may also be a risk factor for a huge public health problem: falls. The study found that people with a 25-decibel hearing loss, classified as mild, were nearly three times more likely to have a history of falling. Every additional 10-decibels of hearing loss increased the chances of falling by 1.4 fold. If you or a family member are concerned about hearing loss, visit NexGenHearing.com to take a free online hearing test. -NexGen Hearing
Love Relationships
February brings love to mind, and that’s a good thing. Love creates, nourishes, rewards, and defines us. It affects how we communicate outwardly and feel inwardly. Counsellors are often asked to help with relationships and it does not take long before it is realized that love of any type (parental; sexual, intimate love of adulthood; demanding love with family and friends; and especially self-love) can get out-of-balance and negatively affect the relationship. Avoiding or suppressing old love issues clearly affects the present. Fortunately, even a small amount of awareness and acceptance about these love relationships can improve a relationship. Don’t wait to connect with a counsellor about difficulties with love of any type.
Music and Brain Plasticity
Brain-imaging techniques have revealed the brain’s plasticity and have identified networks that music activates. The brain areas activated by music are not unique to music. These networks also process other functions. Musical and non-musical functions share systems. For example, motor control and executive control share circuits with music. Music can activate and drive complex patterns of interaction between the other two, so that a stroke patient and someone with Parkinson’s increases movement, and someone with traumatic brain injury increases cognitive functioning, such as problem solving or decision making.
Senior Strength Training
Strength training is good for balance, immune function, cardiovascular health, bone health, and more, and it’s never too late to start building muscle. Sedentary adults over the age of 50 lose an average of .4 pounds of muscle mass a year, which adds up over time. For seniors, establishing a new strength-training program should be done under the care of an experienced trainer who understands the issues people face as they age, including loss of balance, and can make modifications during weight lifting sessions. In general, seniors should train about three days per week and add more weight when it’s no longer hard to lift the weight they’ve been using.
Top Skin Resolutions for 2019
Here are some important resolutions to protect your skin in the new year!
1. Examine your skin for irregularities monthly, with some help from a trusted friend or family member for those hard-to-see spots.
2. Choose wisely what time of day you go out in the sun. Be sure to wear adequate protection such as a large-brimmed hat and sunscreen with a CDA logo on the label that offers both UVB/UVA protection (SPF 50 for summer, SPF 30 year-round).
3. See a board-certified dermatologist once a year for a medical assessment of moles and skin cancer risk, as well as to learn about options for improving your skin’s appearance.
