Community News
Tune-Up Your Brain!

Your brain is the engine that drives you – so it’s important to keep it well-tuned. Fat – or lipid – consumption is essential for the healthy growth, development, and function of your brain. In fact, 60% of your brain’s dry weight is fat. Several types of plant and animal fats are used for brain-building material, though one lipid reigns supreme: omega-3 fatty acids derived from salmon, sardines, krill oil, and plant-based Ahiflower oil. There are many benefits of omega-3: it increases cognitive functioning and decreases symptoms of depression, anxiety and aggression. It is also shown to be a protective factor against cognitive decline and dementia in older adults; and it is an essential component of a healthy diet for pregnant women, leading to better health outcomes in newborns. Consider adding omega-3s to your diet as an evidence-based way to tune-up your brain for optimal mental health.

Canadian Mental Health Association
cmha.ca

Scavenger Hunt Adventure Tours

There is an exciting new business in the Comox Valley! Scavenger Hunt Adventure Tours is all about solving clues, searching for hidden items, exploring under-appreciated places, and getting people outdoors for fun and healthy recreation. Activities range from single-day, themed scavenger hunts to private parties, corporate events, and multi-day getaways. Mother and son team, Jackie West and Tyler Meggitt, combine their talents and draw upon their respective career and life experiences to deliver a diverse selection of staged and themed adventure tours that put a new spin on the well-known scavenger hunt. Jackie looks forward to working alongside her youngest son, Tyler, as they get creative together to deliver some fresh fun and games to locals and visitors alike. From day tours promoting awareness of local businesses and landmarks to week-long road trips, there is plenty of fun and adventure in store for you.

Jackie West
scavenger-hunt-adventure-tours.ca

Considering a Pet Sitter?

If you’re a pet owner who travels, arranging for care for your pets while you’re away can feel like an overwhelming decision. It’s important to look for caregivers who will not only provide for basic needs like food and water, but also companionship, reassurance, and playtime while you’re away. If you can find someone to come to your home, your pet gets to stay in his familiar surroundings, which is less stressful than taking him to a new location! When finding a pet sitter, it’s also important that you’re both on the same page about what’s expected and the fees involved for things like the number and length of visits per day, grooming and walking, accident cleanup, and taking the pet to a vet in case of emergency. You and your pet should feel comfortable about the care arrangements, so you (and your pet) can enjoy your vacation without worry!

HappyPaws.ca

Dysregulation, Disorders and Music Therapy

Music has nonverbal, creative, structural and emotional qualities. These are used in the therapeutic relationship between client and music therapist to facilitate contact, self-expression, communication and other clinical goals. Our bodies pulsing with internal rhythms of the heart, the digestive system and the lungs synchronize to music with its intrinsically rhythmical structure. For people living with autism, ADHD, mood disorders, effects of TBI, stroke or trauma, the skillful use of music and its elements such as melody, rhythm and dynamics promotes positive change. Most significantly, it influences the important and necessary shift in physiological and emotional responses away from dysregulation towards regulation and balance.

Nejama Ferstman
ShiriMySong.ca

Choosing the Right Home

Look for a house with ‘good bones’ and potential; one that makes your heart feel joyful and at peace, where you feel safe and settled. A house that can accommodate your and your family’s wants and needs, possessions, activities, and lifestyle. A house in which you can function optimally and where everything has its place. One that is inviting and has a good flow, with an effective layout that functions well in each room separately, and as a whole. One that has a cohesive and harmonious layout and good design, with no awkward or useless spaces. A house that has that ‘something’ that makes you feel it has a ‘soul’. A house you will immediately ‘feel’ as beautiful and harmonious. A house that will envelop you and your life, and you will love calling ‘home’.

Emmanuelle Stathopoulos
Professional Coach MAC – Env. Psychology MSC, InnerDreamToOuterForm.com

Improve Your Relationship

Getting along can be tricky – and staying warmly connected to our partner is not always easy! When things get rough, it can feel hard to warm up the relationship again. For a more resilient connection, couples can work on building their “fondness and admiration system”. One way to do this is to challenge a basic habit many of us have – the one where you are scanning for problems and mistakes. Instead, try scanning for what your partner is not messing up! This can profoundly change the story of your relationship, leaving you with more reserves of goodwill. Sounds simple, but it can be surprisingly hard – and yet it can help foster a couple’s culture of appreciation, affection, and respect. Counselling provides a safe and non-judgemental place to help you say what you want and feel heard, and find your warm connection again.

Mary Munro
MaryMunro.ca

Temptations When Grocery Shopping

Have you ever noticed that all of the unprocessed food items are along the perimeter of a grocery store? Produce, dairy, meats, and baked goods, which we need to maintain healthy eating. All of those tempting processed foods are in the middle aisles, and they have tempting displays at the end of aisles to entice us to wander down each one. Do you shop with a grocery list? It’s a good way to buy what you need for the week, and you can always jot down items on sale or ones you might want to try when your budget will allow. Also, have you noticed that some products are not just found in one place, but also on the end of the aisle or even close to the checkout? This can wear down our resolve to stick to the items on our grocery list. It’s all marketing to encourage spending.

Doris Minervini, Abakhan & Associates Inc.
Abakhan.com

Avoiding Soreness from Golf

Golf season is in full swing. Reinitiating any summer activity after a long winter can potentially result in post-activity soreness. Golfing is a complex activity that involves generating movements through both your upper and lower extremities, thus producing a great number of stresses on the joints, muscles, and ligaments. A bucket of balls on the driving range, numerous practice strokes, and an average of 90 strokes during a round all result in repetitive strain to the tissues. A well-designed exercise program including stretching, core muscle strengthening, balance exercises, and an aerobic fitness component is key to keeping you on the fairways. Have a physiotherapist prescribe a golf-specific program for you. It is also wise to seek instruction from a local golf pro, who can improve your technique, thus decreasing your chance of injury. Try a few practice swings in the opposite direction. Enjoy the season!

Doug Treloar, Physiotherapist
PhysioFirstClinic.ca

Is Cancer Preventable?

“Every person who has cancer has a pH that is too acidic.” – Dr. Otto Warburg (Nobel Prize winner). Did you know that 95% of cancers are said to be linked to diet, lifestyle, and environment, leaving only 5% to genetics? From the foods we eat, to the amount of stress we are under, our culture leads a particularly acidic lifestyle. Our bodies were not designed to endure what we put them through, leading us on a path of disease. The answer? Eliminate the acidity. It Works! GREENS Blend is an amazing green-based super food. It helps to alkaline, energize, and detoxify the body with a perfect blend of 38 herbs and nutrient-rich super foods that provide phyto nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes you require for your body and overall health. Reclaim your health, start with GREENS.

Wendy Omilanow, IT WORKS

What is MAT?

MAT, or Muscle Activation Therapy, is a dynamic approach to addressing muscular imbalances that can reduce or eliminate pain and fatigue, and speed muscle recovery. It is a noninvasive method for improving everyday activities for all age groups and body types. MAT allows the body to achieve optimal levels of function, without further discomfort or injury, by increasing the body’s range of motion, restoring muscular alignment, and eliminating compensation patterns. It is a checks-and-balances system designed to identify and address the causes of discomfort and range of motion limitations. MAT helps with growing pains, slowing down and even reversing the aging process, feeling a positive impact on arthritis and aging-related losses in physical performance, healing the body faster and properly after surgery, and acting as a precursor to exercise and therapy to help prepare the body.

Julie Northam, Certified Muscle Activation Techniques Specialist, Julie’s Muscle Awareness, JulieMuscleAwareness.com

Travelling with Pets

If you decide to bring your pet along on a trip, take a few things into consideration. Air travel can be particularly dangerous for animals with “pushed in” faces (the medical term is “brachycephalic”), such as bulldogs or pugs. Their short nasal passages leave them especially vulnerable to oxygen deprivation and heat stroke. If transporting your pet by air is the only option, find out whether they can travel in the cabin with you. Most airlines will allow you to take a cat or small dog in the cabin for an additional fee. But you must call the airline well in advance; there are limits to the number of animals allowed in the cabin. Travel is a stressful event for animals, so remember to plan ahead of time, and talk with your veterinarian if you have other concerns.

Rob Lamont
Apetlovers.com

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