Community News
Light Therapy for SAD

It is hard to imagine that summer is now behind us, but it’s true. As we head into the fall and winter, we will encounter shorter daylight hours and more grey skies. As a result, we sometimes find that winter will trigger Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). How do we treat SAD? In severe cases, medications may be needed, and as adjunctive treatment, light therapy may be added. Effective light therapy is achieved by exposure to 10,000 lux cool-white light. Optimal exposure is for 30 to 45 minutes early in the morning upon awakening.

Fight Colds with Acupuncture

With cold and flu season on the way, you may be looking for ways to stay healthy. Acupuncture is a great way to help you recover from colds and flu viruses more quickly, and can even help prevent them in the first place! Getting acupuncture treatment can help elevate immune-boosting hormones for several days after treatment, helping to prevent and fight colds and flu viruses. It can also help to reduce body aches, fever, and chills, as well as relieve congestion and sore throats. Consider acupuncture treatment as part of your toolkit to stay well during cold and flu season!

Getting Online

About 71% of seniors are online every day. Of those who are online, their main reason is to stay connected with family and friends. Whether it’s joining forums or sharing photos and stories with loved ones, social media and email allows seniors with limited mobility the opportunity to interact with others. If you’re interested in getting online but don’t know where to start, community centres and local senior groups often have programs to teach seniors about the internet and how to participate in online communities. It is important as we age to continue to stay socially connected to friends and loved ones.

Aging Alone

“Elder orphans” is a term used for seniors who live alone in the community, with no partner, children or other people to support or care for them. Elder orphans may also be socially or physically isolated, adding to their vulnerability. They are at higher risk of depression, loneliness, social isolation and losing their ability to make decisions. Older adults can prepare for the future by thinking about what support and resources they have, what they need and where they might live (including factors such as cost and proximity to family and medical care). Make your wishes known to family and friends.

Words to Live By

“Fear less, hope more, eat less, chew more, whine less, breathe more, talk less, say more, hate less, love more, and good things will be yours.”

~ Swedish Proverb

Words to Live By

“Every ceiling, when reached, becomes a floor, upon which one walks as a matter of course and prescriptive right.”

~ Aldous Huxley

Games of Chance

Many people find gambling fun and exciting… you never know if you are going to win big! It is important to understand the reason why you never know if you are going to win big. It is because all gambling games are influenced by chance; the outcome of the games cannot be controlled or predicted with certainty. If a game’s outcome was certain, it wouldn’t be gambling. Gambling games are designed to favour “the house” meaning the game operator or vendor. This is true for casino games, online games, horse racing, bingo, sports and lottery games.

5 Common Myths About Professional Home Care

When considering professional home care for a loved one, family caregivers have to sift through an overwhelming amount of information, making it difficult to know what is true and what isn’t. “Bayshore has been providing care for over 50 years”, says Chris Swift, Care Manager at Bayshore Home Health, “and we’ve heard many myths about professional home care.”
• A family member is the best person to care for an aging loved one.
• Home care is only for people who are sick.
• Home care means a loss of independence.
• Home care isn’t a long-term solution.
• Seniors with dementia aren’t good candidates for home care.
Read more about these myths at: Wellnessnews.ca

Holistic Health – What is it?

As professionals we want to help. From a holistic approach, we want to understand your concerns from a mind, body, spirit and emotional connection. Whether it be from body pain, low mood, or an interruption in sexual functioning, we seek to understand various factors that may be affecting you, preventing you from being your best self. We recognize that when people experience distress, this can impact other parts of their lives, and the people around them. Holistic health works to develop a map to healing that integrates support for the various parts of your health in order to promote optimal wellness.

What Happens During a Physio Assessment?

Your physiotherapy appointment begins in a private office with your therapist where you can discuss your presenting issue along with your goals and social/medical history. During this time any medical reports can be reviewed. Your therapist will take you through an assessment observing things like gait, range of motion, strength and functional movements. A working diagnosis is reached and together with the therapist you will come up with a treatment plan. Treatment may include massage, joint mobilization, dry needling and/or exercise therapy. At Fresh Tracks we reserve a full hour one-on-one in order to complete a comprehensive history, assessment and treatment.

Scalp Micropigmentation (SMP) Treatment

Did you know that SMP is the most cost-effective, and least-invasive treatment for hair loss? Ideal for individuals interested in recreating their hair line and providing greater fullness to thinning hair. Many have undergone surgical hair restoration and did not get the desired hair density – patients are seeking to camouflage their hair transplants! This non-invasive method of depositing pigment into the scalp creates the appearance of tiny hair follicles or short hair stubble, perfect for clients with a receding hairline, Alopecia, Androgenic Alopecia (pattern-baldness), general thinning-hair, and scalp scarring.