Hormones affect many areas of your health, including your mood, your metabolism, and your sexual and reproductive function. Anyone who has been through puberty knows that hormones have a powerful effect on one’s body. Unbalanced hormones can make you feel like a stranger in your own skin. Compounded hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is a way to restore balance and help you feel like yourself again. With your healthcare provider’s prescription, your compounding pharmacist can help start and maintain a hormone replacement regimen that brings your hormones back into balance and closely mimics what your body has been doing naturally for years.
Community News
Maintaining Oral Health
Here are some tips from Dental Hygiene Canada to improve your dental health: * Brush your teeth two times per day with fluoridated toothpaste, * Use an antibacterial mouthwash daily to rinse germs down the drain, * Floss Daily to remove food particles that get caught in your teeth, * You are what you eat! Eat a balanced diet and avoid in-between meal snacks, * Rethink your drink. Drinking sweetened beverages increases you risk of getting cavities. * See your dentist regularly. Your oral health is important. When you take care of your oral health, you take care of your overall health
Social Isolation
Our lifestyles continue to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Stay-at-Home recommendations have increased social Isolation, especially among seniors. This is a problem as it is associated with a number of health risks. Technology can help us stay connected through social media platforms but not everyone has access or ability to use them. The Nanaimo Lifeline Check-In Service offers a daily phone call to those who might not be connected. We provide a friendly chat that gives peace of mind and ensures someone knows you are doing Ok today. Now is a good time to sign up.
Visits to a Care Home
Now that Covid restrictions have been loosened in retirement homes, loved ones are being reunited…some after many long months. It’s heartwarming to see that the vaccines are helping people be able to reconnect and catch up. As wonderful as Zoom and other social medias have been in helping seniors keep in touch, it simply does not compare to being face to face and able to hug or hold hands. Please continue to do your part to stay safe for yourselves and your loved ones and please respect the policies that are in place in the retirement communities, such as wearing masks where required, so we can continue to protect the ones closest to us.
How to Choose a Seniors’ Residence
When the decision has been made to begin looking at a seniors’ residence, there are some things to keep in mind. Focus on what it is that you want, not what someone else may think you should want. As you are looking, remember that first impressions count. Is the building design appealing? Are the services and activities offered of interest to you? Are the residents and staff friendly towards you and to each other? Check out the dining room and ask the residents about their dining experience. If the first impressions are favourable, book a formal tour.
Is Everything Spinning?
Vertigo is an unsettling feeling of everything around you spinning that can be difficult to control. Vertigo is caused by a problem in the inner ear that causes brief vertigo spells that come and go. The spells can last a few hours or up to a few weeks. It best to seek medical help for vertigo. Most doctors and physiotherapists can do vertigo treatments to help relieve the dizziness and the sudden urge to feel ill. Treatment is available that helps release the crystals in the inner ear to relieve the dizziness. Contact your doctor or a physiotherapist to find out more about treatments for vertigo.
Mindfulness Exercises
With our days already busy with work and our loved ones, the pandemic causes many of us extra stress and anxiousness. To combat anxiety or burnout, engage in the practice of mindfulness to improve your mental wellbeing. Mindfulness is the practice of taking time to stop, think and focus on the present moment. This means being aware of your state of mind and thoughts, what feelings or sensations you are experiencing, the environment, and your breathing. Allowing yourself the time to be in the present helps you to calm down, frees your body of tension, and relieves your mind of distressing thoughts.
Celebrating Memories on Mother’s Day
Whether the loss of your mother was recent or long ago, you can honour her life in creative ways from the safety of your home. *Make a statement – Plant her favourite flower in remembrance, *Social Media – Make a Facebook page dedicated to your mom and invite family to post photos and stories. Ask your funeral home or cemetery about free online memorials, *Pay it forward – Volunteer or make a donation to her favourite charity. *Remember her favourites – Honour and remember her by doing something she loved, *Celebrate together – Host a video call where everyone can exchange stories and share her favourite memory.
Customized Hearing Aid Service
Once hearing loss has been identified and the hearing aids have been prescribed and ordered, they usually arrive in 5-7 days. They are then fitted and programmed to your individual needs. A two-week follow up is scheduled for any necessary adjustments or questions regarding use, care and maintenance. A two month follow up is recommended to ensure continued success with the hearing aids. Finally, yearly checkups are scheduled to ensure that everything is working well. All services are complementary with the purchase of your hearing aid. If your hearing loss has changed over time, your devices can be reprogrammed.
Support Chemainus Theatre
The Playbill Dining Room at Chemainus Theatre Festival is open for dining on Friday and Saturday evenings with physical-distancing and safety measures in place. Chemainus Theatre Festival is a not-for-profit registered charity; generous donations from patrons enable them to continue the work. The Chemainus Theatre Bridging the Gap Fund has been established to help them withstand this difficult time and to return when it is safe to do so. Today more than ever, they rely on charitable support. If you are able to help, any donation will be an integral part of helping them build towards their next season.
Joys of Family Vacations
We may not be able to travel far this summer; thankfully, we live on Vancouver Island which offers everything we could want for a nature vacation. Family vacation time is important for the family unit. Researchers have found that family vacations can improve family communication and bonding. Most families spend their days dealing with work, school, extracurricular activities, or household duties. Breaking away from the stress of daily routine provides relief. Taking time together to share experiences and activities creates memories that will last a lifetime. We still reminisce about a three week family vacation that happened almost 50 years ago.
