BC Programs and Resources
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Would a Tablet Help You to Connect and Engage?
Each year March of Dimes Canada provides smart tablets to eligible applicants with disabilities, empowering them to be more independent in their daily lives. Applications are now open for BC residents, with a deadline of February 6, 2020. Please share this link with anyone you think may benefit!
Find forms and guidelines here: www.marchofdimes.ca/amti
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Young Stroke Survivors
of BC
We host two monthly discussion groups, facilitated by a counsellor.
The next in-person meeting is next Thursday, January 16, at noon at Shaughnessy Heights United Church (1550 W 33rd Ave, at Granville, in Vancouver). It's free, but please register! You can register through Eventbrite (here is the link). Please note: if we need to cancel due to weather, we'll email registered participants by 9 a.m. Thursday morning. If HandiDart is cancelled, the meeting will be cancelled.
The next teleconference meeting is Thursday February 6, at noon. It's free, but please register! You can register through Eventbrite (here is the link). We will send you the call-in details after you register.
Our new video series launches soon. Watch this space!
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Dancing Your Way to Recovery
Users of the Neofect Smart Balance may look like they're competing in a kids' dance video game, but in fact this new device helps people recovering from a stroke to rehabilitate their legs, balance and posture. Read more about the latest product in the growing field of physical therapy gamification here.
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Live Webinar – Active Living with Stroke – January 15
Learn how Nordic walking can be a great tool for people recovering from a stroke. We’ll be presenting research-backed benefits of Nordic walking and showing how an Urban Poling program can be used for support groups, caregiver programs and also for Next Steps walking groups in malls.
Find out why therapists recommend the patented evidence-based ACTIVATOR Poles to facilitate a more even walking pattern compared to canes. Additionally, people with stroke have reported feeling more like an athlete when using poles instead of a cane!
Our ACTIVATOR Poles can improve various outcomes for people with strokes including: increasing movement of the affected arm and leg, improving arm swing during walking, increasing weight-bearing of the affected leg, as well as improving balance and posture. This webinar will also cover how to use the ACTIVATOR Poles for effective and enjoyable bilateral seated, standing and pre-walking exercises for individual and group exercise programs.
Date: January 15, 2020
Time: 1-2pm EST
Presenter: Mandy Shintani, OT and Gerontologist
Cost: Free
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Take a Second to Appreciate How Far You've Come
In this blog post on the Australian Stroke Organization's Enable Me website, a contributor, Tracy, talks about the importance of recognizing how far she's come in her recovery:
"Everyone has told me how far I have come from the day that I had a Brain Haemorrhage. It’s so hard to remember what I was like on that fateful day. I think my brain has protected me from remembering the first weeks after brain surgery and the pain which is a good thing. But ever since, I have no idea how I looked to other people, I just remember being a different person to who I had always been," writes Tracy.
She recommends a keeping a video diary, and uses 1 Second Every Day, "an app that records a second per day of my life and mashes it all into a film for me".
Here's a link to a Ted Talk about the app. It could help you to document, and appreciate, the progress you are making in your recovery.
P.S. Enable Me is such an incredible wealth of information and resources. Check it out!
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New Apps From Constant Therapy
We've shared information about Constant Therapy Apps before; it's an innovative app that can assist with cognitive rehabilitation. They've now introduced "next-level" apps, "dialing up the award-winning speech, language, and cognitive recovery app’s impact with custom interfaces for clinicians and patients, and fresh features including a virtual clinician therapy guide." Read more about the updates here.
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14 Years Later, Still Relentless
Do you ever wonder how Ted Baxter, the author of Relentless: How a Massive Stroke Changed my Life for the Better, is doing, 14 years after publishing the book?
Well here's an interesting interview with the answer! Spoiler alert: still relentless.
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How Well You Sleep Affects How Well You Recover
Here's an interesting article from the Lake Country Calendar:
A study at UBC Okanagan has highlighted the importance of sleep for people recovering from strokes.
Jennifer Davis, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Management, recently published a study alongside a team of UBCO researchers, examining the relationships between depression and sleep among stroke survivors.
“Because a stroke can damage the central nervous system, it often leads to changes in brain activity, brain function and sleep,” said Davis.
“Sleep disturbances are common in older adults who have had a stroke and there is mounting evidence that stroke and sleep are interconnected.” Read the full article here.
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Free Consultation with Expert Therapists
- Are you recovering from a stroke?
- Have you endured brain injury?
- Do you feel you have a physical, cognitive or neurological impairment?
If you answered YES to any of the above, then you're invited to a free consultation by expert Occupational Therapists, led by Amit Kumar. These free consultations are offered on the first Tuesday of every month. Caregivers are welcome to attend.
Where: Neurofunction Rehab 105-17660 65A Ave, Surrey, BC
When: First Tuesday of every month, 2pm – 4pm
Pre-booking is required.
Contact: Email or Phone: 604-574-1255 (clinic) | 778-384-4503 (cell)
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Coins R Us!
Did you know that March of Dimes Canada
accepts any and all foreign currency?
And good old Canadian pennies? And even Canadian Tire money?
Your vacation spare change or jar of old pennies can make a difference!
All money donated in BC funds BC stroke recovery programs and services.
You can drop it off at our Vancouver or Victoria office;
or contact us for more information!
Vancouver:
301-1212 W Broadway; please call 604-688-3603 to confirm office hours
Victoria:
200-4475 Viewmont Avenue; 8:30-4:00 Monday to Friday
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Interested in Working or Volunteering With Us?
We are often hiring for programs throughout BC.
Our postings are always up to date on Indeed.
Interested in volunteering? We now have an online application form for you!
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