BIST’s August Community Meeting was an Ocutherapy demonstration with Alex Theodorou.
Alex Theodorou
About Alex
Alex’s father sustained a stroke in 2005, changing the lives of him and his family forever.
This event lead Alex to pursue a master’s degree in neurolinguistics from McMaster University. He wanted to find a way to improve the lives of people living with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) and other cognitive difficulties.
In 2016, Alex came up with the idea of Ocutherapy, a Toronto-based Virtual Reality (VR) program aimed at improving speed of recovery for individuals in post-acute care rehabilitation programs. The company was launched in 2018 and its momentum is strong.
Ocutherapy uses virtual reality to bring together patient and practitioner to inspire, motivate, and educate in the recovery journey. [It] offer[s] interactive experiences that make the healing process both engaging and intuitive.
Health care and brain injury
ABI is one of the most common neurological conditions.
Treating ABI can be costly to the health care system and patients may receive limited treatment.
Limited care, high drop-out rates, and potential for re-injury can leave patients feeling defeated.
Features of Ocutherapy:
Patient-centered
The program learns from the user to determine the level of difficulty.
It tailors its exercises to help train the areas of the brain and skills that are most important to each individual.
A check-in is included at the end of each game to get feedback about how the user felt the game went.
Utilizes a connected rehabilitation approach.
Data can be easily accessed by health-care workers to better track the progress of each patient.
Beneficial and fun!
There are different tasks involved with each game allowing the individual to stave off boredom while focusing on key areas of the brain.
Works on fine motor movements and can enhance quality of life.
Accessible
The virtual reality headset and controller make Ocutherapy portable, improving access to care.
The headset can be worn with or without glasses.
The headset also utilizes bone conduction technology. This permits the user to hear the sound without having their ears covered and, if you aren’t the wearer, you don’t hear any of the sound at all, which is very cool!
Intuitive
Since Ocutherapy throws away the traditional method of therapy*, it learns from the user and adapts the program accordingly all while tracking progress.
*For me this involved the wall clock, laser and stick pointers, tones of papers and tape everywhere to name only a few. Also, if I never had to see the letter ‘A’ again, I would be completely fine with that!
Who could benefit from Ocutherapy?:
Ocutherapy aims to improve speed of recovery for individuals in post acute care rehabilitation programs.
Benefiting individuals include those who have experienced or continue to experience effects from:
ABI
Neurodegenerative disease (such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s)
Aging
Ocutherapy may aid with memory, attention, spacial orientation, brain fog, and mood, to name a few.
Due to the nature of the VR device, Ocutherapy may not be ideal for individuals with:
Visual impairment that cannot be corrected by glasses.
Motor impairment affecting the hands.
Why haven’t I heard about Ocutherapy before?
Ocutherapy is in its early stages and is in the midst of being trialed and tweaked.
Early testing has been conducted; however, Alex and his team continue to adapt the program, improving its accessibility, technology, and ease of use.
Want more info about Ocutherapy?
Check out the official website: www.ocutherapy.com where you can meet the team, read articles about Ocutherapy and watch Alex’s Tedx Talk.
Have any ideas, suggestions, or questions? Alex and his team would love to hear from you!
Julia Renaud is a ABI survivor with a passion for learning new things, trying new activities, and meeting new people – all of which have led her to writing this column. She is an advocate within the health care community and has been featured in the coffee table book, A Caged Mind by May Mutter, which exposes the nature of concussions through body painting.
June’s Community Meeting was a chair yoga workshop by BIST’s Programs and Services Coordinator, Julie Notto.
About Julie Notto
She discovered yoga as a way to deal with chronic pain issues.
Julie became a yoga and Pilates instructor and taught for over ten years. She was also a yoga teacher trainer.
She has taught movement classes at many locations including at university, a wellness centre, and within the corporate sector.
What is chair yoga?
Yoga is a physical and spiritual practice which involves using various breathing techniques, exercises, and meditation to improve overall health for the body, mind, and spirit.
While yoga is commonly practiced using just a mat and the body, a chair can be incorporated to make it accessible for everyone!
Why practice yoga?
Yoga is great for your overall health, including brain health. It can be relaxing, rejuvenating and wonderful for improving circulation to the brain and body. Increased circulation means more oxygen is transported to body’s organs, and more toxins get cleared out from the body, including the brain.
Incorporating the three basic movements of flexion, extension, and rotation, yoga can be a great way to stretch sore and tired muscles and can also be challenging enough to act as a form of exercise.
Yoga is great for brain health! It’s a modifiable and fantastic way to be active at the pace your brain and body need.
How do I start?
Find yourself a chair; any chair will do, as long as it doesn’t have wheels! It’s best to be able to plant your feet flat on the ground while you are seated. If your feet dangle or your heels can’t quite touch the floor, get creative and find an item that can help give your feet a boost. You may try folding a yoga mat, using a step stool, or even a sturdy shoe box!
Don’t push yourself too hard. Try one exercise and see how you feel. Check in with your body (and brain) throughout to make sure you are working at your own pace.
Remember that there is no right or wrong way to breathe; each breath will be different. Relax your shoulders and breathe however is comfortable for you.
To keep your mind focused on your breath, try saying ‘in’ with each inhalation, and ‘out’ with each exhalation.
If you’re more of a numbers person, maybe you would prefer counting breaths: inhale with the count of one, exhale with two, inhale with three to ten. When you reach ten, start again at one.
When doing poses, try to take three complete breaths at the peak of each individual movement. If three breaths feels like too much or too few, adjust accordingly to what feels right to you.
While breathing, feel the support of your breath, bones, and gravity.
Exercises
Give these a go to strengthen your legs, increase blood flow, improve balance, and to calm the mind and nervous system.
Make sure the chair or table you are using stays sturdy throughout this pose to prevent face planting onto the floor! If using a stand-alone chair, push it against the wall before beginning. The goal is to not move the chair during this pose.
Stand facing the chair, placing your hands atop the back rest.
Walk your feet back until your upper body is extended, keeping a slight bend in the knee and heels on the ground.
Lift your pelvis and feel the stretch as you extend through your spine, while breathing with intention for several breaths.
Walk your feet back in, and roll up from the base of your spine to the top of your head.
Stand with the back of the chair facing the side of your body, rooting your feet into the ground and holding on to the back of the chair with the closest hand.
Slowly and carefully, lift the foot opposite the chair off the ground, pushing its sole into the side of the supporting leg in one of these variations:
Lower: Keep the toes of the raised foot touching the ground so your heel is roughly upper-ankle to mid-calf height.
Higher: Place the sole of your foot higher along the supporting leg, above or below the knee. Keep your knees happy by not putting your foot on the joint itself – knees aren’t made for this type of lateral pressure! Press your raised knee out to the side to open your hip and raise your free arm above your head. Breathe! Repeat on the other side.
Stand tall, with both feet together and rooted into the ground. Inhale while bringing your arms overhead and pressing your palms together.
Shift your hips left while bending your torso and arms right to make a crescent shape with your body. Press your knees together for balance.
Hold the pose and breathe.
Repeat on the other side.
Julia Renaud is a ABI survivor with a passion for learning new things, trying new activities, and meeting new people – all of which have led her to writing this column. She is an advocate within the health care community and has been featured in the coffee table book, A Caged Mind by May Mutter, which exposes the nature of concussions through body painting.
BIST’s April Community Meeting featured guest speaker Jason Peddle, Vulnerable Persons Coordinator at the Toronto Police Services who spoke about protecting yourself from scams and phishing.
About Jason Peddle:
With a background in Kinesiology, Social Work, and Dementia Studies, Jason has worked as a Therapeutic Recreationalist in nursing homes and as a Family Support Worker at the Alzheimer Society.
He switched vocations in 2006, and for 10 years worked as a Police Officer in various roles, including front-line policing.
As his career progressed, his interest in Community Focused Policing led to his appointment as Toronto Police Service’s Vulnerable Persons Coordinator, a role h he has done for three years.
What to know about scams:
Anyone and everyone can be a target of a scam
The goal of the scammer is to get your money now OR
Get your personal information to use to get your money later!
The 5 Hallmarks of a Scam
1. Unsolicited
They came to you without your request, such as by phone call, e-mail, door knocking etc.
2. Urgency
They want you to do something right away or else, such as ‘pay now or you will get arrested!’
3. This is routine
If you question them, they will assure you that what they are doing is completely normal. They talk quickly and give a lot of information so there is less time to process it. They will try to convince you that if you question them, you are in the wrong, such as ‘I have checked all of your neighbours’ water heaters; your neighbourhood seems to have particularly bad water heaters.’
4. High Reward & Low Risk.
Pay attention to your gut! If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. The potential reward for these criminals is high for very little risk.
5. Payment Up Front.
They want the money right away, not later.
How to Avoid Becoming a Victim
Follow up with contact info that you find yourself.
Don’t rely on the text displayed on your caller ID, even if it says your bank’s name; fraudsters can change the caller info that comes up on your phone! Yikes!
2. Don’t rush decisions / do your homework.
If someone threatens you with a time limit, it’s a fraud.
3. Don’t let people into your home.
Stand your ground, it’s your home and you have the right to say who comes in and who doesn’t.
4. Don’t share personal information, no matter how meaningless it may seem.
If the person is legitimate, they won’t mind your precaution.
Scam artists are sneaky
They look like you and me – often they look professional and have impressive offices/addresses and they are very good at what they do!
Examples of Common and Current Scams
Someone claiming they are from the Canada Revenue Agency contacts you asking you to pay your taxes right away.
This is the most common scam every year because people keep falling for it.
2. Emergency
Someone calls pretending to be someone they aren’t saying there is some kind of emergency and you need to respond quickly. This is also called the “grandparent scam” as the elderly are often targeted.
3. Advance Fee
You’ve won a prize but need to send money in advance.
4. Misleading Prize Offer
You win the lottery or a prize for a contest you didn’t enter.
5. Romance
This is the most profitable scam and can happen online or in person. Someone pretends to fall in love with you; then they ask for money, often more than once.
6. Non-Existent Charity
Someone asks you to donate money to charity using a recent, real life tragedy to make them sound credible. If you want to donate, reach out to the charity of your choosing using contact information from a reputable source.
7. Account Info Update
Someone contacts you to update your information.
8. Online Purchase
You as the seller: an interested buyer (intentionally) overpays. The buyer claims they made an error & asks you to send back the difference using an untraceable method (i.e. wire transfer). The payment ends up being fake and you lost your money.
You as the buyer: you don’t receive the item(s) you paid for.
9. Door to Door
Someone claims they need to enter your home to check or service something that you had not arranged (i.e. furnace, water heater, duct cleaning service, etc.).
Many types of door-to-door sales are now illegal.
Know about your rights regarding door-to-door sales and home service contracts, read more about Ontario’s regulations concerning door-to-door sales, HERE.
Phishing
Phishing happens when cyber criminals trick you into giving information. When you respond, they get access of your accounts or download ‘malware’ to your computer. Here are some tips to prevent being a victim of phishing: And importantly, if you receive an e-mail you don’t trust, delete it without opening it!
Phishing Scam Examples:
The Email Scam
Clues that it’s a scam:
The spelling of the sender’s address doesn’t make sense.
Generic/non-personalized greeting.
A link to click on.
Careful, the listed link isn’t always the actual link!
Hover your cursor over the link beforeclicking it to make sure the links match; if they don’t, don’t click on it!
2. The CRA Scam
Clues that it’s a scam:
Generic/non-personalized greeting.
The dollar sign is on the wrong side of the numbers.
A link to click.
Clicking it could cause malware to be downloaded onto your computer. Uh oh!
How to Tell If you’ve been a Victim of a Scam:
You notice unexpected changes in your account.
You receive credit cards you never applied for.
You receive notice that you have been denied credit that you didn’t apply for; or, you are denied credit for no apparent reason.
You receive correspondence from debt collectors.
Credit report shows accounts that aren’t yours or contains inaccurate information.
Bills or statements you still receive by mail stop coming.
Unsolicited proposals come more often.
This is because fraudsters sell information of victims to other fraudsters.
Julia Renaud is a very talkative ABI survivor with a passion for learning new things, trying new activities, and meeting new people – all of which have led her to writing this column. When not chatting someone’s ear off, Julia can be found outside walking her dog while occasionally talking to him, of course!
BIST’s March Community Meeting featured occupational therapist Michelle Jacob who discussed managing emotions and demonstrated HeartMath technology to our members.
Michelle Jacob
About Michelle Jacob:
Michelle has been an occupational therapist for ten years. She is also currently following her passion as a therapeutic coach, speaker, and author. You can find out more about her on her website, rewiringminds.com, YouTube Channel and Instagram feeds.
The Nervous System & Brain under Stress:
The autonomic nervous system is comprised of two branches that ideally remain balanced:
The sympathetic system causes the flight/fight/freeze response.
The parasympathetic system permits body restoration and digestion.
When under stress, brain signals travel to the midbrain (the site of emotional processing) instead of to the frontal cortex (the site of decision making).
Why do we respond to stress in this way?
Back when our ancestors were hunters and gatherers, there were many threats they had to be prepared to encounter. If they were being chased by a tiger, it was helpful to have the fight or flight instinct. While we rarely have to outrun tigers these days, the stress we experience still causes the autonomic nervous system to react in a similar way, preparing our bodies to fight, run away (flight) or freeze.
What about the heart?
The heart responds directly to stress. Have you ever noticed your heart beating faster when you’re feeling nervous or concerned? During times of stress, the heart tends to have a variable/chaotic rhythm. When relaxed, it beats in a more consistent and smooth pattern. It’s all about balance!
Managing Stress
Several factors that can help manage stress are:
Breath
Emotions
Thoughts
Sleep
Nutrition
Physical activity
We will explore the first three factors in more detail below.
Breath
Breath is affected by awareness, so paying attention can help you recognize how you are breathing (i.e. fast, slow, irregular). Having this awareness can help you to modify your breath to gain a sense of calm.
Here are three different methods of conscious breathing that you can try:
Abdominal Breathing
Abdominal breathing is a technique that brings attention to your abdomen by contracting the diaphragm.
Breathe in while pushing your belly out; breathe out while pulling your belly in.
Place a hand on your stomach to feel the rise and fall with the breath.
Sit tall and pay attention to your posture; this is so the diaphragm doesn’t get compressed.
Heart-Focused Breathing
Brings attention to the area of your heart as a stress reduction technique.
Breathe in carrying the breath through the heart area, to the stomach.
Breathe out from the stomach, through the area of the heart, and out your nose or mouth.
Rhythmic Breathing
Involves breathing to a count, or setting a rhythm to your own breath.
Breathe in to the count of four, and out to the count of six.
Alternatively, breathe in to the count of four, hold for four, and out to six.
If you would like, pick your own numbers. The out breath is generally slightly longer than the in breath.
Do what feels right to you!
Emotions
Emotions are central to the experience of stress, they are a reaction to something we perceive.
When under stress the body releases a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol regulates a body functions such as: metabolism, immune response, memory and sleep. Having a cortisol level that is too high can be bad for the body.
Here are some different methods of to help ease stress:
Notice and Ease
Close your eyes and think of a situation that you would consider to be 5 / 10 on the stress scale.
Notice what is happening in your body and the emotion that is tied to it. Name the emotion (i.e., frustration, anger, resentment).
Imagine the emotion in the area of your heart; breathe into your heart, into your stomach, and out of your heart.
With each exhale, think of the word ‘ease’ and feel the emotion melting away.
Breathe until the emotion has been neutralized and you no longer feel it. When ready, open your eyes.
Quick Coherence Technique
Quick coherence technique is a combination of heart-focused and rhythmic breathing, while including a lovely memory.
With your focus on your heart, breathe through your heart, into your stomach, and out through your heart.
Breathe in for a count of five, and out for a count of five.
Bring to mind a memory that you cherish (this can be of a person, place, or thing) and hold it in your heart.
Stay with the positive feelings in your heart. When ready, open your eyes.
Taking It All In
Hopefully, you are now feeling re-energized and ready to tackle the world; but you may be wondering, how often should these exercises be done? Michelle recommends doing one exercise three times a day; morning, afternoon, and night. Using these techniques can help form new neural pathways to keep you cool under stress, but that doesn’t mean that you need to feel stressed to do them!
In case breathing exercises aren’t yet your thing, consider starting a Gratitude Journal: Write and/or draw the things that are going well for you in your life while focusing on feeling grateful.
With the weather warming up, I feel as though it’s even more fitting to sign off by saying, breathe deep and keep cool everyone! – J
Julia Renaud is a very talkative ABI survivor with a passion for learning new things, trying new activities, and meeting new people – all of which have led her to writing this column. When not chatting someone’s ear off, Julia can be found outside walking her dog while occasionally talking to him, of course!
I’ve been getting lots of good feedback about the Quick Facts section, so this month I am condensing the recap in hopes of better tailoring the article to the entire brain injury community. For this post, there is no need to scroll to the bottom of the article, just find the headings you like and read on! Also, don’t forget to let us know what you think!
Our inspiring speaker and leader of the evening, Celia Missios.
Rolling into a new year or season is exciting and can usher in endless possibilities. For BIST’s January Community Meeting, we got our creative juices flowing to make Vision Boards. Celia Missios, ABI survivor, BIST board member, and founder of the self care website Reslientista, stopped by to teach us what vision boards are all about.
Discovering the power of manifestation – Celia’s Story:
While recovering from her ABI, Celia was looking for something to do to bring meaning to her life. She discovered scrapbooking and decided to create a scrapbook of her own about where she wanted her life to go and what she wanted it to look like. A couple of years later, while looking through her scrapbook, to Celia’s surprise, she realized that the things she had included in her books were coming to fruition!
One of the many vision boards of the evening.
What’s a vision board?
A collage of images, phrases, and quotes specifically made to help you manifest your life’s desires. They act as a reminder to envision your goals and take steps toward achieving them.
Why use one:
If you have dreams, goals, enjoy creative activities, or are interested in trying something new. If you like scrapbooking and/or motivational mind mapping, making a vision board is likely right up your alley.
Materials:
A canvas or thick paper backing (even cereal box cardboard will do!)
Scissors
Glue
Markers
A few magazines or pictures
Steps for making your own:
Assemble all of your materials.
Decide on the type of vision board you’d like to make:
Themed: Can help you hone in on a specific area of your life for a more focused manifestation. Examples: Nature, Career, Family, Travel, Design, etc.
Life: A smattering of everything and anything that resonates with you!
Flip through magazines or browse the internet to find pictures, words, or quotes that you are drawn to.
Get cutting and gluing, arranging your chosen clippings in a way that is pleasing to you.
Make sure to leave a blank space somewhere on your board. Here you will write, ‘This or something better’
Once complete, look, appreciate, and become inspired!
One of the BIST members how to arrange their board.
Work together:
Making vision boards as a group activity is quite fun! Not only can it help save time, but if you are working on a themed board, you can make your theme known to the group so they can send found pictures, words, or quotes your way.
Three Steps to using your vision board:
Step 1: LOOK!
Hang or prop up your vision board someplace you will see it every day (think bedside table, beside your television or computer, or, if you’re anything like me, near your fridge!)
Step 2: IMAGINE!
Spend a few moments every day looking at your vision board and imagineyourself experiencing all of the wonderful things on your board.
For example, if I have a picture of a person crossing the finish line of a race, I would envision running (or walking, or rolling – whichever suits you) toward the finish, and paying attention to how I feel while doing so.
Step 3: ACT!
Do something to align yourself with your vision.
Using the race example, I would go for a walk as a way of working toward my goal in hopes of manifesting the act of crossing the finish line.
Not feeling crafty? You could try this instead:
Make a Vision Board on Pinterest!
Prefer words to pictures? Make a word-only vision board by displaying words that resonate with you. Alternatively, write a vision journal where you describe what you would like more of in your life.
The BIST Social Learning Attendees holding up their (mostly) completed vision boards. Great work everyone!
My Experience:
I have been looking at my vision board every day since I have made it. It was really fun to make and I find it beautiful, inspiring to look at. While I’m still working on manifesting my dreams and desires, I’m definitely enjoying the process!
Julia Renaud is a very talkative ABI survivor with a passion for learning new things, trying new activities, and meeting new people – all of which have led her to writing this column. When not chatting someone’s ear off, Julia can be found outside walking her dog while occasionally talking to him, of course!
This month I’m adopting a new heading to make life a smidge easier. If you’re not feeling up to reading very much today and just want the key points, scroll to the bottom of this post for the QUICK FACTSsection. If you prefer the more detailed version, stick with me and jump right in!
BIST’s November Community Meeting was about essential oils (EO) and their role in recovery post-ABI with Rose-Anne Partridge.
Partridge is a best-selling author, former radio show host and iTV personality. She became interested in essential oils nearly two decades ago and took an even deeper dive after her son was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition. Partridge went on to become an advocate and wellness coach for those with special needs and is the founder of Real Life Changes, Families for HOPE Network, and Oily Masters. If that’s not impressive enough, she continued to broaden her knowledge about brain nutrition and obtained her Brainwave Optimization certificate.
Rose-Anne Partridge
What Are Essential Oils?
Essential oils are the ‘life blood’ of a plant. They are highly volatile which makes them very fragrant. Named after its plant of origin (i.e. lavender oil), they are termed essential because “represent the very essence of odour and flavour of a plant.” Oils can be taken from shrubs, flowers, trees, roots, bushes, fruit, rinds, resins, and herbs. Best when extracted through steam distillation, these oils consist of over 100 natural organic compounds and never go bad if they are pure.
A word of warning, the EO industry is not regulated. It is important to read labels, the word ‘pure’ on the label can mean only five per cent of the bottle’s contents are actually EO. This means that you could be paying for a bottle mostly composed of fillers. For this reason, Partridge suggests looking at the price. In this case, you get what you pay for.
Why Use Essential Oils?
People use EOs for their calming effects and because they find the aromas pleasing, but EOs can also support your body systems, including the skeletal, muscular, circulatory, endocrine, respiratory and immune. In addition, they can support your hormones, brain health, body weight health and emotions.
Partridge says EOs have the ability to penetrate through the cell membrane and transport oxygen and nutrients into the cell, helping you heal from the inside out (with the purest EOs). They can also penetrate the blood brain barrier in only a few seconds.
How To Use Essential Oils
Topical (rub on the skin)
For this method, test on a patch of your skin before committing! The best place to start is on the soles of your feet where the skin is the thickest, this will slow the diffusion of the EO into the skin. If your skin becomes red, coconut oil can help.
You can also apply EO behind knees, temples, and wrists throughout the day, all you need is one drop!
2. Ingest
Apparently using lime EO in guacamole is a game changer! You can find recipe ideas, here
3. Diffuse and inhale
This method can be most effective because doesn’t have to pass through the digestive system. Diffusers seem to be all the rage these days but if you want something portable, you can use an EO inhaler or a diffuser necklace.
How Do Essential Oils Work?
When you inhale an aromatic substance, the olfactory neurons in the nasal cavity register the scent to the olfactory bulb where it is then linked to the limbic system of the brain.
Patridge said that studies have shown that when EOs are applied topically, they reach the bloodstream in 26 seconds. When inhaled, they reach the heart, liver, and thyroid in three seconds!
The effectiveness of EOs depends on their purity as well as the oil itself. Partridge mentioned she finds certain oils to be more effective than other times. There are also different grades of oils:
EOs last for about three to six hours in a healthy body so, typically, they are reapplied every few hours.
Some EOs use carrier oils to slow the entry of the EO into your system, allowing it to last longer. These fatty oils have larger molecules that the EO must squeeze through to get into the skin. Examples of carrier oils are olive oil and coconut oil. Many EOs contain carrier oils, but if you’re looking to mix your own, you can buy fractional oil at your local health food store, which stays liquid as opposed to some cooking oils.
Why Are Some Essential Oils More Costly Than Others?
When looking into buying EOs, you’ll notice that not all EOs are created equally, especially when it comes to the price. The higher the grade/purity of the EO, the more you can expect to pay. Also, plants grown for EOs should to be harvested at their peak and some plants take much longer to grow than others, which can mean a higher cost. Finally, not all plants have the same amount of oil.
For example, to obtain one ounce of rose oil, you need 60,000 rose blossoms! Buying a blend of oils is one way to get a variety of EOs without needing to pay the high price for each oil individually. A blend of EOs can be much cheaper, but it also means that it won’t contain very much of the more costly oils.
Are Essential Oils Safe to Use?
Yes, as long as you use them safely! Here’s how:
Always test a patch of your skin with an oil before using a new EO and watch for any redness.
When using EOs on children, dilute the oil, children have more permeable skin, which absorbs the oil more quickly.
Never use EOs on the eyes, nose, ears, nor near the eyes.
Be careful with using citrus EOs if going in the sun (ie. lemon and grapefruit EOs can make you more prone to sunburn).
If you have seasonal allergies, you may react to the oil of plants that you are sensitive to.
Brain Health and Essential Oils
Partridge suggests getting the most bang for your buck by mixing 10 drops each of vetiver, lavender, and frankincense, with a carrier oil.
To help with your head injury symptoms, here are some other EOs that may help you out:
Exercise and Essential Oils
It’s well known that exercise is great for the brain, but did you know essential oils can help your body with exercise as well? If you need some motivation to get off the couch, peppermint oil which can boost your energy, relieve muscle soreness and help to decrease inflammation. To help reduce pain, try wintergreen and fir oil.
QUICK FACTS about Essential Oils!
What they are: Natural oil taken from shrubs, flowers, trees, roots, bushes, fruit, rinds, resins, and herbs.
Why use them: Relaxation, pleasing aromas, support your body systems (skeletal, muscular, circulatory, endocrine, respiratory, immune systems, hormonal), brain health, body weight health, emotions, spirituality and to aid with stress!
How to use them:
How they work: Effectiveness depends on purity and the oil itself. Not all EOs are pure (careful, it’s not a regulated industry!)
Why the cost difference: Plant type, grade/purity, ease of growth. Too expensive? Try out a blend!
EO safety:
Always test a patch of your skin with an oil before using a new EO – watch for any redness!
Never use in the eyes, nose, ears, nor near the eyes.
EOs and brain health:
Most bang for your buck: Mix 10 drops each of vetiver, lavender, and frankincense, with a carrier oil (ie. coconut or olive oil – fractional carrier oil is best so your mix will stay liquid in the cold!).
Exercise and EOs: For motivation use peppermint oil to boost your energy, relieve muscle soreness, and help to decrease inflammation. To help reduce pain, try out wintergreen and fir oil.
Other:
Best when extracted through steam distillation.
Consist of over 100 natural organic compounds.
Never expire if they’re pure! Look at the price – you get what you pay for.
EOs last for around three to six hours in a healthy body so, typically, they are reapplied every few hours.
Julia Renaud is a very talkative ABI survivor with a passion for learning new things, trying new activities, and meeting new people – all of which have led her to writing this column. When not chatting someone’s ear off, Julia can be found outside walking her dog while occasionally talking to him, of course!
Did you know? Community Meetings are now called Social Learning
We’ve changed the name of our Community Meetings to Social Learning to reflect what this program is about: Socializing and Learning.
Want to Socialize?
The first part of our evening is about socializing – come out to meet new people or catch up with old BIST friends.
Want to Learn?
The second part is about learning! Listen to a guest speaker present on a topic relevant to brain injury, with time for a question and answer period.
Come for just part of the evening or stay for the whole thing – the choice is up to you!
Like our Community Meetings, our Social Learning sessions are open to everyone: people living with brain injury, families, friends, professionals and anyone who is interested in ABI.
As a brain injury survivor, these two enchanting words instantly grab my attention and get me craving to learn more. Lucky for me, this was the topic of BIST’s August Community Meeting, and guest speaker, Paul Hyman, had my full attention. Paul is a wonderfully accomplished champion for the brain injury community and he comes with a very impressive resume (check out his website if you don’t believe me). Among all of his accomplishments, he is most well known for being the president and founder of Brain Fitness International, an organization that helps those living with a brain injury to maximize their potential and live better lives.
Paul Hyman, Creator and CEO of Brain Fitness International
Paul began the evening with a quick one liner to explain what ‘brain health’ means to him: movement-based, multi-sensory brain stimulation. Put simply, this means that through movement and engaging your senses you are actually helping your brain. To elaborate upon this concept, Paul used the example of a student who was taking a class and, to the professor’s dismay, knitted throughout every lecture rather than taking notes. To the professor’s astonishment, this student ended up far exceeding the professor’s expectations come the completion of the course. Because knitting utilizes both sides of the body, and therefore, both hemispheres of the brain, the student was able to better absorb the information. For this reason, a pipe cleaner (the craft supply) was handed out to each community meeting attendee to fiddle with, using both hands, throughout the presentation. I have been using this pipe cleaner trick for about a week now and, when I do, I feel like I’m better at absorbing and recalling information; so, if it tickles your fancy give it a try!
The point that Paul chose to emphasize was that movement stimulates the brain. If you don’t believe me, lift your arms high in the air and shake your hands around. Just by moving, you are improving your capacity to learn, memorize, and recall information. If you’re currently struggling with brain injury and some sticky symptoms, this may be exhausting; but, as Paul says, movement is great for the brain – try it out and see how you feel.
Further to movement being a brain stimulant, a principle that has been known for many years now was also highlighted, ‘Neurons that fire together, wire together.’ This speaks to the neuroplasticity of the brain, how the brain is capable of forming new connections.
Using both body and breath to stimulate the brain is a fantastic way to facilitate recovery and also leaves you feeling great. We went through several activities over the course of the evening, and below I will share some of my favourites. I’ve included some fun names for each exercise to hopefully make them easier to recall.
Activities
Paul used to be a professional trombone player, to which he credits learning the importance of the breath. This first exercise is intended to help you become accustomed to taking slower and deeper breaths. All you need is a tissue! I call this one, the tissue trap:
The Tissue Trap:
Take a tissue and hold it up against a wall.
Exhale slowly and deeply onto the tissue so that it stays stuck to the wall without you needing to hold it in place. Do this as slowly as possible.
For added fun, you can time yourself or challenge others to see who can hold it the longest. (New party trick, maybe?)
Vary this exercise by blowing puffs of air instead of a steady stream. If you don’t have a wall handy, use another surface like a book, or hold the tissue between your fingers and watch the tissue fly as you control it using your breath.
This next exercise utilizes both hemispheres of the brain and helps them to work together. It is commonly referred to as eye tracking or lazy 8’s. For a more detailed explanation, click here, otherwise follow the steps below:
Eye Tracking/Lazy 8’s:
Outstretch your arm in front of you so it’s perpendicular to the floor.
Make the thumbs up sign with the hand of your outstretched arm.
Move your arm to draw a big, imaginary infinity sign (an 8 on its side, see above). Continue to do this motion.
While keeping your head still and facing forward, move your eyes to keep your gaze on your thumb as it moves around.
Try this out with your other arm and/or with your fingers interlaced.
Vary the direction of your figure 8. For example, instead of going up the middle every time, try going down the middle.
If you prefer, you may like to draw your lazy 8 on a piece of paper or white board. This can be particularly handy if you get dizzy from drawing them in the air.
Brain Gym PACE
PACE is a Brain Gym mnemonic for Positive, Active, Clear, and Energetic, which together, form a technique for warming up both your brain and your body to maximize your capacity to learn. Now, I’ve been trying to figure out how to describe this practice using only words for a while, but lucky for me, and let’s be honest, you too, I stumbled on this handy video that captures PACE in a straightforward way.
The BIST community meeting attendees really enjoyed Paul’s presentation as he was an excellent speaker with a very engaging presentation. I’ve been told that he will likely return for more presentations in the future so stay tuned!
In the mean time, don’t forget to check out the BIST calendar or all types of events.
Exercise and Essential Oils
