March is Brain Health Awareness Month
Brain Health Awareness Month is a month to remind people to take care of their brains.
Occupational Therapists provide holistic client-centred therapy that considers the person’s physical, cognitive and emotional strengths and challenges, empowering them to live a healthy lifestyle.
We cannot talk about a healthy lifestyle without talking about our brains.
The brain is an integral part of our health, as the brain controls everything in our bodies, from physical ability to cognition to emotions. We rely on our brains for learning, moving, working, making decision, and even doing simple activities, such as watching TV!
In fact, brain injury is the number one killer and disabler of children and adults under the age of 45. In British Columbia alone, “…between 21 and 38 individuals sustain brain injury each day…” -Health Canada, 2007.
It’s important to prevent brain injuries and to do things to maintain a healthy brain for a good quality of life.
Keeping a healthy brain
Taking care of your brain can be simple and involves having healthy habits. Here are some ideas to keep a healthy brain:
- Eat nutritious food: avoid highly processed foods, and give preference to vegetables, fruits, whole grain foods, organic and protein foods. Canada’s Food Guide is a useful source of information for healthy eating.
- Exercise regularly: physical activity improves blood flow and can help you think, learn, problem-solve, and enjoy an emotional balance. Studies suggest that a simple exercise, like walking, can help increase creativity.
- Sleep well: sleeping 7-8 hours a day helps our brain reorganize and recover.
- Learn new things: when we learn new things, the brain creates new pathways, keeping it active and healthy!
- Be creative: creative activities such as reading, writing, making puzzles, playing a musical instrument, singing, and creating art and crafts are fun ways to keep the brain active.
- Reduce stress: stress can prematurely age the brain. Take steps to reduce stress in your life such as using relaxation techniques, deep breathing, positive thinking, meditation/praying, visualization, and enjoying nature.
- Stay socially connected: staying connected socially helps you stay connected mentally. Research shows that regularly interacting with others may help reduce your risk of developing dementia.
- Wear helmets: when playing sports that involve moving quickly or using a ball or a puck. Falls are the leading cause of brain injury, followed by striking or being struck by an object.
- Wear PPE at work: a hard hat and other protective equipment can prevent a brain injury at physically active jobs.
Our therapists have experience with brain injury
Our therapists have experience helping clients with brain injury to live their best lives. We continuously help WSBC, ICBC, third-party insurer, and private-pay clients with brain injury.
If you or someone you know had a concussion or a traumatic brain injury, contact us today.
Email: referrals@ot-works.com
Phone: 604.696.1066 ext. 1000.
Read more about brain health:
- Brain-healthy tips to reduce your risk of dementia by the Alzheimer Society.
- Healthy Brain by Brainstreams
- What can you do to keep your brain healthy, an animated video by Trinity Brain Health.
(Photo by EKATERINA BOLOVTSOVA: https://www.pexels.com/photo/paperclip-in-a-shape-of-a-light-bulb-and-a-rubber-eraser-in-a-shape-of-a-brain-6193936/)
October 20 is Purple Thursday
Brain Injury Canada is supporting a new initiative from the Canadian Royale Purple Society – Purple Thursday.
On October 20, 2022, the Canadian Royal Purple Society is asking Canadians to wear purple to raise awareness of the intersection of intimate partner violence (IPV) and brain injury.
Information about IPV & brain injury
According to the World Health Organization, one in three women will experience intimate partner violence in her lifetime. Most may also suffer one or more brain injuries as a result, since IPV often involves blows to the face, head, and neck. Brain injury in IPV can also happen from a loss of oxygen to the brain caused by strangulation. Often times, these injuries result from repetitive episodes of IPV occurring over many months or years.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) tends to happen behind closed doors, and there may not be signs obvious to people outside the household. Brain injury is often just as invisible, causing lifelong symptoms and challenges, but with no outward signs of disability. Clinicians may also not ask about intimate partner violence in their practice.
IPV is also extremely underreported. This happens for a variety of reasons, including:
• Shame and stigma associated with IPV;
• Fear of not being believed;
• Desire to keep the family together, and;
• A lack of recognition as to what constitutes abuse, causing victims to think it’s normal
Support for survivors
The following are some available supports for individuals who may need it.
• Shelter Safe – an online resource to help women and their children seeking safety from violence and abuse
• Women’s Shelters Canada – Shelters and Transition Houses United to End Violence Against Women
• Advocacy information about intimate partner violence and brain injury in Canada
• Facts about intimate partner violence from the Government of Canada’s Department of Justice
• SOAR’s HELPS Brain Injury Screening Tool
• SOAR’s Moving Ahead: Worker’s Guide to Brain Injury in Intimate Partner Violence
• SOAR’s Moving Ahead: Survivor’s Guide to Brain Injury in Intimate Partner Violence
Resources
• SOAR’s HELPS Brain Injury Screening Tool
• SOAR’s Moving Ahead: Worker’s Guide to Brain Injury in Intimate Partner Violence
• SOAR’s Moving Ahead: Survivor’s Guide to Brain Injury in Intimate Partner Violence
• Brain Injury 101: the ABI toolkit on brain injury caused by intimate partner violence
• Assessing Knowledge of Traumatic Brain Injury Among Intimate Partner Violence Service Providers
• Intimate partner violence and concussion/brain injury
Learn more about #PurpleThursday
https://www.canadianroyalpurplesociety.org/
Contact Us
If you or someone you know is looking for support with brain injury, contact us today.
Email: referrals@ot-works.com
Phone: 604.696.1066 ext. 1000.
Meet Steven, Aman and Maren: Occupational Therapists
Welcome Steven Lin, Aman Ranji and Maren Kristensen to the OT Works! team. They provide community OT services for individuals by implementing daily activities at home, work and in the community in order to foster increased independence. All three of our new therapists are eligible to work on our contracts with WorkSafe BC, ICBC and Veterans Affairs Canada. They also serve private-paying clients and those with extended health/disability insurance.
Steven has been working as an Occupational Therapist for over 13 years. He has successfully treated clients with traumatic brain injuries and traumatic stress disorders. He recognizes that every client has unique strengths and barriers and looks forward to problem-solving with his clients. Steven serves clients in the Metro Vancouver region, including Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, and Surrey.
Aman has a diverse background in physical and mental health and has worked in both private and public settings. He is a Certified Work Capacity Evaluator (CWCE) and enjoys assisting clients as they return to work. He aims to have positive meaningful interactions with each of his clients. Aman also serves clients in the Metro Vancouver region.
Maren has practised occupational therapy for 10 years in both British Columbia and Alberta. She has a passion for working with clients recovering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Adjustment Disorder. She is very experienced with Return-to-Work planning for clients with various injuries. Maren serves the North Shore region, including North Vancouver, West Vancouver and Vancouver.
Like all of our therapists, Steven, Aman and Maren are full registrants and in good standing with the College of Occupational Therapists of British Columbia (COTBC).
Get started with an OT
If you or someone you know could benefit from working with an occupational therapist, contact us today!
Email: referrals@ot-works.com
Phone: 604.696.1066 ext. 1000.
June is Brain Injury Awareness Month
Every day, 60 people in British Columbia experience a brain injury. Acquired brain injuries (ABIs) can greatly affect people’s lives. They can alter thinking, sensations (including touch, taste, light, sound and smell), language and emotions as well as mobility and physical health.
British Columbia recognizes June as Brain Injury Awareness Month. You can access a list of Brain Injury Associations in the province here.
Occupational Therapy and Brain Injury Rehabilitation
Occupational therapists are equipped to positively transform the cognitive, physical and emotional wellbeing of clients who have experienced concussions and other brain injuries. At OT Works! we strive to keep up-to-date with current and emerging research and clinical evidence surrounding acquired brain injuries. Many of our clients with ABIs have returned to the activities that bring them joy through collaboration with our occupational therapists.
For more information on our brain injury services at OT Works!, please visit the links below.
Concussion Management: How Occupational Therapy Makes a Difference
Increased awareness about concussions, including expanding research, demonstrates the need for occupational therapy in concussion management. Concussions result in functional changes that can affect a person’s participation in social, work or household activities. As experts in function, OTs are well-equipped to assist clients with concussions. OT Works! regularly helps insurers at ICBC and WorkSafe BC, as well as other third-party insurance companies, to assist clients as they recover.
What is a concussion?
A concussion can result when impact to the head, or a whiplash movement, causes the brain to move quickly and abruptly. There are a variety of symptoms that can occur including:
- Physical symptoms: headache, nausea, dizziness
- Cognitive symptoms: decreased attention, slowed response time, memory difficulties
- Emotional/behavioural symptoms: irritability, sadness, anxiety
- Sleep-related: increased sleep, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep
There is increasing evidence against the notion that prolonged rest (after the 24-48 hour mark) improves one’s symptoms. In fact, it is important the clients start to gradually return to their activities within the first few days post-injury. The activity level should not bring on or worsen symptoms.
How can an OT help after a concussion?
Occupational therapists support their clients in returning to daily activities gradually and safely. They provide education regarding concussions and explain what a typical recovery looks like. Experiencing a concussion may be alarming to a person with a head injury. OTs can help their clients understand their symptoms and what they can do about them. OTs often review what is can be expected in recovery and provide strategies to return to the things the cleint wants to do.
OTs recognize the unique potential each client possesses. Together, the OT and client can develop an individualized rehabilitation plan. They address the individual client’s concerns and personal goals. For instance, some clients may require gradual exposure to busier environments over a longer period of time if they experience light or sound sensitivity.
OTs also help their clients who have concussions by:
- Reviewing strategies to be active, without overdoing it: energy conservation, pacing and relaxation techniques
- Determining ways to work around or with challenges, ultimately to enable a successful return to work
- Liaising with other healthcare providers and insurers to ensure a timely and thorough rehabilitation
Get started with an OT for concussion management
All of our therapists at OT Works! are certified with the College of Occupational Therapists of British Columbia (COTBC) and have additional training in concussion management. Our approach is based on current concussion science and best practice.
If you or someone you know could benefit from concussion management with an occupational therapist, contact us today!
Email: referrals@ot-works.com
Phone: 604.696.1066 ext. 1000.