One in three Canadians experience dementia. Are you one of them?

Dementia affects people, families, communities and work environments. One in three of us either have dementia, are caring or supporting a person with dementia, or know someone with dementia.

In 2008 there were approximately 19,500 diagnosed cases of dementia in Manitoba. Alarming considering that the average diagnosis takes between four-to-seven years after on-set!

Did you know…

• that the number of diagnosed dementia cases in Manitoba is forecasted to double by 2038 with the advancing ages of baby boomers
• that informal caregivers supplied 9 million dollars in “unpaid” help to people experiencing dementia in 2008 and that this number is expected to reach 22 million by 2038
• that 40 per cent of Canadians aged 55-84 years reported that almost 40 per cent of the “never retired” workers financial plans for retirement were less than adequate (Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS)
• that almost 20 per cent of “never-retired” or “returned to work” employees report problems with memory/cognition

If you have any questions about dementia, supporting someone with a diagnosis, or seeking support for yourself in your caregiving journey, contact the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba.  We are here to help!

Submitted by Maria Mathews of the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba.

* RRC is running a Lunch and Learn series on December 10th on “Alzheimer’s Disease & Dementia: The Realities of Rising Tide & Dementia in the Workplace”.  Learn more about trends in dementia-care, what it means for you, your family and your workplace. Please Register as seating is limited.

Hello. Today I am writing to get everyone involved in a dream I have. I have always wanted to write a book, so I have come up with an idea to get me on my way. I know that everyone at some point in their lives has had dreams and something they wanted in life. I came up with this concept for the book to help me get closer to my dream.

I would like to include you in my dream by asking that you participate with me. I want you to

• take a 4×6 card, paper or photo,
• write your dream on it,
• create it with art, paint, photos, anything you want,
• then mail it to me.

That’s it. It could take as little as 5 minutes or a lunch out with your colleagues. This is all anonymous so I won’t know who sends me what – so feel free to say anything you wish. After I have collected enough dreams I will print them into a hard cover book. Then I will have reached a dream by creating my book. I might look to publish it but that might be another dream. 😉 Have to put the dreams in order.

Join the Facebook group “I dream book” and the event. Any questions feel free to contact me. Pass this to everyone you know. Talk about it. I will also have a kids section so have your kids send me their dreams.

Mail dreams to:

I dream

650 Goulding St.

R3G2S2

Also look up the youtube videos for more inspiration at “I dream” channel satorisound

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM353TQZbXM

Thanks – Mario De Negri

Recently, I listened to a webinar about walkable communities. I thought about my own experiences, about wellness at the college, and what we could do to promote walking and a more walkable campus. Three presenters spoke, and I really enjoyed hearing different perspectives from Sam Schwartz Engineering, the Center for Disease Control (health focus) and America Walks (community engagement).

My biggest take away was exercise improves health. One neat statistic from The Center of Disease Control was that “6 bouts a day of 2-3 minutes of stair climbing improves cholesterol and fitness in college women”.

Now they had my attention – and it got me thinking about my experiences here at the college – and where and how much I walk. The session left me with some neat ideas on how to promote walking, and how we could make the campus more inviting for walking. Some of the ideas I liked were creating a map of outdoor walkable routes, creating walking/running club (which I believe exists). I then thought about walking indoors especially as we head into winter – and walking in the mall or the stair wells.  Wouldn’t it be great to have some fitness information about how many calories I burned or how many steps I took? Could I use a pedometer to help track my success? These and other ideas could be a great part of a regular wellness routine.

So now that I have thought and talked about walking –  how about I just get up and do it! See you in the stairwells.

Seven years ago I moved out to an acreage that has it’s own mini-forest on it.  Since moving there, I’ve spent many hours wandering through the woods, trying to understand the land and the things that live there. When I first began wandering, there were very few trails to be found, and I’d often follow deer tracks or crash blindly through the brush in my boots or snow shoes.

One year I decided to mark the oak trees in order to get my bearings.  I then used these oaks to plan my resting spots and devised a trail system around them. The Bur Oak is a grand tree – able to survive drought and fire, resilent to disease and insects, and a vital food source for  bear, deer, and many other birds and animals.

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Lord of the King’s

It’s a cliché worth repeating: the most precious resource we all have is time.”  Yet it`s also one of the most squandered. And once it’s gone, you don’t get it back. Friends and family are like that. Like time, gifts to savour and enjoy but all too often taken for granted. Time stopped for me today. Actually, it stopped yesterday when I first heard that Peter Komarnicki, a friend, died suddenly and unexpectedly. I paused then, stunned by the news, casting about the office for others who knew him and with whom I could share my grief. I called Mary, his wife, to see how she was doing, completely at a loss for something appropriate, supportive, to say. After hanging up I managed a few more dangling to-dos before giving up and leaving early. Read More →

I walked out of my apartment building this morning and it was so beautiful outside. I couldn’t help but notice the snow sparkles.  I had to show my son the sparkling top layer of the snow.  I have been enjoying so much the morning sunrise.  We are so fortunate to see the sunrise on the way to work!  I am driving and I look at the pink sky.  Yes, there is beauty in winter….that’s for sure.  I don’t forget the fact that I have to scrape the windshield, warm up the car, and put layers of clothes, but as I look at the sunrise and listen to some music on the way to work, my attitude changes and I set a nice tone for my day.

I guess I am trying to talk about inspiration.  Isn’t it inspiration that we are all looking for in our day, in our experiences, and interactions with people?  I know I am.  When I read, I want to read something that moves me.  If I listen to music, I want the music to get to me, I want to feel it.  I am referring to experiences that touch me on a deep level.  At the end of the day, these are the experiences which bring meaning to my life.  Sometimes I think that my life is about connections—with family, friends, and people in general.  My interactions would not be meaningful to me unless I felt connected with my loved ones on a deeper level.  At least this is how I am and I am aware that people are different.  And it is all good.

I don’t know about you, but I know that I was never taught to be gentle to myself, to be kind to myself, to be self-compassionate.  I read an article recently addressing self-compassion and it made me think.  I started asking myself “Do I give myself a break sometimes? Do I beat myself up for my faults?”  Read More →

Check out this fantastic little video on the flower by Andrew Zuckerman.  A mesmerizing piece of musical art.

http://vimeo.com/49613978

Here’s a little snippet from his bio on the Vimeo site:

Noted filmmaker and photographer, Andrew Zuckerman, utilizes a multitude of platforms to produce work that is systematically executed, conceptually based, and democratically presented. Minimalist in nature, Zuckerman aims to create atmospheres of clarity and neutrality to facilitate the viewer’s access to the material. His commitment to diversifying the points of entry into his work has garnered a global audience.

As my first foray into the world of blog as the Manager for Health Services, I thought it would be appropriate to address the annual question of why we need a flu shot every year.

I found a short video (Influenza Get the (Antigenic) Drift) on what happens to a flu season type virus and why it is important to get the flu shot every year.

We all play a part in protecting ourselves and each other from Influenza. This is more than  winter or fall colds and sniffles, it is a serious illness.

For those of you who are vegetarian, here is a vegetarian chili which is yummy:

Ingredients:

Makes 8 servings:

1 table spoon of olive oil

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons dried oregano

1 tablespoon salt

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 green bell peppers, chopped

2 jalapeno peppers, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 (4 ounce) cans chopped green chile peppers, drained

2 (12 ounce) packages vegetarian burger crumbles

3 (28 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes, crushed

1/4 cup chili powder

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained

1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained

1 (15 ounce) can black beans

1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and season with bay leaves, cumin, oregano, and salt. Cook and stir until onion is tender, then mix in the celery, green bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, garlic, and green chile peppers. When vegetables are heated through, mix in the vegetarian burger crumbles. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 5 minutes.
2. Mix the tomatoes into the pot. Season chili with chili powder and pepper. Stir in the kidney beans, garbanzo beans, and black beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer 45 minutes. Stir in the corn, and continue cooking 5 minutes before serving.

(#22 bus-loop, Rouge Road)  Steve Jobs once said, “It’s really clear that the most precious resource we all have is time.”  I tend to agree. So the thought of extracting at least 40 minutes of it twice a day from now until spring is very satisfying. Every year the first snow pushes me off my 28″ bike and onto a #22 bus for daily commutes, my trusty MacBook on my lap (Mr. Jobs would approve). No windshield scraping, no squinting through that narrow slit above the dash with the wipers and defrost on high until I can finally see beyond the hood. No, as I let Transit Tom do the driving, my precious time is much better spent on other things. Read on.

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