Family Health, Wellness and Advocacy - Thrifty Mommas Tips

How to Handle FASD and Running

Paula — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 20:58:20 +0000

From the moment my youngest child started moving, they were a runner. The kid ran everywhere. in fact, we used to joke that this child ran before they walked, which was pretty accurate and slightly comical, until they started running away. For them, FASD, Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, and running went hand in hand. What is Elopement? Elopement is basically when kids with some neurological conditions leave or run away from wherever they currently are. That can be school, home, the mall, the park or any other spot. For some reason their fight or flight reaction is activated and flight kicks in and they run away. That’s basically synonymous with FASD (fetal alcohol spectrum disorder). Fasd and runners or FASD and running are a common combination. The flight sense is heightened and any perceived threat could activate it. Now, couple that with a complete lack of impulse control and it made for lot of terrifying moments as a parent. FYI, you will also find this same behaviour sometimes in seniors with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. My youngest went through this stage for years in elementary school. Our FASD and Running Experience Once they left school entirely for a couple of hours. I had been out with my Mom helping her buy a few things at the local Sears Outlet store. My mom had Alzheimer’s disease in the last few years of her life and that meant she needed some support in the community as well. Luckily I was available to help her. Not so luckily that day though, I had to race my Mom back to her retirement home while I sped over to the school to ask school administration why they had not had a closer eye on my child. Running away is not an uncommon scenario for kids with neurological differences. Thankfully, this has actually stopped. To this day I’m not sure why or how it stopped. But it did. This behaviour started when my youngest child was little actually and then it stopped for years because they were always supervised act school and at home. Medication for ADHD and impulse control helped too. Then this began again around 12 years old. It lasted until about 15. Does it Ever Stop? Now my youth with FASD is a young adult. Around 15 years old the running away stopped. Why? Well,I think three things worked here for us: anger therapy. I finally found a therapist who talked to them weekly and we started with a youth group for kids with FASD ( huge impact for my teen with FASD). Recently my kiddo said knowing that a friend, who I will call Tammy (not her real name) also gets it and understands FASD is everything. “We are best friends. Nobody else gets it.” Our Old Routine Before that though, we followed them every time. It was dead exhausting. Once I called police and they were amazing here. They sent two female police officers who calmed everyone down and I think it actually shocked the heck out of my kiddo. They were kind and said to my 15 year old at that time “you simply can’t do this. It’s not safe for anyone.” I don’t think the words mattered so much as the shock that I’d called the police. Anyways, I’m so sorry. If you have a runner, that experience is hellish. If you are in this situation then I hope that you find help soon. Here’s what we did to help cope with the FASD and running. The Elopement Plan FASD and Runners go hand in hand often due to the lack of impulse control and also the anger, the inability to regulate emotions and control situations. Knowing what to do before it happens goes a long way towards managing the situation. Good Luck and reach out if you have any questions.

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What to Do if Your Child Needs Glasses

Paula — Fri, 24 May 2024 01:39:28 +0000

Though today’s modern digital age has its perks, it’s also posing unprecedented risks to our eyesight. On average, Canadians spend 3.2 hours a day looking at screens. During this time, they blink less, reducing moisture and causing dry eye syndrome. Though this is easily fixed by using artificial tears, taking screen breaks, and blinking more, the impacts of device use are more apparent among kids than adults. Looking at gadgets up close forces the eye to accommodate close-up vision, elongating the eyeballs and causing myopia (nearsightedness). Eyesight Changes Kids usually adjust to eyesight changes and may not tell you about them, so you might not know immediately. However, you can look for signs like them squinting, following words with a finger when reading, rubbing their eyes, or holding something too close to see it. All these things indicate your child may need glasses. If you’ve observed these symptoms and are wondering what to do next, here’s what you can do. Explain What’s Going On Your child should understand what’s happening with their eyes. If you’ve noticed the above symptoms, take them aside, ask about any pain or discomfort they’re experiencing, and link those symptoms to eye issues. Tell them how refractive errors like myopia occur in age appropriate language. Emphasize that vision changes can worsen, and treating them will eliminate symptoms like headaches. Along the way, answer their questions. Making time to explain what’s going on will demystify vision issues, make them less scary, and empower your child to take the initiative when it comes to eye health. They’re more likely to be on board for things like eye exams and wearing eyeglasses, which will make it easier for you to safeguard their vision. Get Their Eyes Checked Once your child is in the right headspace to get an official diagnosis, consult an optometrist. Booking a comprehensive test outside those provided in school can more effectively detect vision issues so you can treat them early. These should be easy to access: in Ontario, for example, eye exams are free for those aged 19 and under with an OHIP card. Give your kid agency by ensuring they’re comfortable with the professional you visit. If they’re diagnosed with an eye issue, they will most likely be asked to wear prescription glasses. Encourage them to take charge of their health by asking the optometrist questions about this after the exam. That will help them better understand their eye health, what’s at stake, and why wearing glasses is crucial to address any issues. Buy the Glasses When selecting your kid’s specs, make sure they fit comfortably and are made of durable frame and lens materials like polycarbonate. They’re also more likely to wear a pair they love, so let them choose what they want to wear. For example, they can nab eyewear similar to those worn by their favourite celebrities or fictional characters. If they like pop culture icons like Tom Cruise and Harry Potter, have them look at Ray-Ban’s kid’s catalog. It includes eyeglasses like the Round Double Bridge Kids and the kid’s version of the popular Aviators, which can emulate those worn by their heroes. They can also opt for pairs with fun and colorful designs by turning to brands like Ocean Pacific. Its collections boast funky, flexible frames, with models like the OP 843 and 844 coming in fun shades like blueberry and grape. Give Them Support Even if you equip them with all the knowledge and aids they need, your child or children may still have a hard time adjusting to glasses. You’ll thus want to support them as much as you can. One thing you can do is shower praise. Tell them how good their new glasses look on them or point out things they can see that they wouldn’t have noticed without vision correction. This positive aspect of parenting can help them build healthier habits, like wearing eyeglasses more often. You can also model good behaviour by wearing glasses yourself if you don’t already. Kids often mimic their parents’ behavior, and this step can help normalize wearing specs and make their adjustment period easier. Finally, be open to their concerns. If they still experience things like headaches a couple of weeks after getting new specs, they may have the wrong prescription and might need another exam to update it. More Kids Experiencing Vision Issues More kids are experiencing vision issues, and yours may be among them. If your child needs glasses, the above tips can prevent their eye conditions from progressing over time—helping them maintain their eyesight into adulthood.

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4 Easy Ways to Save Money on Your Next Pair of Contact Lenses

Paula — Mon, 04 Dec 2023 01:31:57 +0000

While eyeglasses are more common as a corrective tool, many individuals opt for contact lenses for multiple reasons. One of the most prominent is how they provide more natural vision from all angles, as they sit right on the eyeballs. Aside from this, contacts have the advantage of being without frames, which means they don’t block the peripheral vision, and they are less likely to be affected by surroundings. This means they’re not as prone to falling out, and they’re not at risk of smudging or fogging up. Given the above, contact lenses are an essential expense for many people who rely on them for clear, unencumbered vision. More specifically, a Global Newswire post states over 125 million people worldwide use contact lenses regularly. Nevertheless, the cost of contact lenses can add up over time, making it important to find ways to save money on this necessary purchase without sacrificing quality or comfort. By making several considerations and smart choices, it is possible to reduce the overall cost of contact lenses. As such, below are some ways to save money on your next contact lenses. Order Contacts Online One way to save a considerable amount of money on contact lenses is by ordering online. Online retailers often offer lower prices than physical stores since they do not have the same overhead costs, such as rent, utilities, and staff salaries. Ordering contact lenses online also eliminates the need to travel, which ultimately reduces both the time and money you shell out. Furthermore, buying online allows individuals to compare prices and products from a variety of retailers easily. With a few taps on a device, consumers can easily find, compare, and buy contact lenses online without the need to make trips to multiple physical stores. Clearly is one such reputable online store that carries many different types of lenses, such as the Acuvue Oasys disposable lenses, which also come specialised for users with astigmatism. They also regularly offer 5% to 20% off discounts and during events such as Black Friday. This level of convenience and accessibility will not only lead to significant savings but can also help consumers make more informed decisions regarding their purchases. Buy in Bulk For contact lens wearers who prefer disposable lenses or “dailies,” one of the best ways to save money is to buy multiple boxes of contact lenses at once. While this may seem expensive upfront, it can actually save you a lot of money in the long run. This is because shops tend to give larger discounts to those who buy contact lenses in bulk due to various reasons such as reduction in waste, packaging costs, and transport miles. By purchasing a six-month or one-year supply of lenses, you can take advantage of bulk pricing and rebates, as there is likely to be a cost reduction per box or an overall purchase discount. Providers like Contacts Direct offer up to $100 off on annual supplies of many brands, such as Dailies Total 1, which can also be bought as specialised multifocal lenses. Additionally, some retailers offer free shipping for bulk orders and orders that reach a certain minimum amount, further increasing the potential for savings. Observe Proper Maintenance On the other hand, for those who use reusable lenses, proper maintenance, including correct sanitation and storage, is crucial both for saving money and for your eye health. Most reusable lenses can last for up to one year. However, improper handling of contact lenses can lead to faster degradation and potential contamination. Lens contamination can cause infections like bacterial pink eye, which can lead to serious eye damage. One of the most critical aspects of maintenance is choosing a suitable lens solution. It is essential to use solutions from pharmacies or those recommended by your ophthalmologist and to ensure that they are not expired. Some of the most popular today are OPTI-FREE and CooperVision. Additionally, the lens case should be regularly cleaned. The process of cleaning should be done after every use by rinsing the case with the solution and leaving it to air dry. On top of this, it is recommended to replace the lens case every three months to prevent bacteria build-up. Overall, proper maintenance of reusable lenses will result in lower risk and less frequent replacement, ultimately saving a lot of money. Understand Your Insurance Selecting the best type of insurance is another way to save on contact lenses. Insurance coverage varies widely depending on the provider and specific plan. Some may have more comprehensive coverage for eye care and provide better benefits for corrective eyewear compared to others, which is why it is essential for individuals to review their insurance plans carefully. Some of the ways in which insurance plans help save money on contact lenses include covering costs for comprehensive eye exams. Through this, individuals can better ensure the health of their vision and avoid constantly changing their prescriptions. In addition to this, insurance can also help offset the cost of corrective eyewear, including contact lenses themselves. Many coverage plans make a noticeable difference and can be extra beneficial for those who need more expensive specialised lenses, such as toric lenses for astigmatism or multifocal lenses for presbyopia.

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Take the 30-Day Mindfulness Challenge Now!

Paula — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 11:26:00 +0000

Time for a mindfulness challenge! No better time than the present. At least, that’s my current philosophy. So, some of you probably know that mindfulness here is an ongoing battle. Or, should I say has been an ongoing issue. Ironically, or curiously, I think that I have actually achieved more mindfulness during the pandemic than ever before. My Previous Experience One year I made mindfulness my word of the year and it was the worst word of the year experience that I had ever had. That’s right. I have successfully chosen a word of the year for many years but could not make that one work. My mind wandered too much to remain mindful. Did it Take a Lockdown? Maybe, it took a lockdown and a pandemic to make mindfulness possible for me. Whatever the cause, I am now better at recognizing the moments and being present here, for the most part. This past 11 months have often been about maintaining good mental health, because we have been assaulted daily with remote learning and the stress of trying to figure out how to pay the bills and maintain a business while also supporting two teens with mental health challenges and anxiety disorder. Mindfulness for me is about self care and maintaining good mental and physical health routines. Because I am loving challenges this year, I am sharing this 30-day mindfulness challenge. Join me this month, Heart Health Awareness Month to take charge of your mental and physical health. This year I promise to take a few moments every day to stop, inhale, pause and change my thinking so that I am mindful. I’ll change my inner dialogue daily. I’ve already started. I stopped and practiced mindfulness. Last year I succeeded in adding gratitude to my daily, well sometimes weekly practice and routine. When I wake up, I set intentions and I strive to show gratitude in some way. Oddly, a trip to The Hive in Durham in February 2020 helped me to solidify that as part of my day. Quite simply, I now tell myself: I am here right now, alive. My family loves and supports me. I have a wonderful husband and I love what I do. And, when it comes to gratitude I wake up and remind myself another day is a gift, and the smallest of things that we take for granted are worth celebrating. Download my Mindfulness Challenge Here – > If you liked this one, then you might consider checking this 30-day health and wellness challenge out too. And finally, the 30-day decluttering challenge!

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My 2021 Word of the Year, Finally

Paula — Sun, 31 Jan 2021 18:47:55 +0000

“I took a deep breath and listened to the old bray of my heart: I am, I am, I am.” ~ Sylvia Plath Sylvia knew. Post may contain affiliate links as a service to readers. I receive a small commission from purchases made via qualifying links. Words This year, it has taken me exactly a month to find my 2021 word of the year. Why? Well, I wasn’t convinced I’d bother to choose a word of the year. Wasn’t it a ridiculous assumption to make that a year would bend to meet the shape of a word. I mean after 2020, haven’t we all seen that life is nothing if not unpredictable? And yet the concept kept working away at the back of my brain. Should I have a word? Should I ditch my tradition or start a new one? Pros and Cons In the past, I have found that choosing a word of the year has given me a goal to work towards. One year – the year that I choose mindfulness, my word was not a success. Mindfulness turned out to be a much harder state to achieve than I had originally anticipated. However, the years I chose health and reach and growth were all successful years. Is it risky to choose a word every year and commit to a resolution or a focus? Sure, absolutely it is and sometimes you fail, but at least you tried. A Year Like No Other Although I have in fact chosen a word of the year ever since 2014, this year was not like the others. Last year, I chose a word and I have looked back on it a few times and thought why did I bother? Burt, I am sure that many people were precisely in the same boat in 2020. Recently, I was hunting for quotes to caption an Instagram post and I found this one above from Sylvia Plath about breath and breathing. While Plath was an author known for going mad and writing an exceptionally gorgeous memoir about it, I thought it summed up my 2021 word of the year philosophy. Aren’t we all feeling a little bit off kilter, off-balance under water some days right now? I know I am still. FYI – this is my yoga mat. I’ve used several and this is my favourite because it is thicker than the usual yoga mats. Buy one here – > Gaiam Yoga Mat 6 MM. Lockdown Life Wasn’t the world supposed to magically be healed and promising in 2021? And yet, numbers are erratic, stay at a home Amber Alert messages gave many of us a start in Ontario recently and mental health issues are growing as the days mount. So many days we all struggle. We are trying to ignore the huge wrench that has been thrown in ski season. I refuse to give up and I am holding out hope for even a couple of ski days at some point WHEN numbers go down. But, if you know me at all then you know I yoga. I boot camp and group fit, pilates, Centergy and walk. So for now while all of that is chaos and cancelled I breathe through the yoga. My 2019 word of the year was REACH. The Breath Challenge Every morning so far of this year, I’ve been doing a 30-day Breath challenge with Yoga with Adrienne and I am nearing the end of that fitness challenge. Yoga with Adrienne and Yoga with Kassandra as well as Blogilates are favourites of mine. In fact, I shared my favourite online fitness classes here a few months ago. Why I Move When we adopted our younger daughter, a child who would eventually be diagnosed with FASD (fetal alcohol spectrum disorder) I started doing yoga for me, for self care. So, it has become a staple and a consistent part of my life. When Covid hit and gyms closed the first time, I pivoted to online workout instructors and classes. Ironically, or perhaps insightfully, my 2020 word of the year was clarity and positivity. I’d be a huge liar if I said that I didn’t struggle with staying positive during a pandemic. In fact, I felt flat out overwhelmed and overly sad and maybe even depressed as trips were cancelled one by one and then school closed down. Of course 2020 year was hard, but there are also things that I am proud of from our pandemic year. How To Approach Each New Year? What do you believe in or measure every year? Is there a moment at the start of the year where you say to yourself: This year I resolve to read more? Or This Year I Will Drink More Water? Keep Moving This gets me moving forward towards the challenges of the day. Breath and breathing. Just a week ago I got an Apple Watch. It is my first smart watch and it is life changing. The fitness apps are rocking my world and I love that it prompts me occasionally to stand or move or breathe. So, this week it hit me that’s my 2021 word of the year – breath and breathe. For some odd reason breath and breathing and control of breath during yoga has always been hard for me. The 2021 30-day challenge with Adrienne has helped me to recognize and breathe with purpose during exercise sessions, so I will keep working on that. Word of the Year or Resolution? Whatever your thing – Word of the Year, Vision Board, Resolution – when the intention is about self improvement and even sometimes making the world a better place, then I am all about that. I wish you success, love and strength in this year ahead. What I Can Control Right now, I might not control much but I can control this. Breath and breathing. Just this week it hit me that this is my 2021 word of the year – my goal and my mantra: breath, breathe. Just breathe.

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Five Chronic Illness Lessons I Have Learned.

Paula — Tue, 19 Jan 2021 11:08:00 +0000

Lately I have been thinking a lot about how having a childhood illness shaped me, as a person, as a teen and an adult. I’ve asked myself often what, if any chronic illness lessons, I got out of that experience. Some of you know I have Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disease, also now thought to be an autoimmune disease, without a known cause or cure. I was diagnosed at 14 after a period of months when pounds melted off my frame faster than you can even imagine. My abdomen hurt all of the time, as in so much cramping that I thought I would pass out. Sometimes I still get that pain, which comes out of nowhere and blindsides me. Crohn’s Disease Symptoms There were more symptoms of course, like chronic diarrhea, bloody stools and vomiting. Weight loss, exhaustion. Inability to eat. Anemia, cramps and more. There is nothing pretty about Crohn’s disease, not that any disease is pretty, but bowel disease can be particularly gross. The year of my diagnosis I spent a zillion hours in bathrooms all over Guelph, Toronto, Collingwood and Wasaga Beach. Then I spent weeks in and out of hospitals and emergency rooms. Here’s How Crohn’s disease Changed Me Listen, having Crohn’s sucks. There’s no need to mince words. Missing weeks of school and being in hospital a dozen times in your teens is not fun. Nor is it a path anyone would choose on purpose. There’s nothing redeeming about having your body opened up over ten times to remove bits, like large sections of gut, repeatedly. Also, it feels awful missing out on life when you are too sick to be out of hospital or out working. Missing school and being in hospital for birthdays, Christmases and other holidays is a hard pill to swallow. Relearning Reconfiguring all the systems so that you can walk and eat and function again outside a hospital. Relearning how to do everything and stopping and starting school, or jobs over and over, sucks, period. Society has a lot more to do in order to build equality and support for people with disabilities. But I think that’s another post entirely. It is dead exhausting and it hurts, both physically and mentally. But at the same time, now two decades after all of the surgeries and diagnosis, I have enough distance from that initial round of brutal treatment and surgery to recognize how this changed me dramatically as a human. Five Chronic Illness Lessons Resilience Having Crohn’s oddly shaped me into a resilient person. How did it do that? How did having a chronic incurable illness make me resilient? In a nutshell, I know I am a survivor. Listen, when your abdomen has been opened up and parts removed and you are expected to stand the next day and walk around the room so your body begins to heal, or you need to resume eating after your gut has been attacking you internally for months, and you do it, you know you have got this. Acute flares of Crohn’s followed by long hospital stays and seemingly barbaric treatments, simply showed me I was resilient. Maybe that was the lesson. Bright Side Somehow, I still always look for the bright side. If I didn’t, I’d wallow in self pity and pain far too many days. So, there is a bright side, in my opinion, to this story. But here’s the thing. Lately, when I pause to reflect on how that experience shaped my life I think well there was some good that came out of that pain and this horrible digestive disease. And there’s typically always a positive. You might need to dig for it, but it’s there. I’m an Advocate I didn’t have a voice for years in the health care system as a child. Instead, I blindly accepted what doctors told me. Now, I know the questions to ask and how to ask them. In fact, I found my voice late in my journey. While I’d love to tell you it was some big internal aha moment, it was actually a new young surgeon who spoke to me as an equal in my mid to late 20s and engaged me as a patient. That simple approach pulled me out of the passive state. Sometimes it makes me nuts thinking how many doctors and surgeons were completely ableist and patronizing prior to that one experience. By the way, he still practices here in London Ontario. His patients are blessed to have him. The Lesson The chronic illness lesson there was speak up, educate yourself on your condition or illness and ask the right questions. Don’t be afraid to seek second opinions and ask about the medication side effects. As so many people on TikTok say: You ARE THE MAIN CHARACTER. Adoption I adopted my children and likely wouldn’t have otherwise. Had I not struggled with a chronic illness, pain and Crohn’s disease, I probably never would have sought out domestic adoption as the means to becoming a parent. True story. Adoption is such a rewarding way to start a family, but it is also often not the standard or first choice. The love I have for my family is immense and overwhelming and I would never ever change my family. My kids are amazing and they teach me new facts and skills every single day. The adoption community I have found is such an incredibly supportive and diverse resourceful group of parents. So very grateful that my path led us here. I wrote about Parenting and Crohn’s disease for CBC Parents in early 2020. Read that post here – > https://www.cbc.ca/parents/learning/view/im-a-parent-with-crohns-disease-heres-how-thats-worked-out-for-me Strength This could be related to optimism and resilience, but it is a lesson that I hold close. I know I am strong. There’s little else that matters really. Like, for instance, I can do hard things. Physically, I know I am capable of doing the heavy emotional lifting even in times of crisis and that I will get through whatever comes my way. Life is All About Learning Every person, every experience, is a lesson or a gift. While it might not seem like it at the time and it’s often excruciatingly hard to fight your way through the dark times, having a childhood illness can sometimes just show you who you are. That’s a huge gift, especially when so many others spend lifetimes trying to explore that very concept.

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30 Day Health and Wellness Challenge and Printable

Paula — Wed, 23 Dec 2020 19:29:40 +0000

Well here we go again! Lockdown threatens to disrupt any progress on my fitness routine. But hopefully not for long. That’s why I am sharing this 30-day health and wellness challenge. Make a Commitment to Health & Wellness I have done my best to maintain a health and wellness schedule for years now. It’s part of my life and I need that as a parent and as someone who has chronic pain and Crohn’s disease. Working out to maintain health and wellness is not an option for me. So, from the start of the pandemic to today, I have been seizing all of the opportunities to get fit. Getting and Staying Fit in a Pandemic We have been walking almost every day in all sorts of weather. The kids, in between lockdowns, have been doing martial arts. I have been going to the YMCA again several times a week because I need that. For me, working out and staying fit is not an option. While I am constantly trying to convey that to my kids and my family, it’s not always easy. For us, mental health is inextricably tied to physical health. But for teens it often takes a whole lot of convincing and cajoling. There’s always room for improvement. Everyone Loves a Challenge This time of year everyone loves a challenge and during the new year so many of us are typically all about getting back to the gym. But, wait, there’s a lockdown, so how on earth can you stay fit even when everything is closed and the gyms are not open? Well, walking isn’t ruled out and neither are the virtual workouts that you did during the first lockdown. The first lockdown. Can you imagine that we even are saying these words? Anyways, this 30 day fitness, health and wellness challenge can work well especially right now because you don’t need a lot of tools or extras. Heck you don’t even need a gym to do this exercise in. This 30-day health and wellness challenge probably works best if you launch it at the start of a month. But, if you aren’t quite as literal as I am at times then start any old time. I am ready to go now and will happily do this with anyone here. What I Love About This Challenge… Anyone anywhere can do this easily outside and at home. You don’t need much space or much time. The workouts revolve around a combination of walks, squats, meditation and even rest days. That’s right, rest days. In fact, I find I often do better at challenges and workouts when there are rest days built in on occasion. How to Get This Printable Health and Wellness Challenge This is a super simple download. Just click on the link below and print it out for future reference. Do you have any fitness plans or have you consistently been working out at home throughout the entire pandemic? Hit or miss? No worries. It’s all good. Just take care of yourself and be kind. These days, it seems increasingly hard for people to give themselves grace. This is the kind of thing that works for me, which is not to say that it will absolutely be the BEE’s Knees for you. I aim to help by occasionally sharing tools like this for you all to use and share with your families. Don’t Miss These Much Love and Stay Well! Do return and leave a comment if you use this!

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The Simple Art of Walking

Paula — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 14:17:00 +0000

Or How I Don’t Want Your Pity Walk Became Let Me Get a Sweater and My Shoes) With gyms closed for much of the past year, I have discovered the value of the simple art of walking. We walk in all the weather, sometimes alone but often together. That’s been a highlight of this year actually. Walking. Discovering the art of walking has been an unexpected positive in a year too full of negatives. The Art of Walking It started as a way to get the kids moving and a means for me to get my steps in for the day. Way back in March, when the pandemic was new and kids were still adjusting, my youngest was reluctant to do anything. She was (as is often her default state) pissed off at the world. I Don’t Want Your Pity Walk Her anger got the best of her that day. We can all still recall the day I drove both of my daughters to Fanshawe Conservation Area, and she refused to leave the van yelling: “I don’t want your pity walk.” And she didn’t join us to walk that day. But Payton and I continued. WE walked and let her sit inside the van to calm down. Sometimes everyone needs a little space. Disappointment Takes Time It was the week that we learned the border was closed and our annual Vermont ski trip, was postponed until December (well here we are in December and yet the world is not yet safe for travel, but that’s another story.) And we were all upset and disappointed and a bit angry, but trying not to show it. And Eventually She Joined Us Too We continued several times a week. Some days, that was us joking and laughing as we walk. Occasionally it was, or is someone griping and complaining all the way about how cold it is, but still we go frequently together. And Yet… In a span of a few months angry, disappointed and reluctant finally became let me grab my sweater or my coat, or to be honest occasionally, let me throw on some pants. LOL. How We Went From NO WAY to Wait for Me Last week, my younger girl, the prickly I don’t want your pity walk teen, couldn’t wait to get going after dinner, every single night. There are a few good things about 2020 for my family. Learning the art of walking has been one of my favourite parts of this questionable year. One is that I continue to get more steps in than I did the year before. The outdoors is my gym now and it has been for months. That’s not a bad thing. I have genuinely enjoyed finding all of the trails and paths in my neighbourhood and at times I have also done my best to vary up the routine, adding jogging, running or just exploring to my walk. More often than not, my kids come with me for our walks. Some days they bicker endlessly as siblings often do, and other days they have me doubled over laughing so hard at the absurd jokes and silly things they do. As many of you know my kids have some mental health issues and anxiety is high on that list. The pandemic made that worse a lot of days. Our Mental Health Routine Our routine for supporting mental health has always been modelling that exercise, food, water and sleep are not negotiable. It pays off, and as hard as it is to get your winter coat, boots, scarf and mittens out some days, it is also important to do so. Every single time we walk we end up feeling better when we come back to our home, where school and work are currently. Our Serotonin Fix My oldest girl calls it her serotonin fix for the day, mostly because we usually see either a small child out walking or trying to figure out a bicycle, or we see neighbourhood dogs that we end up petting. There’s a tiny miniature Morkie we adore and have come to know and a sweet little toddler who once ran right into our garage as we were leaving for our walk. There’s so much value in celebrating the small stuff and of course there’s merit in moving. Laughter and Love Reflecting on 2020, and what has gotten us through the year, I can’t help but think of these nightly walks as a highlight. We talk to more neighbours; we know the names of most of the dogs in our neighbourhood and sometimes we laugh until our sides hurt. I’d Rather Be Here While we would absolutely still rather be skiing in the mountains in Vermont right now, we at least have our walks and mastering the art of walking has been a highlight of this challenging year. Disappointment and Moving On We’ve all dealt with a lot of disappointment this year, and I am certainly not minimizing that in any way. We dealt with a lot of anger and stress at the beginning of the pandemic when I scrambled to plug in supports for my younger daughter, who seemed depressed. And my older girl recently was also struggling. We’ve since found a virtual therapist for her too. Magic in the Moments At Hand Even more reason to keep moving. The art of walking means that sometimes you also find joy where you didn’t expect to. If we hadn’t timed it precisely right one night we would never have seen the beaver working away underneath the bridge we were standing on and if we hadn’t stopped to watch him, then we wouldn’t have seen the two deer bolt out of the bushes. Magic. Other nights we have seen numerous storks, herons and so many fireflies. Morning or Night WE walk in the mornings and sometimes at night. And we walk through snow, rain and heat. Often, we chase the constellations staring at the sky and naming them with an app in our hands to help. It Might Not Be… It might not be Vermont, Quebec, Ireland, Gulf Shores or even Ottawa but it could be one day. Right now, the art of walking is keeping us all sane, sometimes connected, and even mentally fit. A Different Path There’s also a point I am making every day by walking. It clears my head and gets my body started and also it’s a little bit about finding resilience and showing my kids you take the punches and keep on rolling. Life isn’t always going to roll out the red carpet at your feet. Sometimes you have to grab your boots, your coat, create a different pathway and just get walking.

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Don’t Let This Rare Eye Disorder Go Undiagnosed

Paula — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 16:37:00 +0000

“This VKC blog is sponsored and supported by Santen Canada Inc.” A rare allergic eye disorder affecting children and adolescents is often missed by parents and can cause lasting damage. VKC, vernal keratoconjunctivitis, usually strikes during main allergy seasons, but it can also be present all year round. VKC is a relatively rare disorder. Public awareness is very low,” says Dr. Michael O’Connor, Pediatric Ophthalmologist at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO in Ottawa), and Past-President of the Canadian Association of Paediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (CAPOS). Common Symptoms of This Eye Disorder With a range of symptoms that mimic allergies and pink eye, VKC can easily be overlooked, but there are a few reasons parents need to understand what this eye disorder looks like and what to do if you suspect your child or youth might have Vernal Keratoconjunctivitis. Frequent Misdiagnosis Itching, burning, red, watery eyes and discharge. Any of these symptoms can lead parents and educators to assume the culprit is either pink eye or simple allergies. But here’s the thing: VKC, when it goes undiagnosed can cause scarring and pain. This childhood eye disorder can also lead to quality of life issues that might surprise you. The prevalence of VKC is hard to pinpoint, says Dr. O’Connor. “So many cases go undiagnosed.” This eye disorder mostly occurs in children. Why? Well, there’s a change in your immune system as you become an adult, which means you are less susceptible to VKC as an adult. What Parents Need to Know If what looks like pink eye or seasonal allergies with painful, itchy and watery eyes evolves into sensitivity to light, you might have something to be concerned about. The sensitivity to the light can mean that there are changes to the cornea – the transparent central surface of the eye. Visible bumps may show up on the white part of the eye or underside of upper eyelid. Those bumps do not occur with allergies or conjunctivitis Some people have symptoms that don’t follow the seasons. How It Differs From Pink Eye Pink eye can be viral conjunctivitis or bacterial conjunctivitis and while there might be some mild light sensitivity with this condition, it’s when it is prolonged sensitivity to light that suggests something else is going on. Bacterial pink eye should not involve the cornea. Even with pink eye kids should be able to open their eyes in normal light. As is often the case with kids, sometimes these things sneak up slowly and chronically. Physical symptoms can result in behaviours that you simply start to think are part of a child’s personality. “It tends to be normalized inside a family. Oh, that’s just Joey, he doesn’t really like to play outside,” says Dr. O’Connor. Parents might think that their child is just not athletic or interested in going outside when in fact they are avoiding the outdoors and sports because they can’t stand bright light. “Once we get children in treatment, we can often make a dramatic impact.” Treatment Treatment depends on whether the case is mild, moderate, severe or very severe. Mild treatment can be as simple as cold compresses and over the counter lubricating drops. Staying indoors when pollen counts are high might also help with these milder cases. Drops, allergy pills, antihistamines, topical steroids and cyclosporine drops might be used depending on the severity of the case. “Many of these things have generally all been tried before patients come to see me,” says O’Connor. If scarring has not yet occurred, most patients do well with appropriate treatment. Severe and very severe cases are pretty rare. The Age Group Typically, school aged children are the ones you might see VKC in. It’s unusual to find this eye disorder in children under age 4. Eyes are red. The white part of the eye is red. Discharge is ropey, the mucus can be wiped with a tissue. It is not contagious and there’s no specific genetic disposition to VKC. Missing School These kids often miss a lot of school because it is confused with pink eye and schools send kids home if they think they have pink eye because of how contagious it is. Or they might be the child who is seated near the window in the classroom but can’t stand being near the window and nobody can figure out why. They need sunglasses a lot of the time. They really are needing short term accommodation and then they can often function more or less normally, O’Connor says. Lifestyle Changes Another clue parents might not pick up on is avoidance behaviour. Maybe kids can’t tell you that the light is bothering them or that they have pain in their eyes. Instead, they avoid sports and playing outside. Quality of Life Quality of life is impacted when kids stop doing the things that they love, like playing soccer or basketball because the light outside or in the gym is too bright. They might stop swimming and they normally love the water. What to Do If You Suspect VKC If you suspect your child could have VKC, or unexplained eye pain, you should get a referral to a specialist. Start with your family doctor or an optometrist. Optometrists, who deal with eye health, can then refer to a paediatric ophthalmologist, if that step is necessary. Detective Work Like many health issues with kids, sometimes parents need to be detectives to understand what’s really going on. They can’t always tell you clearly where pain is or what’s happening. The good news is that early intervention and treatment VKC is manageable and can be caught before it causes too much pain or harm to the surface of the eye.

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Getting My Gym Legs Back – Returning to the YMCA

Paula — Thu, 22 Oct 2020 12:27:00 +0000

After seven months of working out in my basement, I am moving on. This was the month that I found my gym legs again returning to the gym in person. Here’s how I found my gym legs again and here’s how it’s going so far… Deciding to Leave the Basement The decision to return to the YMCA near my home was not without a whole lot of introspection, hand ringing and anxiety. In fact, it kind of surprised me that I had anxiety returning at all, but after seven months of basement workouts, there it was. Nerves. Let’s face it the nerves were not unwarranted. I mean look around and you will see there are constantly gyms opening and closing and sudden Covid-19 outbreaks at Ontario gyms. That is all worrisome. How I Found My Gym Legs Again But I found my gym legs again this past month. Slowly, anxiously and then they returned just like getting right back on a bicycle. Don’t Miss this Life is Like a Bicycle Relaxing Colouring Sheet. Here’s My Why Here’s the thing – there’s only so many months that a person can work out in their basement without completely losing their mind. We have all been working at home for months now. Our homes are our schools, our offices and our gyms. It is a lot. My gym is crucial to my mental health and my happiness. Fitness matters a lot to me. It is the thing that I began as soon as we adopted our second daughter, a baby with special needs. I needed a break from parenting and I needed to get fit to be able to handle how demanding parenting her was, plus the constant advocacy was also exhausting. So, I joined the YMCA and I found my zen and my gym legs. Actually, we joined the YMCA. All of us. Pandemic Workouts As soon as the gyms closed in March, I shifted into working out wherever and whenever I could. If that meant outside, then I took to the trails near my house. If it meant, in the bedroom or the basement, so be it. The important thing was that I worked out. Yoga in my basement. That’s where I started and then to keep things interesting I did Boot Camp, Zumba, dance fitness classes and Power Walking. Here are the free virtual workouts that I followed. I’ve walked through my neighbourhood, hiked and also have been swimming. Soon, I hope to be able to go skiing locally. Our Pool Was Important Too In fact, this was the year that we kept the pool open longer than ever before and we swam more than usual and I’m grateful we had that opportunity right in our own backyard. My gym legs for months were froggy legs saturated with water and chlorine. Boy, I have grown to love that smell. The pool has been a blessing and I’ve used the pool as much as humanly possible this year, swimming most days. Our pool is heated so that’s definitely no hardship whatsoever. But Last Week The Pool Closed I’ve tried most things available to me. Still, I waited patiently for the announcement of the day the YMCA near my home opened. Anyone who reads my site regularly knows how important fitness is to me. Pre-pandemic, I was going to the YMCA 4 – 5 days a week for yoga, Centergy, various group classes and just to maintain my own health, mentally and physically. It is my break from the chaos of raising teenagers and also from running my own business and it is respite from raising kids with special needs. It was totally understandable that gyms had to close down and I completely recognize that was the only way to proceed, so I jumped in as soon as possible with virtual fitness and YouTube and all the basement fitness classes I could do. Nonetheless, when the Y opened I was thrilled… and also a little bit anxious. It’s no big shock that my family has become quite anxious as have a lot of families during the pandemic. But as soon as the martial arts studio opened up, my kids returned with all the Covid-19 protocols in place: masks on if you were indoors, extra cleaning, smaller numbers of students per class and you had to register for classes before attending. My Kids Went Back to Martial Arts So they resumed fitness classes that were important to them. They need sports for mental and physical health. We all do. Then suddenly, the YMCA started to phase in a few group classes very slowly throughout the city. I showed up one night, registered for yoga in September thinking it was indoors and wondering how that would work, only to find that it was outside and on a colder night. I was ill-equipped, with no jacket and a little out of practice. Still, I moved fast and tried to warm up leaning into the idea of in person yoga again. Would I Find Gym Legs and Stamina Again? Youtube Yoga is great in a pinch, but it doesn’t provide the same in person challenge that an instructor standing in front of you can offer. Nonetheless it was an important step getting out of the house and doing yoga. Another night my neighbour, who is now a certified yoga instructor, offered a free yoga class in a park near us and I went. That was a perfect weekend morning and it was warm and sunny. Kind of blissful actually. Finally Back Then finally the date came when I was scheduled to return to the YMCA. First you need to register. Normally that wouldn’t be a big deal, but for whatever reason technical glitches prevented me from being able to register. First You Register The registration process is important because there are a limited number of spots available to maintain social distancing in each class. At the most classes are 15 or less. (As I hit publish on this new rules have been enacted today and that limit is now 10.) Ten is fine by me. Registration opens every Thursday. So, I picked up the phone and called someone at the front desk of the branch closest to me. Turns out the system wouldn’t let me register because the classes were already full. Bummed at that, I told them add my name to the waitlist. Because I was first on the waitlist, it wasn’t that surprising when I got a call the night before the Saturday morning class. Off I went with my mask, water bottle and my matt, leaving the other personal items at home or in the van. No purse and no extra clothing. Bring just what you need. Class began and it was slightly surreal seeing a few faces I hadn’t seen in months. Despite working out all throughout the quarantine, social distancing phases we have gone through here, my legs definitely felt the workout immediately. Squats I do at home are not the squats that we do in class. An in person instructor pushes you and challenges you to go further. Two Week Check In I have been back now maybe two full weeks. On average that is two to three times a week. I register and attend and I feel better afterwards, because I need it. Does it cause everyone a little bit of anxiety here? Yes, and I totally understand that. Yesterday my husband point blank said: you NEED to be careful. You are going too much. He is not a normally anxious person, but everyone here has become either anxious or depressed during COVID, so frankly I get it and I got a bit angry actually and lashed out. Sometimes I Need Space But, I go for me. I need fitness, for mental and physical health. Too many days I feel like that airplane safety demo. Put on your safety mask first if it drops from the ceiling. You can’t help anyone else if you run out of oxygen.

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