The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

7 Business Links, Tuesday, January 12, 2010 October - December 2009 1112674 Ontario Ltd. Acton Home Hardware Advantage Canada Inc. The Business Executive Apex Tool & Die Ltd. Atlantis Athletics Banbury Law Office Baynes Physiotherapy Georgetown Best Western Inn on the Hill Bos Lift Truck Service CIBC Communication Artistry Dr. Ron Lefebvre, Dr. Janet Pownall Dufferin Aggregates - Acton Quarry Family Optical Floraglass Inc. Gecko Forwarding Corp. Georgetown Bread Basket Georgetown Volkswagen Glazed Expressions Ceramics Studio H2Sport Inc. Halton Industry Education Council HealthSpan Naturopathic Howell Pipe & Supply Kamercorp Holdings Inc. Kiyo's Japanese Car Service Ltd. MacGillivray Partners Chartered Accounting Marsh, Reg & Associates McCormack Financial Group Multi-Blend Ltd. Office Magic Stationery/ Scrapbook Market OLG Slots at Mohawk Racetrack Paddon & Yorke Inc. Pat's Prime Cuts and Deli Prazio Inc. Rampulla's Martial Arts Re/Max Hallmark Realty Ltd. Re/max Real Estate Centre, Linda Olson, Sales Representative Ricter Web Printing Ltd. Royal LePage Meadowtowne Realty, Denise Dilbey Synventive Molding Solutions T & T Auto Repairs Tan It Tanning Salon Tiburon Business Services TSI International Group Inc. Uptown Collision Ltd. vpi Georgetown Want Answers... Ask Questions Drop off or mail to: The Independent & Free Press, Georgetown Market Place, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON L7G 4B1 or e-mail your questions to: features@independentfreepress.com Ask The Professionals Mountainview Residence Georgetown Medical Centre 1A Princess Anne Drive 905-873-8729 www.healthspan.ca Julia Fountain, BSc, ND 211 Guelph St., Ste #5, Georgetown L7G 5B5 Karen www.haltonspeech.com MacKenzie-Stepner owned and operated by the Summer family 905-873-8400 jfountain@healthspan.ca 222 Mountainview Rd. N. Georgetown, ON L7G 3R2 Bus: (905) 877-1800 Fax: (905) 873-9083 www.mountainviewresidence.com PROFESSIONAL COUNSELING SERVICES 905-873-9393 Christoph Summer Owner/Administrator MANON DULUDE WWW.FORGECOACHINGANDCONSULTING.COM INFO@FORGECOACHINGANDCONSULTING.COM During the initial consultation we'll review the nature of your current health concerns, the timeline and instigating factors. More importantly, I want to understand the bigger picture. Symptoms are the body's way of communicating and only by understanding the whole can we heal the parts. In the words of Sir William Osler: "It is more important to know what patient has the disease than to know what disease the patient has." Along with a brief screening physical and body composition measures, an initial assessment may also include recommendations for specialized lab work including testing for food allergies or intolerances, hormone imbalances, digestive dysfunction or nutrient deficiencies. With detailed questioning I'll have an understanding of your lifestyle, stress levels, hormone status, immunity, digestion, sleep patterns, energy levels and what you need and want from naturopathic care. By the end of the first appointment we'll have the foundations of a naturopathic plan in place. The initial consultation is our launch-pad for evaluating where your health is at, where you want it to go and to strategize on how to get there. Q: A: What can I expect during an initial naturopathic assessment? Q: A: My husband has recently suffered a stroke and now has physical/communication/ emotional difficulties. Our family and friends are having a difficult time talking to him, can you give us some suggestions? Unlike other illnesses like cancer or Alzheimer's Disease, strokes offer little time to prepare. The sudden onset is traumatic for both the person and the family as you cope with a stroke's often physical and emotional changes. The sudden emotional outbursts or use of profane language that sometimes occurs following a stroke is unsettling for not only the individual themselves but also for those around them. It is difficult to give specific suggestions for your husband as strokes affect everyone differently. However, here are some guidelines that would be helpful. 1. Communicate in quiet spaces with minimal distractions; do not try to talk over the television and/or have more than one person talking at once 2. Speak slowly and concretely 3. Respect the individual's preference for physical space and touch (it may have changed following the stroke) 4. Avoid frustration 5. Use functional communication (i.e. pictures, writing) 6. Encourage the individual to communicate (hand gestures, body/eye movements) to decrease feeling of loneliness and isolation. For individuals who have communication difficulties following a stroke, recovery continues to happen long after discharge from the hospital. Therefore, it is important to keep working on communication skills and try to keep discouragement to a minimum. A Speech-Language Pathologist can provide specific therapy tasks and support as well as help modify the environment to make optimal communication occur. Our Centre, in partnership with the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario (Halton branch) and the William Osler Health Centre, offers a Living with Stroke program. This is a six week program aimed at providing stroke survivors and their family valuable and practical information and offers them the opportunity to meet and talk to other people undergoing the same challenges. For more information please feel free to call. Q: I am thinking of moving into a retirement residence. With so many variables and prices, how do I make a choice? This is a seemingly dauntless task but one that can be made easier if you give yourself the time to plan ahead. A good place to start is with residences that come highly recommended by family and friends. Secondly, residents with membership in ORCA (Ontario Residential Care Association.) have met the industry's high standards ensuring quality care. Next, do a realistic assessment of your needs. For example, what help are you receiving now and what added help would you like? Add to this, a "wish list". What added features are important to you? What type of setting would make you feel most at home? How does the home look? Is it a bright, clean, friendly place to live? Can you bring your own furniture... and so on? Compile a list of questions and fill out separate evaluation for every residence you visit. That way, you will have a consistent assessment of each home with out the worry of forgetting the details. Consider too, staying for a meal and comparing this important aspect of retirement living. A: Effective communication occurs when people are committed to come up with the best possible outcome for all parties involved. Prior to a conversation, inform the other person that you would like to discuss a specific issue. Agree on a time to have the conversation. This gives everyone time to formulate their thoughts about the topic. Avoid taking people by surprise. They may feel attacked and respond in defensiveness and anger or become stunned and speechless. If caught off guard, consider listening to what is said then ask for a time out to formulate your own thoughts. Agree on a time to resume the conversation. Use the delay to process your feelings and create a response that is not based on defensiveness. During the conversation, remain aware of your intention. Do you want to dominate or to work out a solution which favors every one? Manage your emotions. If you become emotional, step back and calm down. Remember that once words are spoken, they cannot be taken back. Hurtful words and behaviors will impact trust between people and damage your credibility. Sarcasm, digs, put downs do not set the tone for positive communication. During a conversation it is best to stick to the issue you agreed to discuss. Bringing up past unresolved issues into the conversation will derail the dialogue and most likely lead to an escalation of blame and finger pointing. Avoid playing games. Saying things to test people's reaction is not a healthy approach to communicate. Remember assertiveness means expressing your needs without being hostile and respectfully listening to the other person's needs. If you find yourself in a situation where a conflict is not getting resolved and it is getting worse, consider getting the support of an objective trained professional, they can assist you with difficult conversations and creating a positive outcome. This may help you put your relationship back on track. Manon Dulude is a Professional Certified Coach, Psychotherapist and is trained in Mediation. She can be reached at 905 873-9393.