South Okanagan stroke survivors have a new program to help them adjust to the new challenges affecting their lives.
The program, Learning About Stroke, is offered in both Penticton and Oliver for anyone who has had a stroke and still lives at home, or to anyone who is a caregiver for a stroke survivor. The course is one of several stroke-related programs offered by the South Okanagan Similkameen Brain Injury Society.
The purpose of these programs is to provide stroke survivors and their caregivers a support structure to help them not only learn to live with the difficulties of suffering a stroke, but to restore hope and provide the opportunity to share their stories with others in the group.
The South Okanagan Similkameen Brain Injury Society was started in 1989 under the mandate of helping those with acquired brain injury to achieve the best life possible. To this end, they offer case management one-on-one services and social/recreational programs, as well as the stroke programs.
Learning About Stroke is a 10-week, 15-hour course created to help those recovering from a stroke, as well as their caregivers, improve their quality of life by giving information on some of the issues that can affect their lives.
Brian O’Reilly is the stroke group facilitator for the brain injury society. He says the course will inform those affected by a stroke how to face their new challenges.
“Sometimes there’s dietary changes that people should be made aware of; sometimes there’s exercises that will assist recovery. Offering pertinent information and fostering group dialogue to promote a different kind of mindset about maintaining and improving what we call brain health will assist a person in recovering or continuing to recover from a stroke,” O’Reilly says.
As well as the Learning About Stroke program, the South Okanagan Similkameen Brain Injury Society offers a long-term support program, the stroke recovery group, for stroke survivors and their caregivers to provide a chance for those who have suffered from a stroke to connect and share their stories with others facing the same challenges.
Those interested in attending one of the stroke-survivors’ programs should call the South Okanagan Similkameen Brain Injury Society for an interview and more information at 250-490-0613.