I am newly moved to the Durham Region of Ontario, a suburb of Greater Toronto. As I find resources available related to BPD or DBT therapy, as well as basic self-care, etc. I will post that information to this section of my blog.
Mindfulness
There is a good New Age section in the CD area of the Oshawa library. I am working my way through some of this in order to find a good mix of meditation and relaxation CDs.
Rogers Cable TV also has Spa and Nature channels--continuous soft music on Channels 738 and 749 respectively. I often put these on while I am stretching, or just as calming background music.
Self-Care
Dental: The Durham College Dental Hygiene Clinic at the North Simcoe campus is a wonderfully thorough place to get a check-up and your teeth cleaned, for a low one time fee of $30. (905)721-3074
You must be willing to make the time commitment though, as it may take more than one appointment to complete the work.
Hair, Esthetics, Massage, Jacuzzi, etc. 15 Simcoe Street South, the Art & Technique Academy. In addition to hair cuts at a reasonable price, they also have a fabulous esthetic section upstairs where they do nails, waxing, aromatherapy massage--and even have a hydrotherapy jacuzzi.
Thus far, I'm happy with the basic treatments I've had done. 'Would like to try the jacuzzi and massage sometime.
Hair: (905) 576-0479 Esthetics: (905) 721-7546
Dual Diagnosis
Some of us with BPD will have more than one psychological issue. In my case, it was through the route of addiction treatment that I was diagnosed, finally, with BPD.
Whatever way you can get it, I encourage anyone with a mental health problem to seek help and stick with whatever program is suggested, even if it seems at the time, not the right one for you. You have to be willing to try everything.
On that note, for Addiction I highly recommend Pinewood at 300 Centre Street South. (905) 723-8195. They treat the whole person, not just the addiction (or the appearance thereof). They will look under the symptom to see what is the cause.
Income Tax
I don't know if it is just me, or a function of the disorder, but when forms, the government, institutions, and money are involved, I get anxious.
Today I utilized a wonderful service available from the John Howard Society in downtown Oshawa. The John Howard Society is primarily known for their work related to the criminal system, so I wouldn't have thought to go there to have my income tax done.
The only proviso is that your income has to be under $25,000 per annum. You should have all your receipts, T4 slips, etc. in hand and in order before you go. If you haven't done your income tax in a while, they will do previous years as well. And finally, you will need to have your banking information for direct deposit if there is a refund.
75 Richmond Street West (905) 579-8482
(corner of Centre St. & Richmond)
Books
Borderline Personality Disorder (for Dummies) by Charles Elliot and Laura Smith. Wiley Publishing, Inc. 2009
While I recognize it is a franchise, I still don't like the title. That aside, this is the best book I've read thus far about BPD.
Treatment
Since being diagnosed, I've gone through several treatment programs, and no doubt, will go through several more as I try to piece together the tools, skills, knowledge I need to cope with life as experienced through this disorder.
Although there are treatment programs available specifically for BPD, they are few in number and not generally available. I will write only about programs I myself have tried or experienced.
Destiny Manor - Whitby, ON
This is a female only treatment facility for addictions. As risk-taking, self-harmful behaviour is often part of BPD, it is good to get treatment for the symptoms as well as the disorder itself.
I was in a resident program at this facility for 21 days.
Positive aspects:
- You have your own room
- Many life skills are addressed, in addition to addiction-specific coping tools
- I especially enjoyed the daily Creative Visualization and the small gym space available for exercise
Downside:
- I am compelled to be honest about my experience and say that as in other addiction treatment programs, it is luck of the draw whom you end up living with for 21 days.
In my experience (which also includes Jean Tweed in Toronto) when you have women who are in a program as part of their legal sentence or due to legal requirements, there often come with those participants, a very negative aggressive element which detracts from the program, causing unnecessary stress and drama/trauma.
Topics Covered:
Self-esteem Communication & Assertiveness (WIN)
Support Networks Relaxation Techniques
Aromatherapy Recreation & Leisure Planning
Nutrition Cognitive Restructuring (Self-Talk)
Stress Management Trauma & Flashbacks
Problem Solving Pain Management
Depression Goal Setting
Relapse Prevention Emotion Identification & Management
Loss & Grief Relationships & Boundaries
Anger Management Self-care
Family Roles Meditation & Creative Visualization
Drug Overview Art Therapy
I often feel I got more out of my experience at Destiny Manor since leaving, then I did while there, as I refer back to information and handouts I received during those three weeks.
So. Even if you end up with difficult people in your program; try to stick with it, because the education modules and the tools you will receive will outlast the horrid people of the moment.
Mindfulness
There is a good New Age section in the CD area of the Oshawa library. I am working my way through some of this in order to find a good mix of meditation and relaxation CDs.
Rogers Cable TV also has Spa and Nature channels--continuous soft music on Channels 738 and 749 respectively. I often put these on while I am stretching, or just as calming background music.
Self-Care
Dental: The Durham College Dental Hygiene Clinic at the North Simcoe campus is a wonderfully thorough place to get a check-up and your teeth cleaned, for a low one time fee of $30. (905)721-3074
You must be willing to make the time commitment though, as it may take more than one appointment to complete the work.
Hair, Esthetics, Massage, Jacuzzi, etc. 15 Simcoe Street South, the Art & Technique Academy. In addition to hair cuts at a reasonable price, they also have a fabulous esthetic section upstairs where they do nails, waxing, aromatherapy massage--and even have a hydrotherapy jacuzzi.
Thus far, I'm happy with the basic treatments I've had done. 'Would like to try the jacuzzi and massage sometime.
Hair: (905) 576-0479 Esthetics: (905) 721-7546
Dual Diagnosis
Some of us with BPD will have more than one psychological issue. In my case, it was through the route of addiction treatment that I was diagnosed, finally, with BPD.
Whatever way you can get it, I encourage anyone with a mental health problem to seek help and stick with whatever program is suggested, even if it seems at the time, not the right one for you. You have to be willing to try everything.
On that note, for Addiction I highly recommend Pinewood at 300 Centre Street South. (905) 723-8195. They treat the whole person, not just the addiction (or the appearance thereof). They will look under the symptom to see what is the cause.
Income Tax
I don't know if it is just me, or a function of the disorder, but when forms, the government, institutions, and money are involved, I get anxious.
Today I utilized a wonderful service available from the John Howard Society in downtown Oshawa. The John Howard Society is primarily known for their work related to the criminal system, so I wouldn't have thought to go there to have my income tax done.
The only proviso is that your income has to be under $25,000 per annum. You should have all your receipts, T4 slips, etc. in hand and in order before you go. If you haven't done your income tax in a while, they will do previous years as well. And finally, you will need to have your banking information for direct deposit if there is a refund.
75 Richmond Street West (905) 579-8482
(corner of Centre St. & Richmond)
Books
Borderline Personality Disorder (for Dummies) by Charles Elliot and Laura Smith. Wiley Publishing, Inc. 2009
While I recognize it is a franchise, I still don't like the title. That aside, this is the best book I've read thus far about BPD.
Treatment
Since being diagnosed, I've gone through several treatment programs, and no doubt, will go through several more as I try to piece together the tools, skills, knowledge I need to cope with life as experienced through this disorder.
Although there are treatment programs available specifically for BPD, they are few in number and not generally available. I will write only about programs I myself have tried or experienced.
Destiny Manor - Whitby, ON
This is a female only treatment facility for addictions. As risk-taking, self-harmful behaviour is often part of BPD, it is good to get treatment for the symptoms as well as the disorder itself.
I was in a resident program at this facility for 21 days.
Positive aspects:
- You have your own room
- Many life skills are addressed, in addition to addiction-specific coping tools
- I especially enjoyed the daily Creative Visualization and the small gym space available for exercise
Downside:
- I am compelled to be honest about my experience and say that as in other addiction treatment programs, it is luck of the draw whom you end up living with for 21 days.
In my experience (which also includes Jean Tweed in Toronto) when you have women who are in a program as part of their legal sentence or due to legal requirements, there often come with those participants, a very negative aggressive element which detracts from the program, causing unnecessary stress and drama/trauma.
Topics Covered:
Self-esteem Communication & Assertiveness (WIN)
Support Networks Relaxation Techniques
Aromatherapy Recreation & Leisure Planning
Nutrition Cognitive Restructuring (Self-Talk)
Stress Management Trauma & Flashbacks
Problem Solving Pain Management
Depression Goal Setting
Relapse Prevention Emotion Identification & Management
Loss & Grief Relationships & Boundaries
Anger Management Self-care
Family Roles Meditation & Creative Visualization
Drug Overview Art Therapy
I often feel I got more out of my experience at Destiny Manor since leaving, then I did while there, as I refer back to information and handouts I received during those three weeks.
So. Even if you end up with difficult people in your program; try to stick with it, because the education modules and the tools you will receive will outlast the horrid people of the moment.
For these and other resources check The Pages found at the bottom of the blog entry just above the "wingshot" photo.
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