Starting next Saturday, Jan. 18, and ongoing on a monthly basis, a peer support group is being offered to individuals with an acquired brain injury (ABI) at St. John's United Church in Davis Bay.
ABI includes damage resulting from trauma that occurs after birth, such as falls, assaults, blows to the head or surgery, non-degenerative diseases of the brain such as tumours, strokes and aneurysms, and damage resulting from lack of oxygen to the brain from near drowning, cardiac arrest, infection, drug overdose, or toxic exposure from alcohol, other drug use or toxic inhalants.
After a brain injury, learning to adjust and adapt to a new way of living in the world can be challenging. A peer support group is one where the persons involved are of equal standing with each other, have common experiences and concerns and provide emotional and moral support to one another. Some groups focus on education and information while others centre on emotional support and sharing. Others offer an opportunity to socialize and form friendships. Each group forms and then changes according to the members' needs. The current goal of this group is to have fun and friendship.
For further information on this peer group or other services offered for Sunshine Coast individuals with an ABI, contact Susan Goddard, ABI program coordinator, Home Care Services, Vancouver Coastal Health, at 604-885-8524.
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