Oak & Cedar Counselling Services

11/14/2025

Today is World Diabetes Day.

Here’s some facts.

There are now 6 known types of medically diagnosed diabetes (MODY (genetic), LADA (late adolescent, slow progression), Type 1 (Autoimmune, 5-10% of diabetics are T1D), Type 2 (Most common form, Metabolic and new research suggest inflammatory developed), Type 3c (pancreatic injury) and Gestational (Develops during pregnancy).

Discrimination, misinformation and shaming of diabetes remains high. The truth is that diet and obesity does play a role, BUT ONLY in Type 2 and ONLY to a small degree! Metabolic disturbances, inflammation, genetics all play a role in how the body produces and uses insulin. There are Type 2 Diabetics all over the world that have ZERO weight-related risk factors and STILL DEVELOP Type 2 Diabetes. Type 1, LADA, MODY HAVE NOTHING to do with diet, weight, or food - and cannot be treated, managed or “cured” with dietary changes. In fact, These types of diabetics can eat whatever they want as long as they know the correct dose to give!

42 factors (and counting) influence Diabetes. Stress, feelings, hormones, mental health, skin scarring, Medications, dehydration, time of day (look up dawn phenomenon), type of exercise and so much more!

Discrimination and a lack of information is one reason why mental health in diabetics is so high, but other reasons are:

Type 1 Diabetics (or their caregivers if they are a child) make an average of 300 health care related decisions a year. That is more than 12 decisions per hour. Type 2 Diabetics make an average of 84 health care related decisions per day, meaning an additional 3.5-4 decisions per hour that others would not have to make.

Most LADA, MODY, T1D diabetics and their caregivers lose upwards of 2 weeks of sleep per year, and often have interrupted sleep due to ongoing alarms and alerts to manage their diabetes and their health/safety.

Diabetics give themselves (on average) 1,860 needles per year. If they are on an insulin pump, that’s a pump change every 3 days, or less resulting in 120 or more pump changes (which are also needles).

**more facts in comments!!**

11/02/2025

Today is the last day to vote!
Only if you feel that I have earned your trust, I hope you can a moment to vote ❤️

Official 2025 Community Voting Awards Platform for Charlottetown, PE. Where the community votes for their favourites every year.

10/30/2025

For those in the Halifax area, I encourage you to watch this film and support women’s health. It can take up to 10 years to get a diagnosis and many have to travel out of the country and even continent for treatment. Though we are grateful for the ever growing research and advancement of care here in Canada, it’s crucial this grows exponentially! Supporting the film and the advocacy it brings, as well as the funding initiatives for women’s/she/her health is incredibly important. So, if you’re in the Halifax area please go check it out!

10/01/2025

October is a month where we pause and remember those who have experienced pregnancy and infant loss

Throughout this month Oak and Cedar will post on a variety of topics raising awareness with this topic, including the trauma and grief, the way that too many pregnancy losses are dismissed and minimized, how misunderstood TFMR is and how not enough support is offered, as well as resources for those who are navigating these losses.

This first post is to share a wonderful print by Baby Lemon Prints highlighting how birthing and non birthing/moms and dads have experienced loss.

Too many think early stage miscarriage, and it is that, but it’s also many other losses, some that we don’t talk about near enough

And acknowledges that nonbirthing parents struggle too, their pain as palpable, they loss not understood.

This month, please take some time to

1. Say their name. Too many families who have experienced loss feel like they can’t talk about their child, their baby. Invite them to talk, if they want. Use their child’s name, they want them to be known and remembered.

2. Light a candle on October 15th, the official day of remembrance. Join the wave of spreading awareness, and holding space for those who have said goodbye, sometimes before they ever said hello.

10/01/2025

Hope you can take a moment to vote for Oak and Cedar Counselling Services

Here is the website!
https://charlottetown.communityvotes.com/n/1267451-oak-and-cedar-counselling-services

Oak and Cedar has lovingly been nominated in two categories:

Therapy and Counselling (Healthcare)

And Psychology Clinic (Services)

Thank you so much and we are excited to be nominated with such amazing therapists and clinics!

💛💛

09/30/2025

Today is National Truth & Reconciliation Day

In Charlottetown - 95 Rochford Street - there will be a ceremony which will include a moment of silence as well as prayers, songs and lowering of the flags.

Tomorrow - Oct 1 - is Treaty Day and there are several events across the Island, including Lennox Island and in Charlottetown (both are open to non-native to come learn, embrace peace and friendship and seek awareness and understanding)

Today though. Pause. Listen. Learn. And help your kids do the same. It’s not just an orange shirt day, teach your kids what it means, why it matters.

Artwork my .star.designs and I encourage you to follow her. Her art, her creativity, her words, it’s all breathtaking.

09/29/2025

I love somatic therapy
I love the mind body connections it invites into the therapeutic space

For at home exercises, here are a few I like (and use!)

Give them a try throughout your week and let me know which you find the most grounding and releasing for you!

09/19/2025

I hear (okay, okay, I SAY 😜) this a lot.

Hold space

Hold space for your feelings, hold space for your needs

But what does it even mean to hold space?

For your feelings, or someone else’s?

1. Holding space means slowing down. Absolutely, sometimes we just need to shelf our feelings and do what we need to do. We have errands to run and places to be. Work to do and a house to clean, mouths to feed. But, the feelings can only stuff down so deep and no matter what you do, if a feeling or a need wants to be heard - they ALWAYS find a way. So, take time through the week to slow down. Have a slower shower or bath. Sit on the deck. Meditate. Breath. Take your time drinking your coffee or tea or electrolyte alkaline balanced water, whatever you enjoy! When we go slow, we can hear. We can tune in.

2. Notice all the feelings, not just the easy ones, not just the hard ones. The body is capable (and likes to!) hold many feelings at once. It’s absolutely an amazing - and annoying - part of being human. Notice them. Where do you feel them? What do they feel like?

3. Do not judge. Sometimes you don’t have to even act. We aren’t processing, we are simply holding, allowing a feeling to exist, allowing it to peak and pass, accepting that it is there and yes, this is happening. Grief for example, sometimes there isn’t anything to process we don’t already know, and sometimes there isn’t anything we need to fix or change, just love and understanding to give.

4. So give that compassionate understanding, that love, provide the support or grounding it might need to exist without harming us. Cry. Hold space for that. Yell. Hold space for that. Move. Eat. Sleep. Connect, lean on someone else.

5. Dont problem solve your way out of the feeling. Gosh that sounds funny doesn’t it. In therapy we often are processing negative experiences with the hopes of journeying to am the other side, to create solutions that offer support and change. But holding space doesn’t ask you to fix it, make it go away, beat it out of you. It just asks you to notice it. Listen to it. Give it space to exist, space to heal, space to talk, space to be loved.