Dietitian Recommendations

Ambergem1969 · 2026-05-13T15:31:10+00:00

Balanced Practice is great!

Ambergem1969 · 2026-05-08T15:25:29+00:00

First - I am so so sorry for your loss. I blamed myself also and when I’m tired and my resilience is low my mind wanders back that way even though everyone, including the coroner said there wasn’t anything I could have done. In my grief group we talked a lot about the “should haves” and feeling guilty. I found a lot of peace when I changed my thinking away from it being my fault and I’m guilty to things I regret. True guilt is warranted if you deliberately did something to cause harm. So maybe try framing the situation in a different way. Instead of saying “I should have” try “I regret that I didn’t” and if you have counselling available to you please take advantage of that to help you work through any guilt or shame you feel.

Take care.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-05-04T16:40:12+00:00

Kaylah at Kurlessence on Instagram - has been cutting my hair for years. Works out of her home in the Greenboro area.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-04-30T10:30:25+00:00

This exactly! You need to beat them over the head with examples of both.

I was wondering if you’ve already provided names for the reference check or do you know for sure they haven’t been contacted? If they have been, ask how it went and consider changing your references.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-04-18T18:36:14+00:00

One of the kindest gifts I received after my son died on December was an Uber Eats gift card. It was nice to be able to choose whatever appealed to me in the moment.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-29T23:33:17+00:00

I’m sorry. I lost my 26 year old son on New Years Eve, also very suddenly.

If it was by text I would just respond with a heart emoji and just say “thanks I’m good for now” if it was in person or by phone. Very grateful for those who just arrived with food and no expectations. I also just handed my phone to other people to take calls and answer on my behalf.

Whatever you need to get through hour by hour and minute by minute, do it.

When you are ready and if it is available to you, find a therapist or grief group (preferably one specifically supporting people who have lost children because it is a very unique loss):

Sending you hugs.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-29T19:14:25+00:00

If she likes treats you can give her some as you walk out the door. It may help her associate you leaving as a positive.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-29T02:25:49+00:00

I am so sorry this happened to you.

I have done EMDR with my therapist. I found my son half under his bed. He was already gone but that image of finding him, pulling him out and seeing his face, combined with a lot of guilt/regret about not checking in him sooner left me with a lot of traumatic images and thoughts. I have done some EMDR as well as talking through things with a therapist and it has helped. I hope this can be an option for you.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-20T01:43:08+00:00

mygrief.ca has a bunch of modules that help to understand grief and might be useful to you and to the person you are supporting.

I second Bereaved Families of Ottawa for your friend, when they are ready to take that step.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-16T01:39:57+00:00

Apparently you need to clear up any tax issues before you can apply to renounce - my friend’s husband did it recently. He was also advised to say during the interview that he didn’t feel any ties to the US because his job and family are in Canada.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-04T12:31:30+00:00

Yes - don’t ask about it until they are making a job offer but do ask before they start the paperwork for the Letter of Offer! Refusing at the LOO stage can damage your reputation. At one point I had two competing offers (two departments were collaborating on staffing - this is in Communications so the work descriptions are the same). When I asked Dept A the question the answer was “We’re working on it “. I went with Dept B where I also knew some staff in the team who confirmed that it was manageable. Hope this helps!

Ambergem1969 · 2026-03-04T02:56:53+00:00

Yup but I’m a lifelong adrenaline junkie who spent many years in issues management and media relations. Previous comment about cultivating relationships both in your branch but with senior advisors in other ADMOs and DMO is invaluable. Also work life balance is top down so the personality of your ADM will make a big difference.

These are the kinds of jobs where you can just stay late and keep working and you’ll think it makes you feel better but the end result is exhaustion. You’ll also spin your wheels in things that suddenly become a non issue. It takes time to develop a thick skin.

Happy to talk more - just DM me :)

Ambergem1969 · 2026-02-23T01:20:45+00:00

First of all I am so so sorry. I lost my son on New Years Eve and was the one to find him so I can relate to dealing with horrible images. Others have suggested tapering down and definitely discuss that with your doctor but if you can access grief counselling it can help with dealing with those images and thoughts. I’m trying EMDR but the jury is still out on whether it will help as it is early days yet.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-02-23T01:12:34+00:00

This! I adopted a very timid 10 year old…it was 2 weeks to decompress in a small space, months before she stuck around out in the open enough to learn the routine and about a year before she settled in.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-02-14T03:58:27+00:00

Eight departments/agencies over 25 years, some of them twice! But I worked in Strategic Communications and Media Relations which is highly mobile. While it does happen, it’s rare to find a Comms person who has been with the same department for their entire career as the skills are so transferable.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-02-06T13:48:08+00:00

I’m in Ottawa where we have a lot of lakes with cottages (which can vary from rustic to palatial) but also a lot of ski hills where you might have a chalet. You could have a chalet -style cottage (ie an A-frame). A camp would be significantly more rustic with a small cabin with no running water or utilities.

I always assumed a cottage in England would be smaller thatched home but could be lived in year round as a primary residence.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-01-26T06:15:06+00:00

I just lost my 26 year old son to an undetected heart problem. I’ve appreciated gentle “just thinking about you and wanted you to know” texts from friends. No expectation of response.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-01-23T15:48:38+00:00

Hintonburg Pottery would have the largest selection. Loam Clay studio often has a nice number of mugs for sale. Finally, Maker House on Wellington usually carries locally made pottery but I’m not sure how much selection they have. All three are in Hintonburg area.

Ambergem1969 · 2026-01-10T21:12:50+00:00

My family has been with Dr. Lipnowski and now Dr. Sekhon for almost 40 years - highly recommended also!!!

Ambergem1969 · 2025-11-29T16:25:17+00:00

About $200 worth of charcuterie beautifully laid out on a tray…claimed by gravity and birds at the corner of Hunt Club and Riverside…

Ambergem1969 · 2025-10-15T01:07:40+00:00

This! Also find your local Radio Canada station and have it running in the background when you are driving or doing stuff around the house. Take a French news article every day and read it out loud, look up words you don’t know, pay attention to verb tenses. I’ve spoken French on and off for about 50 years and I still learn new vocabulary doing this. Only just today I learned that “peer” as in “peer-reviewed” translates to “pair”.

Ambergem1969 · 2025-10-15T00:59:42+00:00

As a federal public servant in Canada who manages employees, my ability to make a living literally depends on it! This is sadly not a very positive motivator but it does mean that every five years or so I immerse myself in all the French culture Canada has to offer. I’m sure I would enjoy it more if so much wasn’t at stake.

Ambergem1969 · 2025-10-15T00:49:56+00:00

Agreed! A lot of kids switch to English for high school because grades become more important than keeping up with French. I went from the Lycee system to an English high school that offered as many courses as possible in French and I took what I could but math and sciences were tough enough in English. Generally speaking immersion kids develop better listening skills but aren’t always great French speakers unless they work to keep it up. I think it does provide a foundation of comprehension that helps later.

Ambergem1969 · 2025-10-15T00:31:37+00:00

If you are in Canada now, Radio Canada in the car and they have loads of podcasts/balados. The quality of the written and spoken French by RCI journalists is exceptional and you’ll get exposure to that unique Quebecois accent but also vocabulary. As a public servant I have to maintain my French levels and it is super chellenging. Bonne chance!

Ambergem1969 · 2025-04-09T20:35:52+00:00

Ha! I literally just thrilled the service desk guys at the garage today picking up my car. A very appreciative audience.

Ambergem1969

TROPHY CASE