Kavita Desai PharmD, Artist & Musician

Volcanic Ash. From 200 km away. Never thought I would ever be dealing with anything other than shoveling snow! Granted...we moved to Barbados to experience a different culture and experience new things. This certainly ticks those boxes. Scared at the endlessness of this scenario...days, possibly weeks But, grateful to be safely indoors and praying for the people of St. Vincent’s impacted by the ongoing eruption of La Soufriere. . #volcano #barbados #barbados #barbadoslife #soufriere

I always feel like, somebody’s watching me..... . To get my work done or snuggle with Teddy.... ever the conundrum! #outdooroffice #covidoffice #barbados #barbados #barbadoslife #newstartup #doggielove

After nearly 2 weeks in our house, we finally got down to our tennis court . What a treat to have access to a court daily! Am I a pro? Definitely not. Do I love racquet sports? Very much! Tennis, badminton, and even ping pong I was terrible in gym class...grew up thinking I wasn’t athletic at all. But we all have passions, strengths and just need to find which activities make our hearts happy and body strong . So get moving in whatever way feels good for you! W...hether you’re a natural or not, it can do your mind and body good! - - - #tennis #islandtennis #barbados #barbados #model #fitness #passion #athlete @ Barbados See more

Ocean sunsets - - - #sunset #ocean #barbados #islandlife #island #beachlife

The secret is out.... . Barbados is at the end of the rainbow!! - - - #barbados #barbadoslife #rainbow #grateful #blessed #island #islandlife #barbados

Improvisation?? Not my strong suit! I actually dread the unknown. But, after last year, and this big move, I am determined to go with the flow. As a dear friend suggested...just re-frame my thoughts. Rather than missing my old patterns, the amenities of Canada and my belongings (currently somewhere in the Atlantic ), make the best with what I have. Be grateful for this beautiful adventure I am on and don’t get stuck wishing I had my things, or being sad that I don’t feel at... home, yet, in our new house. These moments which are overwhelming right now, will one day become fond memories. I know it. So... here’s my makeshift gym (TRX, skipping rope and pool) until my weights arrive. And a delicious Indian meal (daal, jeera rice and veggie curry) that wasn’t the same without all my spices but still pretty darn good. 2021 will be the perfect year to shed old habits for the better . #trxworkout #caribbeangirl #barbados #overseasmove #changeyourmindset #embracethejourney #embracechange See more

#view from our new house! Finally starting to feel settled, and ready to start our new adventure - - - #barbados #islandlife #canadian #sunset #palmtrees

After all the swimming, what else is a girl to do while quarantining in paradise? Work on my next 4 songs!! . My producer @kevinoaudio worked so hard to make sure I had the first drafts of the backtracks for this week. So excited to have time to focus on my music again - - - #music #barbados #canadian #songwriter #singer #islandlife #paradise #quarantine

When my mom was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s years ago, I was surprised at how little many of my close friends and family knew about the disease. I guess that makes sense. Unless you’ve met someone that is living with Alzheimer’s, it is hard to conceptualize. My mom, especially, looked far too young and healthy to mistake her right from left in a yoga class, or be unable to perform simple daily tasks or stumble on her words when speaking. - And then there was the a...dded confusion of the terminology we use when speaking about cognitive decline: Dementia, Alzheimer’s. Frontotemporal, Lewy Body, Vascular, Parkinson’s related. What exactly are all of these and what is the difference? - Here’s the lowdown..Dementia is an umbrella term for cognitive decline (reduced thought processes), and memory loss. And there are numerous types and causes of dementia, some of the different types are mentioned above, and Alzheimer’s is one of the types of dementia. - Alzheimer’s disease is the most prevalent and rapidly growing type of dementia. This type of dementia affects the whole brain. Amyloid plaques (or clumps) and tau proteins (or tangles) can be seen in MRI’s on the brain and connections between neural/brain cells are reduced. The cause of these plaques and tangles is still unknown. There is belief that these might not even be the cause of cognitive decline but the brain's attempt at protecting itself. - Stay tuned for ways we believe can help prevent or slow the onset of Alzheimer’s disease - - - #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain #londonont #pharmacist #pharmd See more

Symphony Of Flowers | 36in x 48in - Learn more on my website, link in bio. - #art #modernart #abstractart #abstract #acrylicpaint #acrylicpainting#kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain

The Canadian Food Guide recommends 7-8 servings of fruit and veggies daily. I don’t know about you, but sometimes it’s hard to squeeze that into my day! So I’m sharing my quick and easy recipe for my green smoothie, that contains so many healthy fruits and vegetables :). Each serving is packed with vitamins, nutrients, antioxidants and a full 3-4 servings of fruit/veggies. It’s a low glycemic, low calorie and easy way to get my greens in. So drink up, guilt free! I highly re...commend a powerful blender, like my Vitamix that can pulverize almost anything, to get a palatable, smooth consistency. As an added hack, I usually buy my organic fruit and veggies, wash, chop and freeze so that I can make several servings quickly. - Recipe (for 1 serving): 1 cup roughly chopped kale leaves 1 cup organic baby spinach leaves cucumber 2 stalks celery cup raspberry 1/3 medium apple (or 1/3 cup fresh pineapple pieces, other berries, or other fruit of choice) Water to desired consistency ~ - #energy #fitlife #weightloss #greensmoothie #greens #antioxidants #healthy #vitamix #vitamixrecipes #kavitadesai #kavitadesaiart #kavitadesailife #kavitadesaimusic #life #londonontario #pharmd #pharmacist #momlife #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #Canadianmom #indiancanadian @ London, Ontario See more

Today is World Alzheimer’s Day. This picture was taken the day I made the decision to move my mom to a nursing home. Saying goodbye to her in the ambulance nearly broke me. I know there will be many moments over the next few weeks, months and maybe even years that I’ll miss my mom like I just lost her. There’s still so much I wanted to do with her and wanted to share with her. I wish I could tell her that I still need her. I might not be able to hold my mom again. But I... can continue to learn more from this disease. Help others live a life of prevention. And bring her along with me in the fight. - #worldalzheimersday #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain See more

Whether you’re feeling stressed, upset, rushed or just need to take a moment to reflect: remember to breathe. Even if only for a few a breaths, the reset can be just what our minds and bodies and souls need most. - Inhale for 5.....exhale for 5..... You got this ... - #brainhealth #breathe #inhaleexhale #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain See more

Ottawa Travel Part 2: Our Culinary Experience! As I mentioned before in my last post, Ottawa has an incredible food scene! Everything from local haunts to fine dining. We started each evening with phenomenal cocktails at Le Germain's in house restaurant, @norcarestaurant . Phillipe, who runs the bar at Norca, was a cocktail genius. His creations were thoughtful, and creatively put together. ... We also visited one of our favourites: @sidedoorkitchen . They serve up a tapas style menu, with an Asian flare. From mouth-watering tacos, to the best lobster green curry, you can’t go wrong with any of their dishes. And, of course, a trip to Ottawa, for us, is never complete without a night at Stephen Beckta’s flagship restaurant: @beckta_ottawa . We generally order the tasting menu, and it never disappoints. The flavours, the service, and the ambiance are always perfection. - #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain #tourismottawa #ottawa #localtravel #foodstagram #canadiantraveller #covidtravel @ Ottawa, Ontario See more

Feeling overwhelmed, exhausted or stressed? We all need to take some time to tend to our own inner garden - What are some things you do as self care? - -... - #selfcare #selflove #quotes #quoteoftheday #quotestagram #garden #wellness #kavitadesai #kavitadesaiart #kavitadesailife #kavitadesaimusic #life #londonontario #pharmd #pharmacist #momlife #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #Canadianmom #IndianCanadian #circleofcare See more

I’ve found these past few months eye-opening. There are so many things about life pre-Covid that I do not miss at all. The rushing, the stressing, the overall busy-ness of a week packed with too many errands and activities. But, on the flip side, I do miss just going OUT! I mean, I go out, but not in the same ways as before. I think twice about which groceries we *really* need. No quick trips to the store for us these days. I’m happy to wear my mask and do my part, but it’s ...strange how such a small thing can make an experience feel so different. Somehow, it’s less fun to go shopping with a mask on . Weird, but true . And the one thing I miss the most is traveling. Having a trip, even a short weekend getaway to look forward to is one of life’s greatest joys for me. - So, with school resuming and the warm summer days dwindling, my husband and I decided to make the best of these times and plan a fun getaway that is within driving distance, within Ontario, and with enough to do that we feel like we got a vacation, but can still practice safe social distancing and avoid needing to quarantine when we return. My husband grew up in Ottawa, but we rarely stay downtown and take in this magnificent city on foot as tourists. With the Gatineau mountains just on the other side of the Ottawa River in Quebec, the hiking options are endless. Seeing our Parliament Hill in person is spectacular, the Byward Market is a great place to walk around, shop and people watch. The city is packed with amazing museums and not to mention the food scene! I can’t say enough about the restaurants in Ottawa. - We had the pleasure of staying at Le Germain Hotel. As usual with the Le Germain hotels (we’ve enjoyed both of their Toronto locations, and their hotels in Montreal and Quebec City), the staff are amazing, and the rooms are modern and chic. Plus the location is perfect for walking to most of the downtown sites, museums and shopping malls! - Hope you consider a trip to our nation's beautiful capital, Ottawa . Stay tuned for my next post about our food experience - #ottawa #ottawatourism #travel #covidtravel #covid_19 #kavitadesai #life #ontario #ldnont #pharmd See more

Are you getting enough sleep? Or are you proud of your ‘burn the candle at both ends’ philosophy? Do you prescribe to the ‘less sleep means more time to be productive’ lifestyle? - I get it. We’ve all had times in our lives when we can’t sleep well or are so busy we sacrifice a restful night to get things done. However, research shows that we are not, in fact, better or more productive or healthier if we don’t get enough shut eye. Try to aim for 7-8 hours of good sleep and ...watch how much more alert and productive you feel. - The benefits of a good night's sleep are so plentiful, it should be a top priority to a healthier, better you! *reduced stress *improved memory *better mood *assists with weight management *better productivity and performance *boosts immunity And the list goes on! Researchers are also linking poor sleep to many disease states such as diabetes and Alzheimers. - I had the chance to watch Dr. Param Dedhia’s TedX talk about the benefits of sleep. He outlines how we have two important stages of sleep each night: Stage One: the first half of the night when we solidify memory, release growth hormone and our body physically repairs itself. Stage Two: the second half of the night when we clear emotions and problem solve. - So give your brain and body the chance to heal and be as efficient as possible for you! Setting yourself up for a great night's sleep means planning ahead during your day: Make healthy food choices so that your insulin doesn’t swing and you can burn more energy throughout the day. Be active in whatever way you enjoy. Create a bedtime ritual that works for you to wind down. I, personally, do the following: avoid electronic devices close to bedtime; drink a warm mug of SleepTight Tea (or anything non-caffeinated and calming); sleep in a darkened room with an eye mask, white noise machine, and maintain the room humidity near 50%. - Give it a try and wishing you Sweet Dreams - - - #alzheimersprevention #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #sleep #brainhealth #healthybrain @ London, Ontario

Thinking of all the fellow parents sending their kids back to school tomorrow for the first time in months! - If you're anything like me, you’re likely extremely confused as the rules and procedures seem to keep changing daily. - Be confident in whatever format you’ve chosen for your child(ren) and your family. If it’s what works best for you, then it’s the right decision!... We opted for full remote learning, which means many more months of the kids and I being home, in each other’s faces. But, I am able to work from home, as I’m self-employed, so this made sense for us. My younger two are twins, so I’m also fortunate that they have each other to play with. But even given all of that, was this decision easy? Absolutely not! My kids will miss seeing their friends, their teachers and escaping our house. But I really wanted to do my part and lessen the burden on the school system. And since I can be home to supervise, we agreed as a family, that this is what we would attempt. This school year is not going to be normal no matter which path we choose. But, know that our kids will be okay. They are resilient and strong, as are we. Here’s to a wonderful, albeit different school year - #covid19 #backtoschool #school #remotelearning #2020 #schooltime #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain See more

A socially distanced call with my producer, working on the finer details of my latest original song I was incredibly nervous going into this call. So much so that I manifested a whole lot of extra neck tension and my voice was doing things it doesn’t normally do making it particularly challenging preparing for this meeting. We were trying to achieve that last 5-10% of emotion in the lyrics that I had been struggling with prior to the Covid shutdowns. My type A personality... tends to get caught up in being technically accurate and not feeling the music and just being free. And as usual, my brain hears a bit of constructive criticism and my immediate reaction is that I’m not good enough, I should quit, or he has likely heard far better singers than me. But, as it usually goes with fear and self-criticism, our own narrative is FAR worse than reality. We set ourselves up for what we perceive the outcome to be, not reality. The call, as it turned out, went SO well. I am incredibly relieved. I’m not sure if it was because I lost my mom or the experience of living through this pandemic (or all the hard work and practice ), but the emotion is there in my voice now. And singing acapella on a Zoom call to a talented producer was actually fun and cathartic and rewarding. - #musician #zoommeeting #musicproducer #musicartist #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain

Do you have moments or days or weeks when you feel your own mortality? Where, perhaps, you don’t feel like the bright yellow dandelion you once were? No longer robust, feisty and persistent? I have those days. I find myself questioning if I am past my prime, no longer relevant. I feel it might be too late to do more, learn more, or achieve more. I feel as though my entire worth could blow away with a gust of wind on a stormy day. But being the fluffy, white dandelion is wh...at makes us prolific, wise and useful. It’s this stage of life where we have lived, learned and know our purpose. We have so much to share and give that our fragility is what makes us so strong. That gust of wind doesn’t break us, it helps us spread our awesomeness far and wide. We can proliferate and grow and expand. So, own your gray hairs, cherish the stretch marks, and rock the laugh lines. We haven’t lived a full life if we don’t have the battle scars to prove that we were here, we lived and we left our mark - - - #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain #dandelion #quoteoftheday #quotestoliveby #quotestagram #advice #growingup @ London, Ontario

A wonderful night out at our favourite London Thai restaurant, @thaifoonlondon . Amazing food, phenomenal service. Trying to support our favourite local restaurants as much as we can - #supportlocal #supportsmallbusiness #covid19 #supportlocalbusiness #thaifood #kavitadesai #life #londonontario #ldnont #pharmd #pharmacist #contemporaryartist #wellnessjourney #healthandwellness #Canadianartist #IndianCanadian #circleofcare #dementia #alzheimers #brainhealth #brain #519local #alzheimersawareness #preventativehealth #alzheimersprevention #healthybrain @ London, Ontario