Nearly every seat is taken for chair yoga at the St. James Assiniboia 55+ Senior Centre.

“I find it easier to get up and down. I’m not as stiff,” participant Joann Da Silva said.

Chair yoga is just one of many activities that fall under social prescribing, a doctor’s prescription, without medication.

“I love the socialization I see in my class. I love it when people meet and go for coffee after class,” instructor Mary Lou MacGregor said.

If a primary care provider has a senior patient they are concerned is isolated or lonely, they can write a social prescription.

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“Most of us are of an age and a lot of us are alone and we are coming to a very welcoming spot,” said Analee Hyslop, who’s part of the Golden Rule Senior Resource Centre.

That doctor’s prescription would connect older adults to community-based supports such as social and exercise programs, peer groups and practical services.

“The senior resource co-ordinator gets a referral from a primary care provider, a nurse practitioner, a family doctor, who then prescribes social connection, the benefits of belonging and connection,” said Joanne van Dyck, who’s a consultant for the Manitoba Association of Senior Communities on the social prescribing project.

While social prescribing has been around for a while, experts say it’s started to become more popular in Canada over the last few years as the benefits become more evident.

“Those who did participate had greater social support, they had higher cognitive abilities, increased satisfaction with life, fewer depressive symptoms, fewer anxious symptoms and fewer self-reported physical health conditions,” clinical psychologist Kristin Reynolds said.

Now, social prescribing is expanding across Manitoba. The province announced this week it will be available in all five regional health authorities.

“It bridges together a gap in care that we are sorely missing,” Reynolds said.

From pickleball and games to a variety of services, this increasingly popular prescription aims to help with overall well-being.

“Have some fun as you grow older because it’s not easy,” said Lynn Greaves, St. James Assiniboia 55+ Centre board of directors president.

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