BRAIN Lab

The Effects of Cannabis Use on Quality of Life and Health Outcomes in Chronic Pain

Investigating Graduate Student: Morgan Schaeffer

The aim of this research is to better understand how cannabis use affects physical, psychosocial, and cognitive health outcomes in aging Canadians living with chronic pain. With these findings, we hope to assist healthcare professions, public health stakeholders, and persons with lived experience of pain in making informed decisions about their health and treatment options.

Specifically, we hope to:
1) Identify what factors contribute to reduced (or improved) quality of life in Canadians living with chronic pain
2) Better understand how cannabis use affects health outcomes and quality of life in this population
3) Inform healthcare professionals, public health stakeholders, and Canadians with lived experience of the potential benefits and risks of choosing cannabis as a treatment for chronic pain symptoms

Exploring Resilience in Informal Caregivers of People Living with Dementia (PlwD)

Recruitment closing shortly. Currently recruiting ONLY participants who are able to complete BOTH parts of the study

Investigating Graduate Student: Maddie Gregory

Are you an unpaid caregiver for someone living with dementia in Canada? We want to hear from you! You can help by taking part in an online study about caregiver resilience, which means the ability to adapt, grow and do well even when facing tough situations.

Specifically, our research aims to:

1. Explore resilience-related behaviours in the context of informal PlwD caregiving by examining what behaviours are related to resiliency and how these behaviours are meaningful to caregivers
2. Determine the roles of environmental and individual factors in resiliency of caregivers of PlwD by exploring what factors influence a caregiver’s ability to engage in resilience-related behaviours 

The Cognition and Older Adult Stress (COAST) study

Investigating Graduate Student: Cian Dabrowski

Ever wondered how life stressors impact your health? Are you noticing changes in your thinking? We are investigating the cumulative effects of stress on cognition and brain function in older adults.

Specific aims include:                                                                                       1) To see if people who have gone through more stress over their lifetime perform worse on thinking tasks that require planning, memory, focus, and self-control.                                                                                    2) To find out whether people with more lifetime stress show signs of working harder in certain parts of their brain—especially the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in decision-making—when completing thinking tasks.                                                                                                                   3) To examine whether the amount of stress someone has experienced changes the way brain activity is linked to their thinking abilities. In other words, we want to see if stress makes it more likely that the brain must work harder just to keep up during everyday tasks. 

Evaluating Peer Support Services for Neurodivergent Post-Secondary Students

Investigating Honours Student: Jasmeen Khella

The goal of this study is to better understand the social well-being and emotional health of neurodiverse university students and how they perceive peer support.

Participation in the study would mean completing a 10-15 minute online survey with a subset of participants being invited to complete a follow-up interview. Participants will receive entries into a raffle draw for participation! If you would like to learn more about this study, check out the link below or email brain@uvic.ca!