Category Archives: Self Esteem

We Must Speak Up; We Must Speak OUT

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I add my voice to the growing number of health care professionals and medical societies condemning the newest human rights violation by the Trump administration against our transgender community. The urgency of this issue is paramount! To deny health care rights during a global pandemic is both inhumane and absurd. Our trans patients and colleagues are already vulnerable due to the health disparities inherent in our system and biases from healthcare practitioners. Not only are out trans patients affected but all patients who fall under any part of our QUEER community in the past, present or future are at risk, making it even more difficult to be open and honest wit our health care providers.

Gender based and transphobic violence includes racism, murder and hate crime. It disproportionately affects black trans lives, especially black trans women. In the midst of the Black Lives Matter uprising and Covid19 the reversal of transgender health protections puts an immediate threat to black trans patients, and all trans BIPOC patients who identify as gender neutral or non-binary.

This recent action should be met with a call to arms from all medical professionals, including attending physicians, resident, medical students, nurses, APPs and staff. We must to do our best to provide trauma-based compassionate medicine and NEVER deny care for transgender patients nor any LGBTQ patients. The personal views of providers in any setting (outpatient, clinic, hospital or otherwise) must not be allowed to interfere with the right to health care. The recent COVID pop-up hospital in a Brooklyn park that denied transgender and LGBT care is an atrocious example of what the Trump administration is suggesting here.

There is a dearth of education for healthcare professionals from the earliest academic levels. Health disparities, intersectional oppression, and implicit biases of language, systems and structures have to be called out and addressed to stop this cycle of ignorance. Silence is clearly violence, and we cannot in good faith stay silent and allow conservative politicians to sacrifice health protection in the names of transphobia and racism – not now or ever again.

  • Kaiser Kabir OMS4 Lincoln Memorial University
  • Masina Wright, DO PGY1 University of New Mexico Hospital, Internal Medicine
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A Habit is Harder to Break than a Heart

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Ugh. New Years Resolutions. Worst idea ever! And yet – I had a tough end of 2018 personally so I decided to make some resolutions in an effort to bring structure and more wellness to my life.

Well, it is 13 days in and I have already failed all of my official resolutions. In fact I failed my first one in the first two days of the year:

1. spend less time on my phone, especially in the company of people I love

Excuses are bountiful. However, If you are in the same boat as me with lofty goals and a complex life, I encourage you to think about resolutions as a year long goal, not something to be abandonded by week 3. It could take even 3 years to build the structure that you need to support the foundation of your bigger dreams/resolutions like an art or writing studio and time to produce new work.

The Winter Solstice (12/21/18) is when we annually rekindle the spark of the year ahead. This tiny flame grows to a raging bonfire at Summer Solstice with our culling and tending and then dwindles down to the blue flames of Halloween and Nov-Embers. Then the cycle begins anew with the next Winter Solstice.

If you looked at your resolutions as a fire you were to tend for a 12-36 month duration, would that change your approach? Your commitment to your Self or Visions?

I have things about my lifestyle I need to adjust, and those are built on deeply entrenched habits that function as crutches that allow me to perform in my hugely challenging day to day life. I cannot just pull the supports from my foundational Activities of Daily Living; I CAN build new supports/habits to relieve the not-so-functional structures.

Building a new wellness foundation takes a team or at the very least a multifaceted approach. I failed my New Years Resolutions the first week because I did not have my new structures in place to support them. I now see who and what I could rely on to make this reality functional, and this second week of the year I was 50% more successful in my goals.

What are your NYR? What changes do you need to make this happen?

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Gender Affirming Health Care: Top Ten Tips

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This article was written for the American Medical Student Association journal The New Physician October 2017. The original can be found at this link: http://mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?i=445109&utm_source=webtoc&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=O17#{“issue_id”:445109,”page”:1}. Volume 66, Number 5.

Picture this: it’s your second day of practice. You graduated medical school, made it into a residency, and now it’s time to be a doctor …. In walks your third patient of the day – medium height, medium build, medium length black hair, charming but shy face and awkward smile and – your quick-fire practiced analysis stops there – frozen, you can’t tell if this person is a girl or a boy. You glance at your paperwork. First Name: Robin. Last Name: Also Unhelpful. The person is talking in a midrange tone, and you aren’t listening because you are frantically scanning their body to figure out what lies underneath the black tee-shirt and dark Levis. You look up at the persons face and see it start to close as they observe you floundering to see past their gender.

Transgender Medicine is a newly emerging subspecialty, but every health care professional is already seeing transgender patients. Trans people have always been a part of every culture worldwide; in the last ten years there has been a public blossoming of gender expression in social media, television, and probably your personal family or friend circle as well. Transgender people have come out as part of our modern society, and as physicians we need to be culturally and medically competent enough to provide good medicine for this community.

As of 2017, there are several epicenters of transgender medicine, research and scholarship worldwide. The Dutch are famous for their longitudinal body of evidence on transgender health, as they have been collecting research and academic scholarship on transition medicine within their socialized health care system for over 30 years. As such, they have a tried and true so-called “Dutch protocol” for male to female (MTF) and female to male (FTM) transitions that has been used as a template for most international Standards of Care.

The US has several gender specialty clinics that conduct research and offer high quality trans health care. These clinics and hospitals are also key players in this rapidly evolving area of medicine, surgery and research. The best known of these include:

  • Fenway Health Center in Boston
  • The Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Mount Sinai in NYC
  • The Mazzoni Center in Philadelphia (which puts on the free Philadelphia Trans Health Conference annually)
  • The Center of Excellence for Transgender Health at UC San Francisco

For future and current physicians interested in Transgender Medicine as a specialty, the key areas for concentrated trans care are Family Medicine, Endocrinology, Psychiatry, Surgery/Urology and Pediatric Endocrinology. There is not yet a fellowship available in Transgender Adult or Pediatric Endocrinology (Coming Soon!) but the first fellowship in Transgender Surgery has been piloted this year at Mount Sinai in New York City.

Whether you want to dive into the depths of the transgender community and learn the intricacy of this rich and diverse community or not, as it was said before every physician will see trans people in their career. Take the time now to become familiar with the basics of transgender health literacy, for your professional integrity and your patients.

TOP 10 TIPS FOR BEING A TRANS FRIENDLY PHYSICIAN

DON’T GET HUNG UP ON IDENTIFYING GENDER IN THE FIRST 3 MINUTES. Gender and Sexuality Identity begin to develop at 2-3 years of age. Your patient has probably been trying to figure out their gender for a whole lot of years before they showed up in your office, so chances are their gender is more complicated than your 10 second evaluation. Once you notice you can’t confirm male or female specifically (spoiler alert: you may be wrong in your assessment) MOVE on with your objective assessment and Listen to what the person is saying.

THEY IS THE NEW SINGULAR PRONOUN: For some people, She doesn’t feel comfortable, but neither does He. Some people live in the space between male and female, and those definitive English pronouns can feel extremely uncomfortable. Being mis-gendered by pronouns is also surprisingly hurtful to trans people. “They” is a neutral pronoun that just feels more comfortable for some people. Why not use it? (Ps. Please don’t use the “it’s just not good grammar” argument because chances are your grammar isn’t perfect otherwise; and, while it may commonly be an English plural pronoun, Latin-based languages have pleural pronouns that can also be used in the formal You/singular.) Again, the use of “They” is really helpful to some people for communication purposes, so embrace it, try it on every day, and get used to it. In fact, it really comes in handy when referring to someone whose gender you can’t figure out, as in saying to your attending “I’m not sure what’s wrong, but they look really terrible, would you come take a look?”)

ACCEPT THAT SOME PEOPLE LIVE OUTSIDE THE LINES: Technically, the term is “non-binary” for people that don’t neatly fit into the sex-gender binary of male / female. This is a complex spectrum of identities that can be any shape or form and have any meaning for an individual. The non-binary space can be intentional with hormone use, or how people are born or mature. For people who have always fit within the binary, it can be hard to remember that other people LIKE THE WAY THEY ARE. It isn’t our job as physicians to try and get them to fit within a specific box. For other people, the non-binary identity may be a stepping point, a transitional space, or something they struggle with. As always it is simply our job as health care providers to create a safe place where people can talk about their health care needs, and help them get these needs met.

STATISTICS DON’T LIE: Not a lot is known about trans health care seeking behavior from an evidence based perspective, but from my community I know that many of my gender minority friends avoid health care due to bad medical experiences being misgendered, disrespected, or worse assaulted/insulted or denied care. From the research that does exist, the statistics are alarming. Dr. Angela Carter, a transgender physician from Portland, Oregon writes “One in 5 transgender people have been turned away from healthcare because of their gender, and an estimated 30% have avoided seeking care due to fear of discrimination. Reports suggest that 50% of transgender people have had to teach their physician how to care for them; 24% of trans people have been verbally harassed while seeking care; and, 2% report an actual physical assault while trying to get care.” Read more of her great Trans Health 101 article here: http://ndnr.com/endocrinology/transgender-healthcare/.

PAPERWORK: What is named, exists. If you have a box for Transgender or better yet Male to Female, Female to Male, and Gender Nonbinary on your intake form or embedded in your EMR next to Male and Female, you can have that helpful self-identifying information at the first encounter. At the same time, this improves the patients visit experience, offering a named identity and acceptance from the first encounter. Make sure your staff are educated in trans cultural competency as well. Include training elements like being compassionate and respectful with patients who may have gender incongruent birth names, insurance navigation, and associated pronoun use.

EMRs – UN/NECESSARY EVILS: It will take a long time and many years of advocacy work before most hospitals EMRs are updated to contain alternate gender identities; however, having staff who are trained in ways to communicate about gender differences can soften the experience for the person who is in an acutely ill and vulnerable state needing medical care. For example, triage personnel (and med students!) could say “”So, I know this may be a difficult question right now but what is your preferred pronoun and what is your is gender designation on your health insurance?” This non-judgemental approach leaves space for the person to give an answer without an explanation and conveys compassion in a business-like open-ended manner.

DON’T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER: Many trans people “pass” for their chosen gender completely. We need to be mentally and medically prepared for providing effective and competent health care to people who physically inhabit bodies that are hormonally and anatomically complex. Doing this work AND exploring your own personal, moral, or religious complexities of feelings about trans gender and identity needs to be done BEFORE that patient walks in your door needing your professional skills as a doctor, not your human opinions.

KNOW YOUR RESOURCES: The World Professional Health Association (wpath.org) has been the guiding force and academic collective of transgender scholarship for the past 30+ years. WPATH has been at the heart of the conservation and documentation of the protocols used for transitional medicine. There is a published a Standards of Care (version 7.0) that is available online and in print. University of San Francisco also has a superior online learning center with everything you need to know to start basic primary trans care including evidence based protocols. http://transhealth.ucsf.edu/trans?page=guidelines-home. Fenway Health is the east coast online epicenter for trans health resources and reading and has great free training webinars http://fenwayhealth.org/care/medical/transgender-health/. Take an afternoon and familiarize yourself with these sites, bookmark them, and pass them on.

KNOW MORE RESOURCES: No one should have to travel beyond state lines to get competent medical care. As with most kinds of medicine, having a grasp of your local resources is essential, especially for primary care docs who just can’t do everything (contrary to popular belief.) Know who is providing competent transgender primary care and endocrinology for adults and for children in your area, who has experience with transition hormone therapy, where to refer for respectful electrolysis and other cosmetic procedures, and who is offering the basic surgeries like mastectomy in your part of the world is a great way to provide your gender minority patients with access and resources. If there isn’t anyone offering these services, consider taking a WPATH certification course and becoming that person.

DON’T BE AN ASSH**E: The best thing to do when you make a mistake is apologize. I have over 10 years of professional experience with trans health and gender non-conformity has been part of my social circle for 20+ years and I still unfortunately misgender people, use the wrong pronouns, and say awkward things. And then I apologize and learn from my mistakes. Doctor-patient relationships are built on an exchange that requires integrity and some transparency. You don’t have to be the expert in trans medicine- your patient is the expert in what their body (mind spirit) needs. Your job is to help them maintain a safe and consensual medical space where they can address health concerns and work towards their optimal self-expression. This may include transitional hormones and gender affirming surgery for some, or it may be flu shots and cholesterol testing for others. Or oncology. Or labor and delivery. Or sickle cell anemia. Who knows what the person will need, trans people are people and you have one in your office right now. What will you do?

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Evolutionary Success vs Child Free Living

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As you know, I have been struggling with my biological clock: my age and stress level tick louder than ever. Weighing the cost of motherhood against my career in medicine has never been an equal balance with scales always tipped in the favor of my seemingly insatiable appetite for knowledge. And yet – I’ve been studying fertility since 2004, seeing fertility docs since 2008, and  froze my eggs in 2013. I am always scheming to figure out “when is a good enough time”. Yes, I know there “is never a good time: but as a lesbian with a choice, isnt there a “better time”? And here I am, child free, finally happily coupled, and in my third year of medical school in 2017.

I just completed 6 weeks working with newborns and doing well-baby checks to mostly women under 30 in my first pediatric rotation. I I couldn’t help thinking about the definition of evolutionary success as progeny. Many moms I worked with had 4-8 other babies. Some were on opioids, many smoked pot and tobacco or even took buspirone and SSRIs throughout their pregnancy and had sick/addicted babies. Some were very very young. But evolutionarily, each of them had already surpassed me even with my 2.5 degrees, $500k of education,  and diverse, privileged, happy life. I realized I am currently an evolutionary failure.

I am an archetype of my Generation X.  I don’t have many excuses for child-free living left, having had a bacchanalian and free-spirited 20’s and 30’s. Is it time for me to “settledown”? Who am I if I choose NOT to have a child of my own?

My primary reasoning for not spawning includes RESPONSIBILITY – towards my career/education and more importantly, to the kid. Who brings a child into the world who is guaranteed a mom who is away from home 12-18 hours a day (unavoidable in medical school -residency)? Where is the evolutionary success in that? Generationally, I do not have the same programming my parents had to marry/reproduce, and as a lesbian it didn’t happen by accident. Also, as a kid myself who had a high ACE score, I don’t want to perpetrate even a privileged neglect into another generation. So, here I am: struggling with my generational expectation to break the glass ceiling, achieve my highest ambitions, follow my dreams … and shouldering the unspoken price of doing that.

Maybe I could redefine evolutionary success. Not “survival of the species” but survival of the…planet? Conscious eco-systeming? Or maybe even the more complicated redefining of family/familial success – what if evolutionary success was a life well-lived and well-loved, and a small carbon footprint; a kinship network of peers, lovers, and lifelong friends instead? Children no longer live to serve their elder parents, and even if I had a child, I would not be promised a safe and well-cared for death. Still, at the end of the day, even though I have many cousins with beautiful babies carrying on the family line in all directions, my personal lineage of Wright-Larson will not be carried on unless I have a kid. That feels sad. That does feel like failure.

I stand with my aching feet and my scrubs and pager, knowing raising my own babies is not likely going to be the life I get to live this time around.

I have always been an outlier. I chose Naturopathic medical school in the 90s, chose the urban underbelly in the 2000s, and chose osteopathic medical school in the 20-teens.  I’m 92% reconciled that I will enjoy my child-free life and travel to Tokyo, Vatican City, Barcelona, and live in expensive, romantic urban centers. Because I consistently choose career, love and adventure over a baby and domesticity I will be able to live a certain kind of lifestyle. But that doesn’t make it easier when I come home smelling like babies from a day at work, or when I see my cousins achingly beautiful creative charming kids. There is no consolation prize for evolutionary failure. Only the small faith that I am making the right choice for the kid I would create and maybe a for this planet, and hopefully for, myself and my love.

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(Least)* Complicated

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Walking the tightrope between being a current MSII medical student and a Naturopathic Doctor is a delicate balance sometimes. I never know whether my career as an expert in alternative medicine is going to be a blackball or a gold star because of the very mixed opinions people have about my former profession in the medical world. My plan, heading into the first day of medical school was not to tell anyone my (second) degree when I started (my third degree) at UNECOM, but it was announced in orientation so my cover was blown.

Being a ND in general is pretty complicated – working outside of insurance in most states is a financial challenge for patients as well as doctors, and public knowledge about the profession is highest on the west coast of the US and Canada, and in more affluent areas of the NorthEast. Many people get excited when I say I am a doctor, then look back blankly when I tell them what kind of medicine I practice(d). People who know the field have reactions that are pretty love: hate. Lots of lovers, quite a few haters, and an ever-growing population of quiet converts who realize that, as one anonymous Twitter medical student said in my recent Twitter Flaming on the topic: people who are interested in alternative medicine are usually trying to take care of their health and make themselves feel better.

IMG_6031I have recently been made aware of a woman who attended a west coast Naturopathic Medicine College who has turned against the profession “with an inside view” and who is engaging in aggressive muckraking. She is getting recognition and validation as an “insider” to Naturopathic Medicine as she did complete our 4-year postgraduate degree before she quit and moved to Germany. She has started a petition to defame the profession worldwide. The unfortunate thing is she lives outside the US and is not accountable for US or CDN slander laws. What she is doing is poignantly effective because she has inflamed the haters. One doctor in particular is a physician and educator with the influential Doctors in Training Boards Exam Review Series. He has a large Twitter following and has enthusiastically joined in the slander of the Naturopathic Profession. I worry about how his “expert” personal opinion will effect future generations of physicians who have not considered their professional opinions of Naturopathic Medicine due to lack of exposure.

Big media like Forbes has jumped on the “tin foil hat” bandwagon by supporting her claims that botanical medicine, nutrition, physical medicine, homeopathy, mind/body practices and stress management are invalid sciences without evidence. The American and Canadian federal Naturopathic associations have both started a counter-petition against these muckracking efforts.

All of this is personally upsetting for me. It stirs a complicated turmoil of emotions, injustice, pride, and frustration that mixes my own choices with a very clear working knowledge of the weight that “the big lie” technique can carry in the world of propaganda. All of this comes at a time when “Functional Medicine” and “Integrative Medicine” are the new darlings of allopathic medicine alongside epigenetics and the microbiome.

Newsflash: Functional Medicine and Integrative Medicine ARE evidence based Naturopathic Medicines, researched by and for NDs originally.

Naturopathic Doctors are systematically being defamed and slandered while our actual practice techniques are being picked up and renamed and celebrated for their effectiveness.

I feel helpless in the face of this complicated adversity. I made my personal choice to add an Osteopathic Degree to my knowledge base because there was more to medicine I wanted to know – pharmacology, emergency medicine, psychiatry, and other facets of transgender medicine I need additional training on. I know the great value of Naturopathic Medicine and so do a great number of North American consumers. I suppose I need to trust that the greater good will prevail in the end…. but that may not help me or my career path when I am placed in a hospital as an MSIII or resident with an attending like the Internist above who hates everything alternative and Naturopathic medicine stands for.

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The Lost Art

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I am sick in an invisible way that people cant really see, and I don’t really feel – much. I can take a pill and make it mostly unnoticeable. Except for the fact that my hair falls out in handfuls with a certain kind of stress…

I consider myself an expert in self-care. And yet, I can hardly find the time to do the “little” things that I know could help. Like, nettle hair rinses, getting at least 8 hours of sleep every night, taking my fish oil, and eating more protein. Instead, I keep myself too busy and dull myself with things that make me feel better for a few hours, but never in the long run. I have fallen into the mindlessness of  modern health care where I want a pill to do the work of healing for me. Dammit!

We all have levels of health maintenance we are willing to do on a regular basis. Vitamins, exercise, water, organics, therapy, whatever. We each have a certain degree of self care required to maintain the status quo of daily function. But, what happens when that balance is tipped and we need to actually recover from an illness, injury, or accident?

I offer you an invitation to step off the rat wheel of everyday living, and create a luminal space for healing. A luminal space is an anthropology term that refers to a period of time “outside of time” – a step out of everyday living. Some health crisis force this through body fluid effluvia that ties one to the bathroom, or physical disability that prevents mobility. Too often we are able to power through a cold, or anxiety attack or injury and do not engage in the art of self care to allow actual healing. This is what snowballs into chronic illness / disease or chronic pain.

I have been “sick” for at least 9 months, but I haven’t made more than a few half-hearted efforts to engage in deep self care. I have taken lots of prescriptions and had lots of blood tests, but is that truly healing medicine? I finally broke my baby toe last week, and have been suddenly forced to slow down by immobility. I am doing hydrotherapy, making castor oil packs, cooking and eating good food, meditating, saying no to social engagements I don’t deeply want to do, and getting sleep. These are some of the cornerstones of deep self care.

It is very difficult to give ones self approval to close the door on society and expectations and family, and friends, and chores, and domestic duties, and distractions, and choose to do something solely for the self instead. We are culturally programmed to take care of business, pleasure, family, kids, dogs, and our homes before we take care of the inner self. If you are sick, at any level, you will heal faster, and better if you take the time to practice deep medicine by taking the time to take care of your self.

I am here to help you do that. And, I give myself permission to offer that same wisdom and practice for my self. The pills and the maintenance are not enough. We must engage the luminal, lost art of deep self care for complete health and healing.

 

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Ideal Weight Program

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photo 3Welcome to a new way of working with body image, metabolism, eating patterns and ultimately, weight management. This is not a diet. Let me repeat. This is not a diet.

Study after study have shown that only 2% of people who lose weight by dieting are able to keep it off for life; 98%  of dieters gain back the weight they have lost plus more. This endless cycle slowly but surely adds pounds while eroding your sense of self worth. It also creates chaos within the blood sugar, hormone and neurotransmitter system that leads to further metabolic disruption.

Now is the time to change the old patterns. With awareness and a commitment to change, you can rewrite the story of your body. Your cells are constantly regenerating themselves; with direction from your mind and an individualized, functional medicine approach to improving structure and function you can reach your ideal metabolism, energy, and physique.

This program is divided into four phases. Each phase is at least 90 days long. Some people will need more time in an individual section, and can stay in each section as long as needed. The four sections are like a wheel, and where you start depends on your health, area of interest, and life circumstances. Some people will move in a linear direction through each step, and others will hopscotch from one area to the other. The secret to success is that we follow your body, your life, and your needs to unlock your ideal.

The four treatment sections are: FOOD, DIGESTION, STRESS, HORMONES

FOOD:  It only makes sense to work with food when addressing weight. Food is actually a very complicated topic, and one that most people have layers and layers of  complex conditioning around. We will start with a comprehensive 200 food ALCAT sensitivity test that will empower and educate you to make food choices based on YOUR immune system reactions to food (food sensitivities.) There are so many diets, so much information, so many food gurus and opinions out there! This test allows you to claim your own power around food choices based on your body’s unique message. In this section we will also teach you how to identify when you are hungry, and when you are full. These simple intuitive eating approaches build awareness and compassion, connecting you to your own primitive need for food as fuel.

DIGESTION: Effective food breakdown and waste elimination is crucial to a healthy body. Nausea, bad breath, appetite fluctuations, heartburn, indigestion, gas, cramping, bloating, constipation, hard stools, soft stools and diarrhea are all signs that your body is not digesting effectively. We will use a CDSA (Comprehensive Digestive Stool Analysis) to investigate all parameters of digestion including beneficial and pathogenic flora levels to truly repair and restore your digestive tract. This will have multiple health benefits including a more balanced immune response, increased energy,  regular bowel movements, potential pain relief and much more. As your digestive system is renewed you will be able to maintain your ideal weight more effectively as the body processes the food you eat with ease.

STRESS: Our brain decides when we are hungry, and when we are full. It also decides when we will eat. These two actions are not neccessarily in harmony. By looking at neurotransmitter levels that are intricately linked to food and well-being, we can understand some of the complexity of the mind-body-food relationship. During this time we will assess the stress in your life, and build stress management skills. Using botanical medicine we will tonify your endocrine system, enhancing your capacity to experience stress with ease and resiliency. At the same time, awareness exercises continue the weight-related exploration of finding and maintaining your ideal physical body with a healthy, relaxed mind.

HORMONES: Most people gain weight when their hormones begin to decline. This usually refers to reproductive hormones like estrogen, progesterone and testosterone, but  thyroid and adrenal hormones are also crucial to a vibrant and efficient metabolism. Finally, Human Growth Hormone levels dictate the speed at which we age.  This section utilizes the Age Management comprehensive hormone blood work panel to thoroughly investigate the state of your hormones. Using cutting edge anti-aging therapies and Bioidentical hormone treatments we will optimize your hormones, rejeuvenating your sex life, cognitive function, energy levels and more.  Some participants may also choose to do a 26 day HCG diet as part of this personally tailored hormonal wellness program for more radical weight loss.

Each of these components make up the whole that is your living body and each have a profound effect on weight. Whether you want to lose 10 lbs or 100lbs, or even want to learn how to maintain your current weight in a more relaxed fashion, our Ideal Weight Management program will bring you closer to that which we all seek – your ideal Self. As your awareness of the triggers behind your disordered eating patterns come clear, your need to medicate with food will shift. Functional issues like constipation, heartburn, and nausea will transform into easy, successful elimination of your body’s waste, allowing a more effective fuel-burning metabolism to emerge. And, you will feel more energized and better able to handle the stresses of everyday living without food as a crutch.

This program is not for the faint of heart. It is for people who have dieted all their life. It is for all genders and all ages. There is no standardized program that you must sacrifice and change to be accepted into – this is a truly individualized series of sessions that unearths the inner you …that you will adore.

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The Longest Night of the Year

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December is not always mistletoe and gingerbread. It can be one of the hardest times of the year for many people. People aren’t supposed to die on Christmas and relationships aren’t supposed to end around the holidays…. but they do. The myth of the happy family is only a reality for a portion of the population; and even those who do celebrate Christmas with family can have significant stress and sorrow around money, relationships, and more.

So, for those who are alone this month, or in the midst of tragedy or change or trauma, I wanted to offer some self-care advice. From a metaphysical perspective, no matter what your religion is, this time of year IS about the miracle of returning light. The first few weeks of the month bring ever increasing darkness. Light some lights in your own home, whether they are candles or Christmas lights, reflecting your own inner flame. No matter how dark the world appears, each of us has the light of our soul to guide us. Connect with yours.

broken_heart_remedy_compoundFor those with heartache, there are many botanicals that offer gentle physical and emotional support. Avena botanicals makes a Broken Heart herbal tincture and a lovely sweet Rose Petal Elixir. The elixir is in a glycerin base and is used to gently lift the spirits and open the heart. It tastes like a rose smells on a hot summer day! Many herbalists make their own rose petal elixirs at the summer solstice, in preparation for this dark time of year. Herbal medicines like these affect our body, mind and spirit. By using self-care medicines we are making a commitment to our Self to move through this time of change with as much gentle strength and internal fortitude as possible. http://www.avenabotanicals.com/rose-petal-elixir.html 

Many people have seasonal affective disorder (SAD) or just simply hate the cold. We have had a particularly cold pre-winter here in Maine, which makes getting out to enjoy our gorgeous local landscape more difficult. Prevention is key for SAD – once it takes hold it is harder to manage. Adequate levels of Vitamin D3 are especially important. I generally recommend 2,000-5,000 IU daily depending on your body weight and Vitamin D reserves. Have you had your blood levels of Vitamin D checked yet this fall? High quality fish oil is a good adjunct to Vitamin D, enhances its absorption and can help with mental health. Fish oil contains two chemical constituents – EPA and DHA. The EPA is the part that helps with depression. Aim for a minimum of 650 mg of EPA daily, taken with your D3.

Saint Johnswort is another classic treatment for SAD. This herb affects the metabolism of many medications. Therefore, I only suggest using St Johnswort if you are not on any other meds. Dosage must be 900 mg per day, taken *every day.* This herb acts like SSRI antidepressants in that it takes about 4 weeks to get the full effect, and it needs to be taken daily for best results. This herb has evidence of use back to 400AD by Hippocrates. It is an ancient and magical herb with an association to light. It is no mistake that it is useful for SAD! If you do take medications like birth control, daily pain medication or blood pressure medication but would like some mood support you can consider 5-HTP. This is a serotonin precursor that is naturally produced in the body, and is available in supplement form. It can be helpful for anxiety, depression, insomnia and “the blues.” It is quite safe in general, although it should not be taken along with antidepressant medications unless specifically advised by an Integrative Medicine Dr. Typical dosage for 5-HTP is to start with 50 mg twice a day, and increase to up 150 mg twice a day as needed.

Exercise and meditation are two other valuable tools for getting through hard times. Exercise releases endorphins which simply make us feel good! It can be a walk around the block or a cross-fit class or hot yoga. The type of exercise does not matter as much as the act of getting into your body and out of your head. Meditation offers ways to step outside the constant chatter of our ego. I recommend a guided meditation for beginners. I use this Buddhist body-focused beginner set by Reginald Ray, but there are many more available! http://www.soundstrue.com/shop/promotion/1047.pd

At the end of the day, we each need to get through our darkest times in the ways we know how. Alcohol, television and drugs are all effective in their own way, but they also exacerbate the feelings of isolation and despair. Connecting to your inner light source and fanning your fires of spirit and confidence and strength will help grant you the courage to move through these difficult times. Some of us need more help than others to connect to our strengths, and supplements like herbal remedies, vitamin D, fish oil, St Johnswort and 5HTp can be great support systems. I love the rose petal elixir for its sweet uplifting taste of summer in these harsh cold days of winter.

For personal support on transforming your own journey or connecting to your inner strengths, book an appointment with Dr. Wright. She is available for consults during the month of December including December 27, 2013.

Call 207-774-1356 now.

References:

The ABC Clinical Guide to Herbs. American Botanical Council, Thieme Publishing 2003. Currently out of print.

Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine. Michael Murray ND and Joseph Pizzorno ND. Prima Publishing, Rocklin, CA 1998

www.avenabotanicals.com

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#TTC – Safe Treatments for Fertility & First Trimester Anxiety

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The work of becoming/being pregnant marks a time in a woman’s life when the game changes. Alcohol is no longer an option for stress management. Most herbs and even common teas are viewed with suspicion, and many medications are frowned on. Many of our crutches for managing the stresses of daily life are taken away, and the stress of in/fertility is added. However, there are natural treatments available for this time period to reduce stress, ease anxiety, and support a healthy first trimester.

Flower Essences are very safe for all expecting and #TTC moms, and are especially useful for women using multiple fertility and metabolic medications as they have no interactions or side effects! Flower remedies are literally essences of the particular flower in a brandy solution. Bach flower essences are the most commercially available. FES (Flower Essence Society,) Alaskan Essences, Perelandra and more are other well respected flower essence brands. Bach has 38 different flower remedies available; however the following are especially pertinent for fertility and first trimester. Dosage is 3-5 drops in water 2-4 times daily or as needed. The very small amount of alcohol in these medications will not cause any fetal problems as it is so minute a dose.

Aspen: For apprehension and vague fears

Gorse: Brightens perspective and increases optimism.

Holly: For envy or jealousy of others

Larch: Gets one out of the success/failure paradigm and increases self-confidence

Wild Rose: Restores interest and joy when feeling apathetic or resigned.

White Chestnut: Restores a peaceful mind when caught in repetitive thoughts

Botanical Medicine: Some herbs are appropriate for this time period, however most herbs are best set aside until the pregnancy is well established or beyond breastfeeding. One herb that is a #TTC and first trimester best friend is viburnum prunifolium otherwise known as black haw. This is different from viburnum opulus aka cramp bark – do not mix the two! Black haw quiets an “irritable” uterus, and prevents miscarriage. It is very safe and quite effective. I recommend 1/4 to 1/2 tsp daily for the first trimester as needed. For questions and concerns, refer to your local Naturopathic Doctor who can take your full history and prescribe according to your individual health care needs. Oatstraw or avena sativa is also a wonderful tonic that is nourishing to the body and calming to the mind. This herb is best taken as a tea. It is gluten free, hydrating with rich minerals (therefore great for morning sickness) and soothing to frazzled nerves. Valerian is perfect for nighttime anxiety. It is safe in pregnancy, breastfeeding, and for pediatrics. This is Mother Nature’s truly sedative herb. Used in doses of 5-30 drops before bed, this can help quiet the mind and improve the duration and quality of sleep. I like it as an alcohol free (glycerite) tincture as the taste is slightly sweeter than the alcohol based formula. Capsules are also an option although I prefer the smaller dosing options of the liquid form. (Valerian is very well researched, please contact me for a formal monograph if desired.)

imagesFinally, lavender essential oil has a time honored place in the treatment of anxiety.  For those whom lavender has a calming effect you can use lavender products liberally that have the real essential oil in them – avoid synthetic fragrance analogues. There are now lavender essential oil capsules that are quite effective for treating occasional or situational anxiety. These act quickly and safely to diminish feelings of panic, irritability and stress. Typically essential oils should not be used internally during pregnancy, so these lavender caps are best used only until the day of ovulation. There is a lavender glycerite tincture also available which can be used sparingly while pregnant in doses of 1-2 drops for anxiety and panic as needed. There is some (internet) controversy surrounding the use of lavender in pregnancy; however, it is not listed in any of the classic literature as a herb to avoid in first trimester.  My opinion is that if this botanical medicine is the one thing that works to soothe your fears, use it in moderation. If it increases your anxiety due to the multitudes of internet opinions, avoid it! Here is a link to a well researched blog post on the safety of lavender essential oil in pregnancy: http://roberttisserand.com/2011/07/lavender-oil-and-pregnancy/

Acupuncture and Registered Massage Therapy are also fabulous safe care therapies for anxiety and stress while #TTC. Acupuncture has a proven track record of efficacy when it comes to enhancing not only assisted reproduction but also all conception. Studies have shown that weekly acupuncture greatly reduces the rate of miscarriage during first trimester, especially for women with a previous miscarriage. This is in part due to its ability to support the expectant mom through the first 12 weeks. The therapeutic touch offered by massage therapy also has the ability to soothe anxiety, ease depression, and support the physical changes of pregnancy. The resulting relaxation offers an anxious expecting mom a few moments to quiet the mind, which can have great positive effects overall. It is important to see an acupuncturist or massage therapist trained in pregnancy massage as there are specific techniques and positions used for this treatment.

All in all, this is such a time of mystery, of waiting, and of trust that it can be overwhelming to have to “go with the flow.” Every couple experiences some level of anxiety, and some have a very hard time as #BFN’s happen again and again.  Flower essences, black haw, oatstraw and lavender glycerite are natural remedies that any couple can use to support their own mental and emotional wellness on the road to becoming a family. There are many more herbs, vitamins, and therapies available for #TTC and expectant moms that are based on the individualized medicine offered by a licensed Naturopathic Doctor.

Links and Resources:

http://www.gowonderworks.com/flower_essences

http://www.bachflower.com

http://www.fesflowers.com

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6882/12/20

http://www.fertilityfactor.com/infertility_acupuncture.html

http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/prenatalmassage.html

 

 

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Improving Libido with Naturopathic Medicine

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Sex, sex drive and inherent libido are all very complex subjects in modern culture, affected by our extremely long TO DO lists tagged onto the ends of busy days. Here is an article I wrote for QueeriesMag.com February 2013 on Naturopathic Medicine to increase sex drive.Let me know what you think!

http://queeriesmag.com/index.php/2013/02/14/on-the-kitchen-table/

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