Finding a New Primary Care Doctor

A Big Thanks To Leslie at Wellparents.com for this great advice Thanks to Leslie at Read more

The Rollercoaster of Life

Grandma: "I always wanted to go again. You know, it was just so interesting that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn't like Read more

Sheltering at Home/Covid 19

Never in the last two decades of my career as a physician would I have imagined that we would be using the same mask to see patients all day and then sterilizing/recycling them at the end of the day. Read more

Turmeric Health Benefits

Have you ever wondered what the paste is applied to the bride and groom's faces and arms in Indian weddings?  It's actually the spice turmeric.  Turmeric is the ingredient in curry that gives it a vibrant yellow color.  Actually, Read more

COVID 19 Precautions

With the scare of COVID here in the USA now, I wanted to post a little info about boosting immunity to prevent contracting the virus. Here are some important facts about Covid-19 It is spread by contact with Read more

Natural Tips for Avoiding Colds

This cold and flu season is still upon us and unfortunately, many patients are still being plagued by these nasty viral symptoms.  Here are a few tips to try if you feel like you are coming down with something. Of Read more

Sherry's Story

Sherry has a great story.  She has been diabetic for years and she has made some massive changes!   "I have been on a lifestyle change. It has been a year following a ketogenic food plan.  When I started this journey Read more

Pharmacy to Farmacy

Many of you may know Erin-- the fabulous Pharm D that worked in our office a few years back.  Erin is a phenomenal gal and we embarked on the journey  into natural medicine around the same time.  As we both Read more

family

The 2012 Mother’s Day Anthem!

Thanks Dee—

I had a wonderful Mother’s Day–I spent it laughing with true belly laughs doing mundane chores with my kids and family.  I appreciate the blessings I have been given and especially take the time to think about them on these holidays! I’m lucky that my Mom is there to support me and not afflicted by disease— however, many people are and are not so lucky.  I am more than thankful that Dee is a fabulous mom despite her woe for her own mother’s ailments.  She has learned from the best example that keeping God or Kindness as your king will always lead you in the right direction.

Dee writes today:

“Mother’s day anthem for 2012.  It was a great day. All that ever matters to me is getting to spend time with my mom and my daughters. Over the past few days, I’ve been in touch with my brother and sister more than usual and we were all three reminded of how close we are and how great our appreciation is for our mom. She currently lives in a nursing home after suffering a stroke when a brain aneurysm ruptured 20 years ago. She is wheelchair-bound and after surviving breast cancer a year and a half ago, she also was admitted to and then discharged from hospice for failure to thrive.

Today’s visit with her was, at her request, lunch at Bob Evans. She ordered a side dish of sausage gravy and biscuits, only eating half. From the time we picked her up she started thanking us for the “treat.” Then she stated and reiterated how blessed she is, for having a good home with fun activities, good food, and a lot of friends.  When I walk into a nursing home and look around, just being there briefly is more than I care to be there. Her food is ground up in a food processor to make it easier to chew and it seems to be bland and flavorless. People around her moan and call out into thin air. And even though it is a very clean place, relatively, it sometimes smells like an outhouse.

God actually, is everywhere, often in the shape of mothers!

And yet, my dear mother whose left breast is missing, and has no use of one leg or hand, is perpetually blessed. I’m blessed just to know her.”

 

I read a post on Facebook the other day–it said that giving up complaining is one of the 15 things that will make you truly happy.  Apparently your mom is a step ahead of the rest of us.  My father had a stroke a few years ago and was fortunate that it did not leave him paralyzed.  It did affect his balance and he had to spend a few weeks in a rehabilitation center.  It was a difficult time for all of us and we are blessed that he is doing well now.  I think my vow in honor of your mom tomorrow will be to go an entire day without complaining about anything.  It may be rough and I may have a really interesting post for you tomorrow –but, I will try.  The best way to change the world is to change yourself!

Posted on by Angela in Benevolence, Body, cancer, disease, Guest Blog, Mind Leave a comment

The Richest Gift—Family

 

This post is for Mother’s Day.  It is also for the value of family and remembering what is actually important in life.  Dee wrote a post last week that may have kept me out of  jail for considering inflicting some serious harm to a few of my selfish family members.   I texted my mom in my frazzled state (Yes, she is totally awesome and knows how to text) and asked her if I was on the verge of insanity?—she replied, “step back and put things into perspective.”  Thank God for my family and friends that are all consistently there for me!  And thank you Dee for putting perspective back into this crazy world.   Sometimes, you have a “horrible, terrible, no good, really bad days”  just like Alexander–but, that is no excuse to throw in the towel or move to Australia!

Dee wrote:
It’s lunchtime and I just returned from a meeting, so I’m at my work desk. Over the past couple of days, I have been corresponding with my sister Jody and my brother Bil via emails. Simultaneously, I have been conversing with my two teen daughters through text messages and arguing with my husband in a Google Chat. And in my work world I am discussing relatively trivial matters with co-workers and acquaintances while logging hours on a timesheet until 5 o’clock rolls around and my real life begins. I’m fortunate to have a job that I really like, fortunate to have a job at all, and a vehicle to get here and a home to return to. But, in the last couple of days, my brother and sister have given me the richest gift: a reminder of the inherent love that we were given for family and the appreciation of character traits that our parents instilled. This month is Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day next month. There are no words to describe the kindness and love of life my mother has. As a Christian, I know that my joy should never come from my circumstance but rather from the knowledge that I am God’s child and am promised eternal life. My mother has been subjected to nearly tragic medical traumas, and yet she is joyful. She’s in a wheelchair with physical disabilities and mental deficits, but she exudes love and compassion. Our father, the earthly one, is one of the strongest men I know. Even as I’ve grown up and have moved away from him, I don’t think there is any human who has the capacity to make me feel safe the way that my dad would or could. It’s like being a little girl and watching him lift something beyond my ability in amazement.And as for my sister and brother, they are a constant source of showing me in life, what Jesus would do. That’s really what I believe my purpose is, to find ways every day to help whoever God puts in my path. Whenever I see a kid with a broken down bike or offer a kind word to an elderly woman, I stop and thank God for letting me be in the right place at the right time. Jody and Bil are just like that, walking the walk, selflessly. I love you guys, so much.P.S. Dad called me today. It was the first call he made to me in about two years. Thank you.
Posted on by Angela in Benevolence, Call to action, Charity, Mind, Spirit Leave a comment

Give and Take

Very well said Dee!  I have and regularly do change the toilet paper roll while on it!  For some odd reason, my family members are physically incapable.   I am raising teenage mutant toilet paper changers!  The infamous “MOM–BRING ME TOILET PAPER” echoes through the house at least once a week!”
Dee writes today:
This note is to women, specifically speaking to a couple of my closest friends, you know who you are. I’m of the strong opinion that most women are givers rather than takers. Men can be either one but I don’t know any women who are takers. I am a giver, married to a taker.At different places in my life I’ve reached really low lows and I actually feel like I’ve tapped into a deficit reserve, overdrawn my emotional bank account to be sure to give to the important people in my life. Lots of you do this, to a fault, despite the havoc it wreaks on your health and/or self-worth. The funny part about our performance of these super-human feats is that it’s not for any recognition or glory. There is no payment, payoff or earthly reward. The benefit is rarely an ego boost and efforts are frequently unnoticed or taken for granted.I’ve multi-tasked in some of the most humorous situations…ever sopped up water on the floor by scooting in your socks, scrubbed a shower while you’re in it, changed the toilet paper roll while your on it?

We eat cold dinner after everyone else has finished, or no dinner when unexpected kids show up.  We staple our hems and safety-pin our bras, squeezing every bit of life out of them before investing in new ones.

I’ve been called a martyr, but that was by the taker in my family, the adult one. It’s really not martyrdom at all, just what we do. Anyway girls, just be mindful of it and don’t feel like you can’t take time for yourselves, pamper yourselves, indulge yourselves. Afterall, you can’t give what you don’t have. Don’t drive on fumes!

Posted on by Angela in Family, Guest Blog, Humor, Spirit Leave a comment

Alone together

Christopher Nagy M.D. is a man on a mission. Dr. Nagy has a great deal of medical experience as an Orthopaedic Surgeon over the past 15 years. But, as someone who is passionate about real wellness (rather than merely treating symptoms), he knows that the current practice of medicine does not have all the answers. Dr. Nagy’s goal is to help educate and introduce an important treatment option in medicine, bioidentical hormone optimization. Your Personal Wellness Center was established to offer proactive and interested individuals bioidentical hormone optimization. The purpose of Your Personal Wellness Center includes helping to increase awareness of the options available to help improve one’s quality of life and make possible a healthier, more vibrant life.

Tirelessly studying and reviewing the latest literature and keeping abreast of the newest and most exciting developments allows Dr. Nagy to bring you the most current and efficacious treatments to guide you in the aging process. Patients can rest assured that they have an extremely strong advocate and partner who will guide them where they desire to go on their journey to ultimate wellness.

Dr. Nagy received his medical degree (M.D.) at Wright State University School of Medicine in Dayton, Ohio, in 1990. He is practicing as a Board Certified Orthopaedic Surgeon in Salisbury, North Carolina. With his passion to help people beyond the scope of Orthopaedics, he has furthered his training as a fellow in the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine. His certification in Mastering the Protocols of Hormone Optimization came under the tutelage of Dr. Neal Rouzier, a renown authority on the subject. Click here to watch Dr. Rouzier briefly explain the many benefits of bioidentical hormone optimization.

Dr. Nagy created Your Personal Wellness Center in 2010. His mission is to assist patients in receiving the treatments that will allow them to improve their lives beyond what traditional medicine offers. Proper treatment can help one live life as it was meant to be. This type of medical program requires active participation by both parties to bring about the optimal results that are possible.

Personally, Dr. Nagy is married to a lovely wife and has three beautiful daughters. He loves spending time with family, camping, exercising and relaxing together. He enjoys music, Broadway musicals and is frequently caught singing throughout the day. Dr. Nagy has always been a strong advocate of health and wellness. So much so, that he has competed and won on the natural bodybuilding circuit. These life experiences have taught him the level of commitment necessary to achieve a goal and to discover what it takes to achieve ones dreams.

 

 Dr Nagy writes:

 ALONE TOGETHER:

In an effort to improve the whole person, I am always looking for relevant information that will cater not only to the needs of the body but also the needs of the mind/soul. I recently discovered this TED talk by Sherry Turkle, PhD. that delves into a topic that I believe many of us are aware of but possibly haven’t spent a great deal of time considering. A quote from Dr. Turkle quite nicely explains her premise:

“We’re lonely, but we’re afraid of intimacy. And so from social networks to sociable robots, we’re designing technologies that will give us the illusion of companionship without the demands of friendship.”

As we embrace the thrill and intelligence of technology we, in many ways, lose the intimacy of relationships. It is the loss of human interaction that may even further lead us into a sense of loneliness. Being ever more connected, we are also ever more alone.

The points Dr. Turkle makes are quite relevant to our modern society. We long for connectivity but cherish control. As a side effect of trying to “control the conversation” we lose the face to face interaction often necessary to truly connect. Are we dumbing down our communication by thinking only in quick thoughts that can be expressed in 140 characters or less (no, I don’t have a twitter account…yet)?

This post has already exceeded the collective attention span so I will leave you with an excellent talk by Dr. Turkle. The information she provides is thought provoking and I hope it will make you re-evaluate the way you communicate and maintain your relationships. Technology is not bad, we just have to evaluate how it can help, how it can hurt and what price we’re paying for the convenience. This talk, sadly caused me to realize that my primary time of solitude pretty much only occurs when I am mowing the lawn. Other than that, I’m connected, on the move and entrenched in the current system. A wake up call to change.

Take time to smell the roses and share yourself with your loved ones,

Chris

 

 

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/371249/january-17-2011/sherry-turkle

 
This entry was posted on Thursday, April 5th, 2012 at 1:09 am and is filed under Articles, Newsletters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.
 

 

Posted on by Angela in Family, Guest Blog, Mind, Spirit Leave a comment

Attack of the 30lb Sumo

A few months ago, after listening to me nag, one of my BFF’s decided to do a cleansing/detox diet to get healthy.  She has 4 lovely children, a full time job, and a crazy busy life.  Jody is the most fabulous cook and often drops gourmet meals off for us on a whim.  I think we have a kindred connection because those are usually the days I am driving home from work thinking I’m too exhausted to cook and will go postal on my family the first time someone asks “When’s dinner?”  The girls are all just chomping at the bit to jump away from their phones and computers to lend a hand.  NOT!  Then I’ll ask for help, they will roll their eyes and then proceed  to bicker with each other the entire time.  It’s difficult to cook when you are peeling Emma off of Sid’s back when she has attacked like a sumo wrestler.  Jody just knows–she should, she’s a mom.  She and her sister, Dee, are incredibly creative, whitty, and enjoy life.  They have started feeling so much better after changing their diets, they were inspired to share their story.

Let me introduce Jody and Dee’s mission  “Food Forethought”

 

Food For Thought, Food Forethought

We all think about food. Most of us even have emotional experience relating to liking food, disliking food, craving food, loving food. At some point as an adult, we start to think about food based upon how it makes us feel after we’ve eaten it. When dieting, we obsess about everything that’s on the “don’t eat” list. What do you think happens when one tells herself “I can’t have cheesecake, I can’t have cheesecake, I can’t have cheesecake” incessantly? You will likely give your right arm at the end of the day for a piece of cheesecake. The aftermath of guilt and digestive agony is a recurring nightmare.

Here’s our plan: let’s think about food, what we CAN eat, before we eat it. Food is so much fun! If you look at what the earth provides us, rich in color and nutrition and taste, it’s amazing. We want to take a look at healthy and flavorful recipe options that will change your mind, and change your health.

Here’s the interesting part (and the disclaimer): the contributors of this site are not physicians, not nutritionists, and not culinary experts. We are parents, spouses, full-time office workers, neighbors, and friends. We are on this journey with you, adapting common comfort foods for a healthier life.

As we get to know each other, we will share our secrets and successes and we will encourage each other to persist in this journey to better health.  We can do this!

 

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Family, Guest Blog, Humor, Nutrition, Weight Loss, Whole Food 1 Comment