What happened to the understanding that medicine should not always be convenient or tasty to actually be working? Buckleys’ commercial and the infamous slogan Tastes awful, but it works, was an important part of my young adult life. Continue reading
I am in the office on Saturday mornings. I enjoy these mornings often more than the regular week because everyone who comes in the door has chosen to spend some of their precious weekend time on themselves. They are working towards a better self and they are committed to that change. It’s exciting. Everyone is more relaxed, and we get to know one another that little bit more.
Today, I was reminded of how essential naturopathic medicine is towards not just management of a health condition but true treatment of chronic health concerns.
A majority of my practice is spent supporting those with IBS-like conditions, of which conventional doctors do not always have the answers. Truthfully, there is more time and care required to get to the trigger or root cause in my office of an individuals’ condition, and a lot of options for treatment rather than just one mode of therapy. Conventional medical offices are almost too busy to have the time to address these issues because it involves asking the same question in a different manner, or with a different approach, or possibly on different appointment dates. Sometimes this seems very boring to a patient, until they see the method to your “madness”, that getting to the root cause can involve much problem-solving.
Working with a number of specialists, I have also been told that they have recommended their patients come to work with an ND. Why? We have more time. We are interested in solutions to problems, and we are willing to work at the long-term goal. This is not to suggest other practitioners are not, but to say that peeling the layers of a condition state to reveal the true causes of the dysfunction is one of the tenants of naturopathic medicine. Find the root cause.
I am passionate about finding your root cause. Are you patient and passionate enough to join me?
I treat many women in my practice, in all stages of life from puberty to menopause and through the other side. While we are all supposed to be appreciative of our hormone cycles, sometimes it just sucks to be a woman. (Guys, pay attention for your lovely ladies!). Many times we are told to “suck it up” when we have horrendous menstrual cramping, intensive bleeding aka hemorraghing monthly, and that we are “moody” and difficult to be around when are are premenstrual. For women experiencing menopause and the reduction of the capacity to menstruate, it is no less confusing and upsetting. The menstrual cycle can take awhile to ebb and as a result it can be often more intense.
As naturopathic doctors we are very lucky to be trained in multiple methods of physical (and emotional support). One of these is herbal medicine, and herbal medicine is a discipline that can help with so many conditions… it makes me very excited to be able to use and treat with herbs every day.
The neat thing about herbs is that because they are living things (or are at the time of processing), their chemical structures are diverse and mimic the diversity of our bodies for a multitude of conditions. For most, this means an easier acceptance of herbal medicine by the body and an ability to move it on multiple levels. To help with your understanding, let’s use the adrenal gland as an example.
My nature is always to want people to be better and to feel better, body, mind and soul. This isn’t to say that I always want the change to occur when I think it should (although this approach is much newer as by nature I can be very impatient for change). Thankfully the writings of Eckhart Tolle, Deepak Chopra, Dr James Gordon, remind me daily to allow change to occur as it should, and to be still and present with those changes.
The beauty of naturopathic medicine is that when you choose to seek the support of a naturopathic doctor, they really want to help you become a better you, in whatever ways you want to feel better. Of course, becoming a better you can be challenging. Change is hard. It takes a minimum of 45 days to create a new habit, and not to mention the lure of crappy food and old habits that are not serving you, or nervous friends and family who may not like or want you to change as it reminds them of the work they need to do, or are not doing.
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Cancer is something we have inside of us, all of the time.
Before you google this statement and begin to panic, it is a simple phenomenon that happens in our bodies when the normal mechanisms for “control” go wrong. Our cells have controlled rates of growth and controlled rates of death. Our bodies are generally good at cleaning out the gunk (inside and outside cells, and even cells themselves) when things are not working properly. This is called apoptosis.
However, like every system, things can break down and the cellular growth mechanism can go awry. Apoptotic mechanisms that initiate cellular death in unhealthy cells can become disrupted. This is how cancer begins. Of course, I have simplified the process for the purposes of this discussion.
We know there are many triggers that can affect apoptosis, and that preventing the process is key. Many triggers are environmental, such as heavy metal or pesticide exposure that change the chemical structure of the DNA in the cell and thus its mechanisms for growth. Sometimes unchecked inflammation in the body (which involves cellular migration and increased cell production) can be a trigger, as hormonal factors also can be involved. What to do?
Today is the first day of Naturopathic Medicine Week, a celebration of naturopathic medicine across Canada.
To celebrate this week, I will be posting a short post each day to give some insight to the beauty of naturopathic medicine. If any of you, my readers, would like to share your stories about how naturopathic medicine has enhanced your lives, please feel free to message and I can compile and share these thoughts at the end of the week.
I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase“don’t give your power away”. That phrase could refer to actual power and your hydro bill but most often refers to personal power.
It’s that time of year again, when everyone is involved in walks or run fundraising for their charity of choice, and I am no exception! Yes, you are being hit up for money, or effort! :)
As most of you know, the Ian Anderson House is a hospice that is near and dear to my heart as it is where my mother spent the last few weeks of her life with terminal cancer. Margaret Anderson, founder of the Ian Anderson House, started the house after caring for her husband who also passed away from cancer. What she has created is nothing short of a miracle to those touched by this hospice, and I mean this in all sincerity.
The Ian Anderson House offers without charge, quality end-of-life palliative care by trained medical professionals and kind selfless volunteers, for those who for physical or financial reasons, cannot be given the necessary round-the-clock care in their own homes. The House, true to hospice philosophy, also understands the need to support the family as a unit.
My family and close friends have decided to support this hospice every year, in memory to our mother but also in deep gratitude to Margaret’s legacy and the wonderful support we received two years ago. The Ian Anderson House has touched many lives. It is a positive and loving place that depends on private donations from individuals, service clubs, local business, foundations, and fundraising to keep running. I can’t tell you how many cups of tea were offered to me by volunteers and snacks… and how many new friends we made with other families there. It is a very special place.
Whether you can join us physically on the day of the Walk June 10, 2012 at Mentor
College, Mississauga, you can also pledge to our team, “Finola’s Fans”.
If you would like to join us on June 10, 2012, please arrive at Mentor College at 10am in comfortable walking/running clothes and register for $20.
Thank you in advance for your support, and know that your financial support helps and touches so many lives.
Hives are itchy, raised bumps (also known as welts and wheals) that appear on the skin after exposure to anything the body sees as foreign. The medical word for hives is urticaria. It is derived from urtica dioica, a latin name for a herb also known as stinging nettle. Ever touched stinging nettle? It’s ubiquitous in Ireland and I have many a time been stung as a little girl there. Ouch. Very itchy welts on the skin, red and angry.
Hives are often seen as a nuisance when you know their source, but what about when you don’t? I frequently get calls about the treatment of hives — can I “cure” them (I really react strongly to that word!), and what is my approach? The better question is will we be able to determine what is the trigger from your body, and will we be able to calm it down? The answer is yes.
There are so many different causes for hives (physical, temperature, allergy — food or environmental — stress hormones, histamine in the diet) that I am sure you are tired of looking for answers that are specific to you however there is always an answer.
Ask yourself: have you have explored all of your options? Meaning have you sat down with someone who is going to take the time to explore all of the options for you? You can find out the answer, with a little bit of patience and perseverance from you and your health care providers.
Sounds simple doesn’t it? Well, it often is. It’s not always a quick process, but it is possible to find out your triggers with two heads doing detective work rather than one. Eventually you will be getting the sleep you so deserve.
Sinus congestion at this time of year is confusing. We’re at the tail-end of winter and still are subject to more colds and flu bugs going around, but with an early spring this year in Southern Ontario people are now also experiencing early allergies, with congested runny noses that feel hot and irritated. What to do?
Is it truly a sinus “infection”? Sinus “infections” are acute inflammation in the upper nasal passages, which include the maxillary and frontal sinuses (across the cheeks and across the forehead) that fill with mucous. The mucous fills the sinuses as protection as when irritation and inflammation is initiated by bacterium or a virus the immune system attempts to “drown out” the offending article. Often, the same response will occur with allergies and irritants in the surrounding environment.
True sinus infections that have a bacterial source will often progress, meaning there will be a fever component and your mucous is typically yellow or green. When the sinuses are merely inflamed due to allergies, you may have symptoms of headaches or pain in your teeth (due to full and blocked frontal and maxillary sinuses) just like a bacterial-sourced sinus infection but your mucous will typically be clear, and you may have itchy watery eyes.
Truthfully, they are often very easy to confuse with one another.
Where antibiotics are troubling to address this issue is that when it is allergic-associated congestion, it is not necessary to kill our good flora (bacteria) and as a result we are left susceptible to further infections. The original inflammation or allergy does not get addressed at all.
Don’t believe me? Check out this article :
Antibiotics Do No Good for Most Sinus Infections – New Guidelines — Health Blog — WSJ.
Not all sinus inflammation then is truly an infection. If you are experiencing allergic inflammation, reducing histamine and allergic reaction is possible with both antihistamines and natural sources of antihistamines like quercetin, a compound found in fruits and vegetables that is capable of reducing your overall histamine exposure.
Dealing with inflammation can be done with some good quality omega-3 fish oils (if you are not allergic to sea creatures!), and quercetin is also anti-inflammatory (see above).
Another important point is to keep the sinuses moving during this time while you are working at the inflammation triggers, as in the use of a nasal rinse or a neti pot that involve a salt solution (water and salt) to encourage circulation in the nasal passages. My Neti Pot (seen below, and I do not get benefits from this company for promoting this product) has come in handy for many a sinus irritation!
the Neti Pot
March is Colorectal Cancer Month. It’s a month that few people knew about until the last few years when a major campaign began with the colorectal society showing the derrière on television. Boy did it work. People are finally starting to talk about the digestive tract and the intestines as a vital part of health.
My passion for the digestive tract did not only stem from my own health, but my mother’s digestive tract. We have a history of bowel disease on my mother’s side of the family. My grandmother has had colon cancer and survived, and my mother did have a sister who passed away shortly after birth due to bowel obstruction complications, something that today would not have happened due to modern medicine and surgical advances.
My mother’s digestive tract was a colon cancer risk from the beginning, looking at it as a doctor now and not as a child. She had IBS and diverticulum that frequently caused discomfort and bouts of diarrhea, cramping and gas. There were many foods she could not eat, but being a little stubborn she chose not to always avoid them and did go through pain with eating. Chronic inflammation beginning in her early 20’s, my mother’s digestive tract was something our whole family was aware of and impacted all of us.
Screening for colon cancer through colonoscopy however is something my mother avoided. The risks of screening and colon perforation were scary for her. Unfortunately, by the time she did get a screening, it was too late. Her cancer was at stage 4 and keeping the cancer at bay became the focus of the next 5 years. She fought hard.
Why share this story? I’m not trying to garner sympathy or make you depressed. The truth is often hard to hear. However, you should know that colon cancer can often be prevented. Conventional medicine and alternative medicine fully agree on this point. I am merging both conventional and alternative thoughts on this topic, for a quick guideline for you to keep in mind in prevention. Don’t be scared, be informed and take care of your health.
Happy March everyone!
Your digestion may be a key component of your mental statusI spend a lot of time educating in the office about our immune system and how impactful the gastrointestinal tract has a significant impact upon immunity. The highlighted article below identifies a subject near and dear to my heart — psychoneuroimmunology — where the immune system, nervous system and our psychological states (related to our hormone systems) meet and combine, and in this instance in the digestive tract.
Not only does this make you think about foods or items that you cannot digest… and how they prevent healthy body chemistry, but that the terrain in our digestive tract is so key to our overall health.
Check out the original article at A Gut Check for Many Ailments — WSJ.com.
Most people are familiar with the expression “I’m just having one of those days”. You know, the days where you are cut off on the highway, your credit card is declined in a long line of people, you are screamed at for something that is not your fault, your child (or children you care for) has a major, full-out temper tantrum in the middle of The Bay and you feel like leaving them behind. Or sometimes it’s more profound than just a bad day, but a series of not-fun events in several months or a year. Enough to make you throw in the towel.
The question is, do you actually ever release the frustration or upset from those events? If you feel like screaming, do you? Do you have a Kathy Bates in Fried Green Tomatoes moment where you smash someone’s car up just because you are tired of taking everyone else’s abuse? Unlikely, for many reasons (insurance being one of them)!
We have positive and negative emotions. Our “negative” emotions are seen as anger, sadness, frustration, depression, sorrow… and those are healthy to be expressed. The trouble is, no one knows how to express them properly and as a result when you finally do attempt to express them they are literally exploding like a volcano from you — with either hysterical crying for hours at a time or a full-on tantrum. Both scenarios make you feel out of control and unhinged, and often those bursts either scare you or hurt those around you. As a result, you feel less inclined to express those feelings in a more mature or healthy way in the future and the cycle continues. Sure, the large catharsis feels good, but is it truly healthy?
Sometimes long-term holding of emotion becomes disease (a physical manifestation of an emotional issue). I have many patients whose bodies are what alerts them to an emotional or mental disturbance just by the sheer fact that they have run out of energy, they can’t cope the way they used to, or their immune system is shutting down. Of course, naturopathic doctors are not therapists and not always can we fully carry someone the entire journey of peeling back the layers of emotional stagnation. However, our background in the connection between the body and mind make us ideal in recognizing when the body is saying no, when it is the mind, and when they are overlapping with their need for balance.
I’m sure as many of you read this, you are thinking this has nothing to do with you. If you answer no to two of the following questions, perhaps you need to consider you have neglected the expression of your emotion, and let’s face it, it’s going to come up one day or another.
Start to integrate some healthy coping mechanisms into your lifestyle — your body will thank you!
Ben-Zeev, D. In the Name of Love: A Philosopher Looks at Negative Emotions. Psychology Today, 2010.</ br>
Chopra, Deepak. Reinventing the Body, Resurrecting the Soul. Harmony Books, 2009</ br>
Mate, Gabor. When the Body Says No. 2008.
Who doesn’t like the smell of lavender? The essential oil of lavender and the herb itself has long been used medicinally, but of course, most people believe it is just the smell alone of this herb that makes you feel relaxed as it is so pleasurable.
Courtesy of Kate’s Garden: Lavender officialis
On the contrary, lavender has potent therapeutic properties. It is an incredibly supportive herb to the parasympathetic nervous system and is being found when compared with current anxiolytic medications such as the benzodiazepines (eg. Valium) that it is, if not more effective, in reducing the severity of anxiety when compared with objective measures such as the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale.
Caution: Lavender can cross the placental barrier and should not be used medicinally in pregnancy as there are some known abilities of it to influence general hormone functioning as well as in prepubertal boys with the induction of gynecomastia (development of breast tissue). Speak to your naturopathic doctor or herbalist for the appropriate anxiety and/or depression supports during pregnancy.
