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Tag: stress

An Occasionally Pleasant Minimum Security Prison

Posted on by Posted in Blog, Knowledge Base, Mental Health, O — 9 Comments ↓

What three things do the following occupations have in common: teacher, nurse, secretary (now called administrative assistant), and information technologist? First, I would classify them all as helping professions. Second, based both on surveys and my own experience as a physician, they all work under conditions of stress, suffer a lot of anxiety and depression, report increased job dissatisfaction, and experience high burnout rates. And Read More

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The Chemistry of Stress

Posted on by Posted in C, Knowledge Base, Mental Health, Thyroid, Adrenal, & Sex Hormone Issues — 4 Comments ↓

Understanding the chemistry of stress begins with an appreciation of molecules in our bodies called neurotransmitters.  Dubbed “molecules of emotion” by the scientist who first discovered their existence, Dr. Candace Pert, these are produced throughout our bodies, most notably in the brain and along the gastrointestinal tract.  One of the neurotransmitters, serotonin, seems to have been installed in us to lessen our physical response to Read More

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Belly Fat! New Research Reveals…

Posted on by Posted in B, Blog, Healthy Lifestyle, Knowledge Base, Mental Health, Thyroid, Adrenal, & Sex Hormone Issues — 4 Comments ↓

Between the print and TV ads and the pop-ups scuttling like mice from the four borders of your computer screen, belly fat seems to have surpassed global warming as our next great anxiety.

It’s clear these ads are aimed at women, some of whom fall for the hucksterism of what is for many little more than an annoying physiologic change occurring during a perfect storm of dietary indiscretion, genetic predisposition, and stress. As one patient laconically remarked, “My divorce from hell took a solid year. I finally got rid of him, but in the process…” (patting her tummy with both hands) “I got myself…this!”

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Obsessing Over Regrets

Posted on by Posted in Blog, Knowledge Base, Mental Health, O — 10 Comments ↓

We each have our own personal stash of regrets, and when they surface our language trends to the elegantly named counterfactual conditional phrasing: “If only I had married Bob, I would have been happy.” Well, you didn’t marry Bob (instead you married The Jerk), and in any case there’s no guarantee Bob isn’t his own brand of jerk.

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Stress Less: Meditation

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Meditation is the simplest relaxation technique to explain and by far the hardest to master.

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Fibromyalgia: An Almost Natural Approach

Posted on by Posted in Blog, F, Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue, Integrative Medicine, Knowledge Base — 3 Comments ↓

One of the best ways to envision fibro is as a generalized anxiety disorder of the muscles, initially triggered by a stressful event and then perpetuated by the pain of the muscles themselves.

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Fibromyalgia Explained: Why the Pain?

Posted on by Posted in Blog, F, Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue, Knowledge Base — 1 Comment ↓

To understand fibromyalgia and why so many doctors tell their fibro patients, “All your tests are normal,” you need to think about serotonin, the brain chemical that acts as a buffer against stress.

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Ginseng (Panax)

Posted on by Posted in Blog, G, Knowledge Base, Nutrition, Nutritional Supplements, Vitamins, & Herbal Remedies — No Comments ↓

Look at the nutrition label on your orange juice or multivitamin and you may notice that ginseng has been added. That’s because smart marketers have caught on to this Herb’s 2,000-year-old reputation as a “feel good” tonic that can boost energy, combat the physical effects of stress, empower the immune system, improve concentration, and provide Antioxidant actions. Its legendary properties, particularly as an aphrodisiac, were once so prized in China that only the emperor was allowed to gather the herb. Today some men still take it to treat impotence and infertility although it’s unclear whether it actually improves these conditions.

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GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

Posted on by Posted in Blog, G, Knowledge Base, Nutrition, Nutritional Supplements, Vitamins, & Herbal Remedies — 25 Comments ↓

Popularly referred to as the body’s natural tranquilizer, GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is an amino acid produced in the brain. It acts as a Neurotransmitter–a chemical that fosters communication between nerve cells–and helps to keep stress-related nerve impulses at bay.

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Holiday Stress Rx: Ten Tips

Posted on by Posted in Blog, H, Knowledge Base, Mental Health, S — No Comments ↓

December is a stressful month, especially for women and despite all the holiday cheer.

Some of you might be thinking “But he’s Jewish–what does he know about Christmas stress?” Here are my credentials: I’ve been married for many years to a Christian woman and I’ve watched as she and our extended family become fried by the stress during every holiday season. Also, my patients tell me the holidays stress them, period.

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Telemedicine – Now Available at WholeHealth Chicago

In order to maintain your continuity of care, WholeHealth Chicago now offers telemedicine appointments with most of our practitioners. During a telemedicine visit, you and your healthcare provider can review medical history, discuss symptoms, arrange for prescriptions, and more. When necessary, labs and diagnostic imaging can be ordered from a facility near your home, and our Natural Apothecary can ship supplements quickly to your door.

Please contact Patient Services for details and scheduling a telemedicine appointment, or to change a regular appointment to telemedicine by calling 773-296-6700.

We’re looking forward to meeting with you in our virtual consultation room soon.

DIAGNOSE-IT-YOURSELF: COVID-19

Far and away, the commonest phone call/e mail I receive asks about COVID-19 diagnosis.
Just print this out, tape it on your refrigerator door, and stay calm.

ALLERGIES
• Runny nose
• Sneezing
• Red, swollen eyes
• Itchy eyes and nose
• Tickly throat
• No fever

COLD
• Runny nose
• Sneezing
• Sore throat
• Mild muscle aches
• Mild dry cough
• Rarely a low fever

STREP THROAT
• Painful sore throat
• Hurts to swallow
• Swollen glands in neck
• Fever

FLU (Standard seasonal flu)
• Fever
• Dry cough (no mucus)
• Sudden onset over few hours
• Headache
• Sore throat
• Fatigue, sometimes quite severe
• Muscle aches, sometimes quite severe
• Rarely, diarrhea

CORONAVIRUS-COVID 19
• Shortness of breath
• Fever (usually above 100 degrees)
• Dry cough (no mucus)
• Slow onset (2-14 days)
• Mild muscle aches
• Mild fatigue
• Mild sneezing

Recent Health Tips

  • Covid Immunization: Facts, Not Fiction

    If you don’t feel like reading one more word about Covid-19, you’ve got my sympathy. However, if you’re inclined, scan this Health Tip and perhaps pick up a fact or two you didn’t know. Want to jump to my take-away? It’s this: When the vaccine is available to you, take it and thank your lucky stars it’s being offered to you. One in four people Read More

  • “I Am So Bloated!”

    Susan wrote this on our WholeHealth Chicago form in the section marked “What’s the main problem?” She went on to tell me she’d been suffering for years, her stomach feeling like some gremlin was inflating a balloon every time she ate. When the bloating was especially severe, she said she looked like she was in her fifth month of pregnancy. Susan was so embarrassed she’d Read More

  • Major Breakthrough: A Highly Accurate Blood Test For Fibromyalgia

    Although I’ve taken care of well over 2,000 fibromyalgia patients since first opening WholeHealth Chicago in 1995 (and also written a successful book on the subject), I was always troubled by two questions. First, exactly what is fibromyalgia? How can there be a condition that’s severe enough to be disabling, manifesting as widespread muscle pain, profound fatigue, poor sleep, headaches, and a half dozen other Read More

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