Politicians Should Be Required to Uphold the Hippocratic Oath I woke up this morning trying to ignore the pit in my stomach. I decided to distract myself… deter my thoughts from the CNN news blast that keeps showing up on my iPhone. I had taken a news holiday in order to avoid recurring symptoms of anxiety and frustration for the past 100 days especially… Read More
Why I Value Face-to-Face Conversation With My Patients These are challenging times for physicians who aim to please their patients, and equally challenging for patients who are juggling full schedules and dread waiting for an upcoming appointment with their doctors. Technology has increased access but the demands on our time remain the same. Many of our email addresses are now posted online. Individuals… Read More
You Want to Talk About Your Menstrual Period? Being Prepared is Key Honoring Health Vow # 4 I Promise to Be an Active Participant in the Patient-Doctor Relationship Although the Doctor you choose is a very important player in your health care experience, the most important person in the Doctor-Patient relationship is you. Before deciding which imaging and blood tests to order; before deciding what… Read More
10 Things Your Gynecologist Won’t Judge… Honoring Health Vow #6 I Vow to Advocate for Myself and Pledge to Prioritize my Healthcare Needs Seeing a gynecologist for many women is very challenging. Anticipating and visualizing conversations about your body, breasts, period, vagina, and relationships can come all packaged up with a diverse mix of life experiences, perceptions, emotions, and beliefs. The… Read More
Why You Do Not Need a Pap Smear Every Year Honoring Health Vow # 5 I choose to be “In the Know” by keeping record of important medical events in my life Don’t panic when you visit your gynecologist and you are told you don’t need a Papanicolaou (Pap) every year. The decision to change the frequency at which you have a Pap test was… Read More
Pap Smears 101 and What You Should Know Honoring Health Vow # 6 I Vow to Advocate for Myself and Pledge to Prioritize My Healthcare Needs I feel like passing out hugs when my patients come in with problems and say, “But I had my pap smear and everything was fine.” And then, there I am, the bearer of bad news. Let’s… Read More
Are You a Procrastinator When it Comes to Your Health? Honoring Health Vow # 2 I Vow to Stay Connected to My Body to Hear and Feel Everything it has to Say I’m always deeply thinking about ways to connect, inspire, and motivate my patients. This requires recognizing what influences their actions. Over the years I’ve realized I have several categories or types of patients.… Read More
An Office Symphony… A Needed Perspective About Your Doctor’s Appointment and Why You Wait Honoring Health Vow #4 I Promise to Be and Active Participant in the Patient-Doctor Relationship A visit to the Doctor’s Office is like a symphony. Many players have to be working together as a team to create a melodious, harmonious, well-received result. And you, as the patient, are just as much a part of the… Read More
How a Lesson from Illness Promoted Mindful Eating Honoring Health Vow #7 I Will Honor My Body by Eating Healthy, Prioritizing Sleep, and Being Active It’s interesting how things you know to be true and important as an adolescent start to somehow take the back seat as time goes by. I rarely remember leaving our home to attend high school without eating breakfast.… Read More
Not in the Mood for Sex? Honoring Health Vow # 2 I Vow to Stay Connected to My Body to Hear and Feel Everything it has to Say If you ever find yourself not in the mood to have sex… Welcome to the club. If you are always in the mood, then consider yourself lucky or maybe this indicates you know… Read More