By Sanjiv Lakhia - Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates
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The podcast currently has 76 episodes available.
After undergoing multiple spine surgeries himself, Joel Proskewitz founded the SpineXchange to offer educational materials for others who are dealing with back surgery or general back pain.
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Lakhia sits in the hot seat as he is interviewed by expert guest Joel for the SpineXchange. Joel and Dr. Lakhia cover advice on many different aspects of back care.
Both Joel and Dr. Lakhia found a passion for spinal care and education through personal experiences. For Dr. Lakhia, it was his exposure to osteopathic medicine that included over 300 hours of hands-on training in osteopathic manipulation that sparked his interest in lightening the burden patients feel when suffering from spine issues. Joel shares Dr. Lakhia’s interest in spine care and knows first-hand how important spine health is after having to undergo multiple surgeries to repair a fracture in his spine.
Combining standard medical interventions with additional elements like addressing stress levels, prescribing breathing exercises, discussing research-based supplementation, and incorporating acupuncture is core to Dr. Lakhia’s approach. He emphasizes the need for evidence-based alternative treatments as part of a comprehensive approach for patients.
“What I've observed in my career is patients are moving away from a pill for every ill, and they want to be able to take more control of their health and use natural interventions,” Dr. Lakhia says when describing the increased interest in integrative medicine for spine health.
If you’re interested in learning more about the SpineXchange and becoming a subscriber you can check out their website here: https://thespinexchange.com/.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Joel Proskewitz
What he does: For over two decades Joel Proskewitz has specialized in spinal rehabilitation for people that have undergone or are facing spinal surgery. He has built up a wealth of experience, both as a long-term spine patient himself and working with doctors and physicians from across the medical world. His specific focus is on spinal pathologies, their associated intervention surgeries, and subsequent patient rehabilitation.
Company: The SpineXchange
Words of wisdom: “The owner of the spine has emotions. They have certain stressors that can systematically create a whole bunch of problems, and you really need to understand the individual who's sitting in front of you.”
Connect: Website | LinkedIn
⚓ Anchor Points ⚓Top takeaways from this Back Talk Doc episode
Even with their in-depth medical training, doctors can brush off accidents and deny the possibility of a lumbar issue. It’s not until the pain persists or worsens that they come to terms with the possibility of having a longer-term injury.
Doctors can even experience a sense of shame about having a spine problem while being a spine expert.
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia invites his colleague and friend Dr. Joseph Cheatle, a neurosurgeon at Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates, to discuss the personal challenges that he has faced with low back pain.
Dr. Cheatle’s injury occurred following a skiing accident where they were hit by another skier. Initially, he brushed off the incident, but over time, he began experiencing increasing discomfort in his back and buttocks. As the pain worsened, he realized the challenge of diagnosing his own condition.
Even after finally seeking professional help with his injury, which included physical therapy and an MRI, Dr. Cheatle was still not entirely upfront with his own family. But they noticed changes in his behavior, including staying in his car longer after arriving home from work because it hurt to get up, and having to excuse himself to go lay down.
Ultimately it was conservative therapies, including spinal injections, that helped Dr. Cheatle reduce his pain and begin to recover. It was at this point that he was able to reintegrate exercise into his life with the help of physical therapy.
The experience has made him a better doctor, allowing him to provide more meaningful support and encouragement to patients during the healing process. He emphasizes that the emotional aspect of recovery is often as challenging as the physical.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Joseph Cheatle, MD
What he does: As a board-certified neurosurgeon at Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates, Dr. Cheatle, provides adult neurosurgical care. His clinical special interests include treating brain tumors, degenerative spinal disorders, transsphenoidal surgery, and spinal cord stimulation.
Company: Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates
Words of wisdom: “I'm a better doctor, for sure. And what I mean by that is that I can sympathize and not empathize.”
Connect: Website
⚓ Anchor Points ⚓Top takeaways from this Back Talk Doc episode
[04:28] Brushing off an injury: Dr. Cheatle shares how he was involved in a skiing accident that he originally...
What happens when the doctor becomes the patient? In the first episode in this new series, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia discusses personal back care journeys with some of his esteemed colleagues.
On this episode, he talks with Lindsey Howard, PA-C, a physician assistant in the physiatry department at Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Care. Her spine care journey began with scoliosis.
When she was 12, she was diagnosed with scoliosis during a routine school screening for the condition. Her spinal curve was 40 degrees and quickly progressed to 72 degrees. Her doctor recommended surgery or, he told her parents, she likely wouldn’t live past age 30.
She hadn’t experienced much pain, only discomfort, from her scoliosis, but she remembers some of her post-op pain clearly. It’s helped her become more empathetic with patients.
“The resident was trying to peel off the bandage on my back — that was very painful,” she said. “So now when I remove bandages, I'm very, very sensitive to that for patients.”
Thankfully, surgery allowed her to get back to a sporty lifestyle and allowed her to be a cheerleader in high school. And the experience as a whole inspired her to work in medicine.
Originally, her plan was to go to medical school, with the goal of helping other girls who suffered from similar issues. But she ended up becoming a physician assistant because she liked to spend more time with patients in their care transitions.
Tune in to this episode of Back Talk Doc to hear more of Lindsey’s story with scoliosis and how she uses that difficult experience to be a better care provider today.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Lindsey Howard, MPAS, PA-C
What she does: Lindsey has been a physician assistant with Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates since she graduated in 2013. She works in the physiatry department with Drs. Wiercisiewski and Sumich.
Company: Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates
Words of wisdom: “The main reason I got into this is because I don't want anybody to ever feel [alone]. I think whenever you go through a major illness or any major medical issue, you can sometimes feel really alone.”
Connect: Website | LinkedIn
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Talking Artificial Disc and Facet Replacement Surgery with Dr. Vince Rossi.
👉 Enroll in Dr. Lakhia’s 6 week course to lower inflammation.
👉 Apply for an Integrative Medicine consult with Dr. Lakhia (NC/SC residents only).
🔎 For more information on Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and the podcast visit BackTalkDoc.com.
👀 Check us out on the 15 Best Back Pain Podcasts list!
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As non-urgent medical procedures slowed during the height of COVID in 2020, some docs faced a lot of stress. Vince Rossi, MD, took advantage of his more-open schedule to get an MBA.
So, why did Dr. Rossi want to pursue another degree after becoming a successful neurosurgeon? He wanted to better understand the health care system in which he works, believing that knowing the business world would benefit both his patients and his practice. That desire to benefit his patients led him to do a year of his residency in Australia. He was able to see a higher volume of arthroplasty procedures in a shorter period of time.
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and his guest, Dr. Vince Rossi, talk about artificial disc and facet replacement surgery. Dr. Rossi is a minimally invasive spine surgeon at Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates (CNSA).
Dr. Rossi’s entire philosophy surrounds improving the lives of his patients — from understanding the business and back end of things to ensuring each one of his patients has explored all conservative treatments before even considering spine surgery.
“If there's a reasonable option for any sort of interventional procedure or injections, then those are all the first first line treatment for that patient,” explains Dr. Rossi. “For me, the younger the patient is, the longer I make them wait before we talk about arthroplasty. Even if they've done six months of conservative treatments and they're a young, mid-20s-year-old, I want them to give their body as much chance as possible to heal that on its own.”
Tune into this episode of Back Talk Doc to hear Dr. Rossi discuss arthroplasty, his typical route for diagnosis, and what he would tell any potential patient about the pros and cons of this newer intervention.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Vince Rossi, MD, MBA
What he does: Dr. Rossi is a neurosurgeon practicing minimally invasive spine surgery at Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates (CNSA). He believes in using the least invasive methods to help patients reclaim their pain-free lives. Dr. Rossi focuses on motion preservation, specializing in non-fusion techniques such as endoscopic spine surgery and disc replacement.
Company: Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates (CNSA)
Words of wisdom: “When patients come to CNSA and get motion preservation options there, they're not just getting someone that knows how to implant these devices, they're getting an organization that really has [made] this technology available locally, nationally, and internationally.”
Connect: LinkedIn
⚓ Anchor Points ⚓Top takeaways from this Back Talk Doc episode
You get hurt, and your instinct is to blame the injury itself, right? For Dr. Elizabeth Yurth, it’s a much broader picture than just the injury.
While Dr. Yurth got her start in orthopedics and sports medicine, she took a pivot about 15 years into her career. She started looking at ways to keep patients out of her office, rather than coming back in.
“I was patching people back together, throwing them back in the fire, and they're back a month later,” she says of her patients. “So I started to ask, could we do better? Could we make people healthier? That way, they could actually heal more completely and they wouldn't keep coming back into my office.”
Rather than looking at just the injury, Dr. Yurth looks at the whole inflammation framework. And fortunately, she’s found that you don’t need expensive lab tests to figure out if your hormones are the source of your inflammation. Basic lab work, like CBC, metabolic panels, and glucose tests, can indicate whether hormones are off balance — and at a low cost.
Her best advice to maintain health before you even hit the doctor’s office? Keep moving. It’s tempting to stop exercising when you’re injured, but something is better than nothing. Find the movement that works for you and stick to it. Why? Because your muscle acts like an organ, and building and stimulating muscle can help reduce pain.
“Stop moving and you will die,” she says. “You’ve got to do something … you've got to move your muscles.”
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, hear some of Dr. Yurth’s top tips for staying out of the doctor’s office, such as identifying and minimizing sources of inflammation and treating your muscle as an organ.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Elizabeth (Betsy) Yurth, MD
What she does: An expert in orthopedics and spine care, Dr. Yurth is the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of the Boulder Longevity Institute. She’s fellowship trained in anti-aging medicine, regenerative medicine, and cellular medicine, with over 500 hours of continued education in longevity, nutrition, epigenetics, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, and regenerative orthopedic procedures.
Company: Boulder Longevity Institute
Words of wisdom: “We have absolute certainty and absolute proof now that the cause of the degenerative disease is not the trauma. It’s the immune response to the trauma. If you can change that immune response, then you shouldn't see the trauma go on.”
Connect: LinkedIn | Instagram
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Food Elimination and Pain with Heather Wolcott.
👉Enroll in Dr. Lakhia’s 6 week course to lower inflammation.
👉Apply for an Integrative Medicine consult with Dr. Lakhia (NC/SC residents only).
🔎 For more information on Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and the podcast visit BackTalkDoc.com.
🎧 Subscribe in your favorite podcast app.
Back Talk Doc is brought to
As a holistic nutritionist, as well as a health and wellness coach, Heather Wolcott understands concerns about all-or-nothing lifestyles and dietary changes. Instead, Heather believes in promoting a well-rounded lifestyle — and understanding that nothing is forever.
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and his guest, functional health coach Heather Wolcott, talk about nutrition and its effect on health, wellness, and even pain. Much of their discussion focuses around food elimination diets.
Heather understands that the term “elimination diet” can be daunting for some people. But, she says, this form of lifestyle change is really just a tool to identify food sensitivities and intolerances that can cause brain fog, joint pain, rashes, anxiety, bloating, and fatigue.
As with all things in wellness and nutrition, the key is balance. Even elimination dieting doesn’t have to last forever, says Heather. For some people, it may only last a couple of weeks.
Everyone is different, and no two paths to health are the same. But Dr. Lakhia and Heather have both observed that certain foods seem to cause more problems than others.
Tune in to learn how you might be able to improve your lifestyle by simply cutting certain foods.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Heather Wolcott
What she does: As a holistic nutritionist for more than 20 years, Heather has been helping clients improve their health and achieve their nutrition goals. She is a National Board Certified health and wellness coach and an ADAPT-Certified Functional Health Coach.
Company: Heather Wolcott
Words of wisdom: “I love to really dial into nutrition because it's super complicated and complex when you get granular with it, but it doesn't have to be. I think people just need to be more educated.”
Connect: Website | Instagram
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Evaluating Supplement Quality with Dr. Tod Cooperman
👉Enroll in Dr. Lakhia’s 6 week course to lower inflammation.
👉Apply for an Integrative Medicine consult with Dr. Lakhia (NC/SC residents only).
🔎 For more information on Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and the podcast visit BackTalkDoc.com.
🎧 Subscribe in your favorite podcast app.
Back Talk Doc is brought to you by Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, with offices in North and South Carolina. To learn more about Dr. Lakhia and treatment options for back and spine issues, go to backtalkdoc.com. To schedule an appointment with Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, you can call us at 1-800-344-6716 or visit our website at CNSA.com.
Nutritional supplements are a recurring topic in discussions between doctors and patients. Many people incorporate supplements into the daily routine when they are looking to enhance their well-being or cure an ailment. But how do you know if you’re using the right nutritional supplements?
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and Dr. Tod Cooperman, MD discuss how to choose effective supplements, and what factors you should consider when looking to add supplements to your diet.
Dr. Cooperman is the president, founder, and editor-in-chief of ConsumerLab.com, which is dedicated to independent reviews of supplements. He pursued the testing and review of supplements after seeing the impact of the DSHEA act in the 1990s, which allowed companies to make claims about products that they previously weren’t able to, leading to an explosion of interest in the health supplement market.
Understanding what goes into supplements can be a complex science in an industry that lacks FDA regulation. The team at ConsumerLab.com has set up detailed testing procedures at specialized labs to identify which products on the market are delivering on their claims.
Despite a boom in popularity, Dr. Cooperman explains he’s not a fan of gummies because their dosage can be inaccurate due to the semi-liquid environment of the product.
“There are not a lot of requirements from the FDA, but a product does have to have 100% of what it claims,” says Dr. Cooperman. “So companies don't want to produce a product that's going to fall below that; otherwise, they're in violation of the regulations. So they put in more.”
Dr. Cooperman also shares insight into how to make an informed purchase, what to be wary of when shopping online for supplements, and what supplements he takes personally.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Dr. Tod Cooperman, MD
What he does: Dr. Tod Cooperman is a nationally recognized and respected researcher, writer, and speaker on consumer healthcare issues. Dr. Cooperman is a graduate of the Boston University School of Medicine, receiving his M.D. in 1987. He also received his Bachelor's degree from Boston University with a major in Medical Sciences and a minor in Economics. Recognizing a lack of quality standards and oversight in the U.S. dietary supplement industry, Dr. Cooperman founded ConsumerLab.com in 1999, guiding it to become the leading independent evaluator of dietary supplements and nutritional products.
Company: Consumer Lab
Words of wisdom: “Very rarely is there a situation where there are limits on contaminants. That’s left up to the manufacturer, so you’re at the mercy of the supplement company to do the right thing by you when you're buying a supplement. Some companies will cut corners or use simple methods, and others hold their products to a much higher standard.”
Connect: Website | LinkedIn
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Back Pain and the Sacroiliac Joint with Tanner Holden, PT.
👉 Enroll in Dr. Lakhia’s 6 week course to lower...
Despite its limited range of movement, the sacroiliac joint is prone to instability and is often a source of back pain in patients.
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and Tanner Holden, PT from Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates discuss the SI joint itself, some common causes of SI joint pain, and what the latest science has to offer for management.
Patients can experience SI joint pain during or after pregnancy, pain from the joint itself, or autoimmune pain. However, diagnosing SI joint pain is rarely straightforward because medical imaging is not typically helpful in diagnosing SI joint pain. The pain can present in unexpected places and is often best diagnosed with the help of pain provocation tests.
Once diagnosed, patients can opt for regular pain-reducing injections for a quick solution. A more holistic treatment plan looks at patient goals and finds ways to improve movement over time. This may also include lifestyle modifications to remove the irritants or activities that cause the pain to flare up. Since SI joint pain sources vary from patient to patient, plans are customized to individual needs.
Tanner believes that healthy movement, activity, and strength are key to living an active and pain-free life. He and Dr. Lakhia discuss how this approach puts the patient first and removes the need for unnecessary supports like braces and belts. Instead, a strength-based approach allows patients to take their care into their own hands, resulting in fewer medical visits.
Name: Tanner Holden, PT, DPT, OCS, CSC
What he does: Tanner is a residency-trained Doctor of Physical Therapy and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist serving Charlotte and the surrounding area. He holds a board certification as an Orthopedic Clinical Specialist.
Company: Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates
Words of wisdom: “We like to get people in and out and living their life.”
Connect: Website | LinkedIn
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Rethinking Osteoarthritis and Degenerative Disc Disease.
👉 Take Dr. Lakhia’s 14 Day Challenge to get your health back on track.
👉 Apply for an Integrative Medicine consult with Dr. Lakhia (NC/SC residents only).
🔎 For more information on Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and the podcast visit BackTalkDoc.com.
🎧 Subscribe in your favorite podcast app.
Back Talk Doc is brought to you by Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, with offices in North and South Carolina. To learn more about Dr. Lakhia and treatment options for back and spine issues, go to backtalkdoc.com. To schedule an appointment with Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, you can call us at 1-800-344-6716 or visit our website at CNSA.com.
If your back has been hurting and you haven’t been able to find relief, or you have chronic recurrent arthritic pain, it may be time to explore new options.
On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia hosts a solo episode to reframe how patients should be thinking about osteoarthritis and degenerative disc disease. He proposes that patients move away from thinking of these conditions as the inevitable result of wear and tear, and instead look at them through the lens of metabolic dysfunction.
Using a framework focusing on food and supplementation options, Dr. Lakhia discusses the connection between what we put in our bodies and the pain that we feel.
Two of the biggest culprits for inflammation in the North American diet are gluten and dairy. Studies have shown that removing these from your diet can reduce back pain. Dr. Lakhia discusses the benefits of adding collagen, EGCG, melatonin, and a botanical nutrient combination that uses cannabidiol and a fatty acid known as palmitoylethanolamide (PEA). Each supplement is backed by research and has shown promise for treating back pain.
“I think those are some really exciting options to consider beyond the typical thought process of just vitamin D, turmeric, and fish oil,” says Dr. Lakhia. For those interested in learning more, check out the 14 Day Challenge that is available on Dr. Lakhia’s website.
Name: Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia, DO
What he does: As a board-certified physiatrist and integrative medicine physician at Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates, Dr. Lakia specializes in nonsurgical approaches to spine and orthopedic conditions and offers a diverse range of innovative treatments for back pain, including acupuncture, spinal injections, and prescriptive exercise. Dr. Lakhia favors a conservative, holistic approach to spine care and understands the importance of getting to know each patient. He believes that listening to a patient without judgment is essential to finding the best course of treatment for back pain relief and a return to a normal life.
Company: Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates
Words of wisdom: “We know that patients and consumers nowadays are spending lots of time on the internet downloading, digesting information at a very, very rapid pace. So as clinicians, it's our duty to keep up as best we can with the evolving literature in the space.”
Connect: Website | LinkedIn
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Bone and Spine Health With Dr. Stephanie Plummer.
👉Take Dr. Lakhia’s 14 Day Challenge to get your health back on track.
👉Apply for an Integrative Medicine consult with Dr. Lakhia (NC/SC residents only).
🔎 For more information on Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and the podcast visit BackTalkDoc.com.
Back Talk Doc is brought to you by Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, with offices in North and South Carolina. To learn...
We all feel invincible sometimes, even as we age. Our minds do a great job of remembering how active and agile we were in our 20s and 30s. Even if we maintain an active lifestyle into our 50s and 60s, there are silent diseases that could be lurking in the background. Whether we feel it or not, osteoporosis can sneak up on us, so it’s important to be proactive.
Dr. Stephanie Plummer, a physiatrist at Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates, joins Back Talk Doc host Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia to share how women — and men — can best support their bone health to avoid disease and injuries as they get older.
As an avid marathon runner, Dr. Plummer is quite active. But she emphasizes the importance of adding strength, flexibility, and balance work into our routines to help build bone density, as she’s done in her own workout regimen.
“The flexibility and balance component is huge, and I think is really overlooked,” she says. “It’s great if we build good bone density and bone structure. That’s important for helping to prevent fractures. But if your balance is poor — or you don’t have the mobility to be able to prevent falling in the first place — then you may still be at higher risk.”
Dr. Plummer and Dr. Lakhia also discuss the differences between osteoarthritis, osteopenia, and osteoporosis. They touch on hormonal influences as a reason why women are more likely to develop bone disease, as well as the role diet and sleep play in bone health.
💡 Featured Expert 💡Name: Dr. Stephanie Plummer, DO
What she does: Dr. Plummer joined Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates as the first female physiatrist in 2021 & has been practicing physiatry in the Charlotte, NC area since 2013.
Company: Carolina NeuroSurgery & Spine Associates
Connect: LinkedIn
Subscribe & Contact👉 If you enjoyed this episode of Back Talk Doc, check out our recent episode Battlefield Acupuncture for Pain with John Howard.
👉 Enroll in Dr. Lakhia’s 6-week course to lower inflammation.
👉 Apply for an Integrative Medicine consult with Dr. Lakhia (NC/SC residents only).
🔎 For more information on Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia and the podcast visit BackTalkDoc.com.
🎧 Subscribe in your favorite podcast app.
Back Talk Doc is brought to you by Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, with offices in North and South Carolina. To learn more about Dr. Lakhia and treatment options for back and spine issues, go to backtalkdoc.com. To schedule an appointment with Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, you can call us at 1-800-344-6716 or visit our website at CNSA.com.
The podcast currently has 76 episodes available.
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