Many times in our lives our mind races and can't turn off.  It might affect our sleep or our ability to calm ourselves.  When we get into that state, it's hard to know what to do.   

For this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show,  we explored how chronically acute stress impacts our bodies and our ability to function. Stephen Buehler, a somatic psychotherapist in California, joined me to share how he facilitates "the safe healthy movement of emotional energy" through awareness work and training. 

Stephen explained what he means by chronically acute stress and gave some examples of it.  He dove into how this can lead to the development of a "callus"  or "lack of vitality" as our body gets accustomed to being in this high stressed state. 

We also discussed somatic treatments and how he uses this method to help people feel their body as they are discussing emotions.  He advocates assisting people in finding their solutions to their stress or trauma but not directing them or judging a particular solution.

Stephen has much experience in this area with his own private practice as well as his role as a leader, coach and consultant for healthcare delivery teams like Kaiser Permanente.

Please join us to learn more about chronic stress and what you can do about it!

To reach Stephen Buehler, please visit https://stephenbuehlermft.com/.

-Dr. Amy

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When we suffer from an extreme stressor in our lives, we recognize that feeling of tightness in our gut.  It can feel like we've been punched in the stomach or it feels like our stomach is twisted in a knot. 

What we don't often think about is how our gut is tied to the autonomic nervous system which controls whether we are in "fight or flight" mode or "rest and digest" mode.  If we can learn how to calm ourselves and spend more time throughout our waking hours in a mode of rest or relaxation, we can often improve our gut health.

For this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show, we discussed how being in "fight or flight" mode affects our gut when we eat and how it can lead to digestive issues or disorders with Dr. Dan Wool.  Dr. Wool is a naturopathic gastroenterologist in Scottsdale and Tempe, Arizona at the Chambers Clinic and is the go-to doctor for executives, entrepreneurs, managers, parents and doers and drivers of all kinds who live life from the gut. 

Dr. Wool explained the functions of the vagus nerve in relation to the gut and why dysfunctions in this nerve can contribute to various gut disorders.  He shared the importance of decreasing inflammation in the gut with the focus on calming down the nervous system.

We even discussed how over exercising (if you aren't well trained), under sleeping and over breathing can put you in a fight or flight state that impacts your gut and nutrient absorption.

Dr. Wool gave some great tips on how to eat to improve the function of the gut, including how to chew and what type of environment to eat in.  He also shares how we need to get control over our gut health since it impacts so many areas of our lives. 

Please join us to learn what you can do to calm your fight or flight nervous system to improve your gut health and nutrition!

To reach Dr. Dan Wool, please visit https://www.drdanwool.com/.

-Dr. Amy

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The pandemic was a shock to our mental health in so many ways. We weren't prepared for something of this magnitude that would impact all aspects of our lives. 

To explore this in this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show, I discussed the impact of the pandemic on our mental health with licensed professional counselor, registered play therapist, and Level II EMDR-certified therapist, Carron Montgomery.

Carron shared with us the various psychological stages of the pandemic over the past year and how each stage has influenced the mental health of children of all ages.  She explained how children who were already seeking mental health assistance had skills that other children did not have and were able to thrive on a more positive level.

We discussed young adults and the struggles they have faced with not being around their peers in this critical time of their lives.  Carron also touches on college students and young adults who are coping and trying to navigate the social, emotional, and financial implications of the pandemic.

Carron then shared some helpful tips for parents and adults on how to process and deal with the pandemic.  She explained how beneficial it is for parents and adults to be open with their feelings of uncertainty regarding the pandemic and to allow children to express their own thoughts. 

She gave several book recommendations for parents and adults to help them work with their children to help ease their anxiety, panic and stress.  She recommended various apps, being out in nature and breathwork as additional tools to help with coping.

Carron co-owns Aster Counseling in Kansas City and specializes in treating anxiety, depression, OCD, trauma, and grief and loss. She has also trained in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), an evidence-based treatment for children and adolescents impacted by trauma and their parents or caregiver.  She now presents at churches, schools and various other organizations to address the mass mental suffering that arose from the pandemic.

Please join us to learn some strategies for your mental health in this pandemic world!

To reach Carron Montgomery, please visit www.astercounseling.org or email her at [email protected].

-Dr. Amy

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As technology improves and becomes integrated in all aspects of our lives, we owe it to ourselves to look at how the devices we use impact us.  Wifi is now so prevalent and allows us to connect many appliances in our homes to each other to make our lives easier.  While we enjoy the convenience, does it come at a price?

To explore this, for this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show, we discussed the impact of electro-magnetic fields (EMF) on your health and immune system with Geo-biological consultant, Gary Greenleaf.

Gary shared with us his background on how his sleep was disrupted when he moved into a new home near a cell tower.  He started looking at what types of energy was emitted from this tower and how it could impact him. He found solutions to neutralize the radiation and his health improved.

We discussed what electromagnetic fields are and how they can impact human health.  The symptoms that arise are varied and depend on the intensity of the high and low frequency EMF from devices around us.  He shared that there are links to autoimmune disorders, fertility and cancer.

Gary educated us on the wide variety of sources of EMF including our cell phones, computers, laptops, smart meters, home appliances, wifi and electrical wires running through our houses.

He also shared some solutions for neutralizing the radiation.  Most importantly, he stressed the importance of minimizing the source, but he also gave ideas around grounding, biofeedback technology, detox baths and homeopathy. 

Gary is a Geo-biological consultant as well as owner of Indigenous Nutrition, LLC, a Reiki Master and a certified Qi-Gong instructor.  He has been fascinated by energy and how our bodies assimilate energy from food or the environment to impact our nervous system. 

Please join us to learn about EMF that surrounds us and what we can do to neutralize it to improve your health!

To reach Gary Greenleaf, please visit www.emfprotectionservices.com or email him at [email protected].

-Dr. Amy

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Plants have so many benefits to our health, often more than we realize.  We think of the nutrients they provide when we eat the, but we don't always know the benefits when they are used as an oil or in a diffuser that mists droplets in the air.

To explore this, for this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show, we interviewed Patricia Starr, owner and founder of Essential Starr-Integrated Healing Arts, about plant medicine and essential oils. 

Patricia shares how she dove into plant medicine after a bout of cancer that required radiation.  She used various oils daily to help combat the negative effects of radiation. 

She then began educating herself and subsequently others on the use of essential oils for various health issues, including depression, grief, insect bites, stress, etc.  We even discuss some contraindications and conditions in which essential oils might not be used.

Patricia stresses the importance of not ingesting the oils in your mouth or applying directly to the skin due to the toxicity of the high concentration of plant compounds in the oils.  She shares how you can use these oils safely to avoid negative effects. 

We also discuss some common essential oils that are used for depression (citrus, lemongrass), grief (Frankincense), and as an antibacterial (cinnamon and cloves).

Patricia has been a healing arts practitioner for over 25 years and has trained with instructors throughout the world in the fields of essential oils, massage, Ayurveda, and Cranial/Structural release.   She is a Nationally Registered Aromatherapist as well as a licensed massage therapist.

Please join us to learn about plant medicine and how to use essential oils to improve your health!

To reach Patricia Starr, please visit https://essentialstarr.com. 

-Dr. Amy

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The quest for a faster metabolism can seem elusive, but there are some habits we can form to help achieve the metabolism and health that we desire.   

For this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show, we discussed how your metabolism and habits can be standing in the way of your age-defying health with osteopath, Sherry Shaban.  With over 18 years of experience, Sherry has dedicated her life to motivating, inspiring and empowering thousands of people to reach their highest potential in health and fitness. 

Sherry explains how our health habits can impact how we feel, move and perform.  Sometimes we are not even aware of habits that hurt our progress and impact our health negatively.

We dive into the importance of mindset and how we can change our approach to health from a specific huge goal to a journey that is enjoyable, achievable and implementable.

Sherry shares tips on boosting your metabolism by changing food what you put in your mouth, what beverages you drink and how you move.  She has worked with clients both in-person and virtually to help them achieve their goals.

Sherry is also an athletic therapist, nutritional consultant, strength, fitness and life coach and owner of IMUNITY Fitness in Montreal, Quebec.

Please join us to learn about what you can do to change your metabolism!

To reach Sherry Shaban, please visit https://www.sherryshaban.com/. 

-Dr. Amy

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Are you suffering from burnout? Are you wondering how you can turn your life around when it seems impossible?

For this week’s episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour Show, we discussed how to recharge with Kirstin Carey, a Certified Holistic Nutritionist, Professional Chef, and Cognitive Behavior Therapy Practitioner based in Arizona.  Kirstin works with high-achieving women to help them regain their life back and is having an in-person event called Recharge in Scottsdale October 25-26, 2024.

Kirstin healed her body after being diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases and trying many conventional methods to help her body heal.  She began studying various aspects of health, including nutrition, NLP, bitfield healing, and various psychology tools including CBT and EFT. 

Lately she has explored neuropsychology because she has seen the effects of burnout on many of her clients, especially women. We discussed signs of burnout and why it afflicts more women than men.

Kirstin shared why some traditional methods of self care don’t always work for people and how she addresses the stresses facing women.

We explored the meaning of the word recharge and why women need help to boost their energy and keep it going in their daily lives. Kirstin shared about her upcoming event and how it’s designed to jumpstart women suffering from burnout.

Besides being an author of an Amazon Bestselling book, Transformational Healing, Kirstin owns Nourish123 with her partner Anthony DiNobile  and is a Neuro Linguistic Programming Practitioner, Certified EFT and TFT Tapping Practitioner and Biofield Healing Practitioner.

Please join us to learn more about recharging from burnout!

Please feel free to reach out to Kirstin Carey or check out her event at  https://www.nourish123challenge.com

-Dr. Amy Novotny

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As technology continues to enhance all aspects of our lives from how we communicate to how we work, we also search for ways that it can be used for our health.  Light technology to treat pain and illness has improved greatly in the recent years and has become a viable option for those looking for an alternative form of healing.   

For this week’s episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour, we explored the health benefits of photobiomodulation.  Brooke Luciano, Director of Provider Services at LightMD, Inc joined us to explain how pulsed LED light therapy is used to provide pain relief in a non-toxic and non-invasive form. 

Brooke has been in this industry for 13 years and trains other healthcare practitioners in using this healing light technology to help their clientele. She began using this healing modality after a car accident that left her in chronic pain and on a lot of medications.

We first dove into what is light therapy and how it works to improve cellular functioning.  Brooke explained how it acts to stimulate healing at the cellular level in detail on this video.

We discussed what happens when a person undergoes light therapy for pain.  Brooke explained how light pads are used and how the different wavelengths and frequencies are determined for the injured area. 

Brooke shared the wide variety of conditions it helps as well as whom she won't use this technology on.  She is a firm believer in its benefits and shared stories of those who she has helped.

Brooke started her career as a scientist after achieving her Bachelor of Science in marine biology.  She also co-owns and operates UltraRed Light, a small health and wellness business in Newport Beach, specializing in advanced Photobiomodulation.

Please join us to learn about this amazing healing technology!

To reach Brooke, please email her at [email protected] or visit www.lightmd.com. 

-Dr. Amy

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Do you wake up feeling groggy and low energy?  Do you wish you had restful sleep but not sure how to get it?

For this week’s episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour Show, we discuss sleep performance with Angus Buckle, a Sleep and performance expert who certifies coaches and health professionals all over the world on foundational sleep science and how to coach their clients to better sleep. Angus began his career in the personal training and fitness world and realized the need to learn about sleep so he could help his clients lose weight and perform better.

Angus broke down the main components of sleep performance that he tracks to help clients sleep better and more efficiently.  We discussed the importance of looking at cortisol levels, adrenaline and body temperature levels in the mornings and melatonin and body temp levels at night.

He also stressed the uniqueness of each individual and why doing some genetic testing is important to determine chronotype.  He also looks at bloodwork to determine vitamin B and D levels, both of which impact sleep. 

We discussed the variability in the amount of sleep people need and he explained how he determines that for each individual.  He noted that only 1% of the population can thrive on 5 hours of sleep but the rest of us need 6 or more hours of sleep per night to perform well the next day. 

Angus explained that it’s hard to make up lost sleep because our body likes consistency in wake up and bed time but you can use short 20 min naps to help with sleep deprivation.  He gives some suggestions about napping to make sure it doesn’t interrupt with your nighttime sleep. 

Angus has over 17 years of coaching experience, a diploma in personal training and sports nutrition, along with multiple qualifications in neurology and as a sleep science and sleep recovery coach. He has worked with over 450 clients, including, CEO’s, Athletes and Entrepreneurs running 7, 8 and 9-figure businesses.

Please join us to learn how you can begin to measure your sleep performance and start to make changes right now!

Please feel free to reach out to Angus Buckle at [email protected].   Please check out his website - https://www.sleepprocoach.com/

-Dr. Amy Novotny

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Hormones play a large role in our lives, influencing how we feel on a daily basis. They are important for our daily functioning, regulating our mood and impacting our energy levels.  So, how can we balance them without using pharmaceutical hormones?   

For this week's episode of the Weekend Wellness Hour show,  we discussed bio-identical hormones with Joya Van Der Laan, a family nurse practitioner, a functional medicine specialist, and an autism mom.  Joya shared with us the difference between pharmaceutical hormones and bio-identical hormones and why we can take bio-identical hormones for longer periods of time.

We discussed how testing is performed to determine the correct ratio of hormones that is needed for a specific patient.  This allows practitioners like Joya to compound a unique cream for her patients. Yearly monitoring allows Joya to check on the status of her patients.

We also touch on the common ways we know our hormones are off-balanced: bone density, brain function/memory issues, mood disorders, and genital issues. 

Joya shares how progesterone can help with improving sleep at night and decrease anxiety while estrogen typically lifts people up.  She also looks at testosterone in men since it affects body composition, concentration, motivation, and blood sugar control. 

Joya  has a medical practice called Nourish House Calls that provides functional medicine house calls in suburban Chicago.  She's available for consultations virtually for those in need of guidance outside Illinois.

Please join us to learn how the use of bio-identical hormones can improve your life! 

To reach Joya, please visit www.NourishHouseCalls.com. 

-Dr. Amy

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