The Healing Podcast - Brought to you by MarinHealth

Life can be a little hectic, and enjoying this 20-minute guided imagery audio file can help you relax and recharge. Guided relaxation is a powerful tool that helps manage stress, find inner peace, and improve mental function. It can also cultivate self-awareness, compassion, and empathy.

Each woman with endometriosis has her own unique combination of symptoms. While many suffer severe or even debilitating menstrual pain, a small percentage of women experience little or even no discomfort. Some women experience pain during sex. Although many have fertility issues, others have no problem conceiving and giving birth.

In this podcast, Dr. David Galland, an OB-GYN at MarinHealth Medical Center, discusses the symptoms, causes, and treatment of endometriosis. Listen to learn more about new medications, hormone treatments, and other approaches to managing a chronic condition that can seriously impact your quality of life.

The radius is the most commonly broken bone in the arm. When the break occurs at the wrist, the injury is known as a distal radius fracture. Some of these fractures are “lucky breaks” in that there is no bone displacement. In such cases, the arm can heal nicely with just a cast to support and immobilize the break. However, when bone is shattered or displaced, surgery will be needed to restore normal function to the arm.

Orthopedist Dr. David Nelson, a hand surgeon with MarinHealth Medical Center, has performed many reparative surgeries on distal radius fractures. Here, he explains what to look for if you are concerned you may have a distal fracture, and whether you can safely wait a day to get an X-ray. Dr. Nelson also discusses why it’s better to delay surgery until the swelling starts to go down, and what to expect from the recovery process.

The Advanced Healthcare Directive and POLST form are essential documents for planning your future care should you become incapacitated and unable to make decisions for yourself. Filling them out and selecting someone to be your “agent” are essential steps in ensuring that your preferences will be honored. At the Marin Healthcare District’s new Supportive Care Center, staff is available for consultation and assistance in filling out your POLST and Advanced Healthcare Directive.Sarah Chow, a Nurse Practitioner and Specialist in Palliative Care at MarinHealth Medical Center, provides a detailed overview of the Advanced Healthcare Directive and POLST forms. She also covers such topics as choosing your healthcare agents, which forms need to get notarized, and when you may want to update an existing form.

A Lactation Consultant at MarinHealth Medical Center, Anne Hauss Davies helps new moms adjust to nursing and develop a feeding plan that works for both mother and baby. Hauss Davies also discusses some of the latest research into the benefits of breastfeeding, including for mothers. In addition to what’s being best for the baby, breastfeeding reduces a woman’s risk of developing osteoporosis and certain cancers.

There’s a reason MarinHealth Medical Center has been recognized as Marin’s “Healthiest Employer” and “the Healthiest Company in the North Bay” by the SF Business Times. The hospital has developed a robust wellness program to support the physical, mental, spiritual, and social health of their employees.Now, the hospital is sharing its landmark wellness program with businesses in the community. Terese O'Malley, Manager of Wellness Programs at MarinHealth Medical Center, reveals the positive impact the program has had on the hospital workforce and explains how companies can customize the program to fit their needs.

MarinHealth Medical Center’s renowned cardiology program has expanded its expertise to include the growing discipline of Sports Cardiology. This new medical specialty helps active people of all ages and proficiency levels, from weekend warriors to professional athletes, perform at their peak while protecting their cardiovascular health.

In this podcast, Medical Director Brian Keeffe MD provides an overview of the Cardiovascular Performance Center at MarinHealth Medical Center, including consultation, testing, and the types of patients who benefit from participating in this groundbreaking program.

The opioid crisis has caused many physicians to rethink pain management and stop turning to opioids as the default solution.

Surgeons are increasingly turning to multimodal solutions including setting patient expectations through preoperative education, ice, elevation, pre-operative blocks, and over-the-counter analgesics.

Board-certified in orthopedics, Dr. David Nelson is the only hand surgeon in the US to hold a membership in the International Association for the Study of Pain. Dr. Nelson has been researching post surgical pain and pain management for twenty-seven years. Here, he discusses his professional experience, his research findings, and how to approach pain management from a whole-patient perspective.

Illness, hospitalization, and medical procedures are frightening enough for adults, but these experiences can be downright terrifying for a child. That’s why MarinHealth Medical Center has a Child Life Specialist Program, to help calm, soothe, and distract children and explain their care to them in an age-appropriate way. In this interview, MarinHealth Medical Center Child Life Specialist Amanda Suhrke discusses how she helps sick or injured children and their families adjust to hospitalization. Suhrke works with both young patients and their worried siblings. She is also available to assist children when a parent is hospitalized or dealing with a critical diagnosis.

Whether it’s freshly mown grass, brownies in the oven, or a whiff of your mom’s favorite perfume, scents can invoke pleasant memories and have an immediate and powerful effect on our emotions. This is the basis for essential oils therapy, an ancient healing art now being offered by MarinHealth Medical Center to help calm, relax, uplift, or invigorate their patients.Stephanie Carver, a registered nurse and health consultant at MarinHealth Medical Center, has special training in essential oil therapy. Here, she describes how the oils are used to reduce the tension, stress, fear, and anxiety that many patients experience during hospitalization. To maximize the oils’ soothing effects, Carver and her colleagues often use them in conjunction with breathing exercises and guided imagery.