Women Talking Frankly

Today, Candace and Kyle are sharing their interview with Dr. Jenny Tufenkian, N.D., a naturopath with a proven track record of helping patients heal from long term illnesses thought to be incurable!

Drawing on a deep toolbox built from decades of studying and practicing naturopathic medicine, Dr. Jenny works with each patient long-term to explore the “5 Root Causes” of all disease – with a specific focus on chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), anxiety, and depression. In recent years, she has broadened her scope to tackle more amorphous health syndromes such as autoimmune disease and long haul Covid. 

Over the years, Dr. Jenny has helped thousands of patients grapple with these complicated conditions and has overseen health breakthroughs that are nothing short of amazing. Listen along with Candace and Kyle as they learn more about: 

ABOUT DR TUFENKIAN
Dr. Jenny Tufenkian is available for one-on-one consultations online or in person at her clinic “Enjoy Full Health” LLC - located at 1616 SE Ankeny St., Portland OR 97214.

--> To learn more or to schedule an appointment, call 503-894-9677 or schedule an appointment online.

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

In this episode, the hosts of Women Talking Frankly interview Susan Douglas.

Sue has worked in Technology since graduating from Oregon State in 1984, almost 40 years now, for Companies such as Dell, InfoSys, and NEC. Because fighting bad actors is particularly a passion for her, the last 10 years, Sue has specialized in Cyber Security.  She currently works for Fortinet, the #3 cybersecurity corporation in the world. She also volunteers with the FBI Citizens Academy.  

Sue goes over guidelines for actions that will help prevent us from getting scammed:

Sue also educates us about additional ways we can protect ourselves, from password protection, two step authentication, security software, etc. 

Bottom line: DON'T FRICKING CLICK!!!

USE YOUR CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS.

When in doubt, hang up, don’t respond to a text or email.

This is the ‘stranger danger’. We learned NOT to open the door to strangers. We need to adapt to the world we live in and avoid the strangers in cyberspace.

Sue has additional resources to share:

The $50K Scam: New York magazine’s money columnist wrote about being conned out of $50,000 by crooks pretending to be from Amazon and government agencies:  https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/16/your-money/scam-new-york-magazine-amazon-ftc-cia.html

How to Protect Your Personal Information Online: https://my.aarpfoundation.org/article/how-to-spot-scams/

What to Do After You've Experienced a Scam: https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2024/what-to-do-after-scam.html 

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

In our latest episode, Candace and Kyle have the pleasure of talking to Sharon Cook, and Claudia Herber, artist friends and co-owners of an art gallery in wine country Oregon. https://currentsgallery.com/

Each of these women practices an art all their own, Claudia as crafter extraordinaire of native gourds and Sharon as an intuitive painter. As you will pick up in this inspiring interview, though they create very different works of art, Sharon and Claudia both approach their artwork as an adventure, one that speaks to them and brings them joy....especially at this time in life when expressing feelings through creative outlets keeps us young. As the brilliant sculptor Louise Nevelson once said, "I never feel age when I am making art."  Listen and Enjoy!

RESOURCES / QUOTES MENTIONED:

How the Arts Can Benefit Your Mental Health (No Talent Required)

Drawing, music and writing can elevate your mood. Here are some easy ways to welcome them into your life.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/22/well/mind/art-mental-health.html

How Art Heals: 5 Ways That Art Makes Everything Better

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/rethinking-mental-health/202104/how-art-heals-5-ways-art-makes-everything-better

The Big Impact of a Small Hobby 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/01/well/mind/coronavirus-health-benefits-drawing-art-hobbies.html

I knew that drawing could change my mood. When I started doing it on a regular basis, I discovered it could change my life. It may now be keeping me out of the hospital, or more. 

There’s scientific evidence for the health benefits of a drawing practice. A 2016 study at Drexel University found significantly lower levels of cortisol after 45 minutes of making art. 

It’s not just making art that improves health and mood. Almost any hobby or act of leisure helps. A 2013 study at Pennsylvania State University found that gardening, sewing, completing puzzles and other relaxing activities lowered blood pressure.

_ NYT author, John Donohue

“As I worked with my patients, I realized that …self-expression through art brought forth a transforming self-discovery. Many of these women were unable to articulate their deepest feelings, but their emotions poured out through their hands into an art form. I noticed that those who completed a project gained a sense of mastery and competence, even if they felt overwhelmed by other aspects of daily living.

_Kenna Stephenson, M.D. / Awakening Athena, Ch. 5: The Value of Handwork (painting, sculpting, woodworking, weaving, knitting etc.)

CONNECT WITH CLAUDIA + SHARON:

The Artwork of Claudia Herber 

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNovqs_tbwQ

Claudia Herber

https://currentsgallery.com/pages/claudia-herber

Sharon C. Cook - Oil and Cold Wax artist

https://sharonccookartist.com/

The Artwork of Sharon Cook

https://currentsgallery.com/pages/sharon-cook

Currents Gallery, Mcminnville, Oregon

https://currentsgallery.com/

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

Join Candace and Kyle for a fascinating discussion about the modality of hypnotherapy and how it can create lasting changes in someone’s life.

Guest: Amy Green Smith is a hypnotherapist, public speaker, personal improvement coach, and experienced podcaster with over nine years and 500+ episodes under her belt. One of her main goals is to help people move beyond their ‘limiting beliefs.’

Visit her website and podcast, The Bold Faced Truth, which addresses the issue of people-pleasing and many more topics: Amy Green Smith's Website.

Covered in this Episode:

Ways to Connect with Amy Green Smith:

Some of Amy's Favorite Influences:

Tune in to this insightful episode and discover how hypnotherapy can help you banish toxic thinking and boost your self-confidence!

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

We begin with Teena’s story, where she describes starting music lessons at 7-years-old on “traditionally female”  instruments like violin and piano, but later found that it was guitar and percussion that spoke to her …. “It was like a steam train after that, no one could stop me.” Teena takes us behind the scenes of her groundbreaking career as a musician playing with Johnny Lee Hooker and as lead percussionist with the Van Morrison band; how she transitioned from ‘rocker’ to sound therapist.

In this episode Candace + Kyle also discuss:

References:

On health benefits of sound baths:

Contact Teena Lyle:

Aurora Sound and Reiki Therapy

https://aurorasoundandreikitherapy.co.uk/

Zoom consults soon: Watch This Space 

Teena recommends: 

Guy Douglas – The Gong Guy (online) https://www.gongguy.com/

Michelle Kellogg Mindful Mystic™

Chakra Balancing Reiki & Sound Healing 

​

Sound, Scent and Soul (Trauma work) https://www.theartofsoundhealing.com/treating-trauma-with-sound-therapy/

Koshi Bells, Singing bowls, Energy Chimes, Flutes, Gongs…. 

https://soundhealinglab.com/products/koshi-chimes

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

This week’s guest is Shivani Gupta, PhD, an Ayurvedic Practitioner who completed her PhD on Turmeric and its various uses. Shivani’s vision is to support allopathic medicine with the ancient practices of ayurvedic medicine.  She started the women-only run company of Fusionary Formulas (https://fusionaryformulas.com). Her formulas are designed to help with inflammation, pain and adequate rest.

Shivani is also a national speaker, the author of an upcoming book, has her own TV show and podcast (Vibrant Health) and a private consulting practice.

In this episode we discuss:

What is ayurvedic medicine?: A system of healing, health and medicine over 5000 years old from India. Goal is to have mind, body and spirit in alignment.

Six main pillars:

Shivani reviews the 3 main doshas; we each have a predominant one and a secondary one. Treatment is aimed at supporting our doshas. Knowing one’s doshas helps us to get in alignment with what we need to live a balanced life.

CONNECT WITH SHIVANI:

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

On today’s episode, we do a bit of a pivot and learn the causes and treatments of the epidemic of knee pain. Both Kyle and Candace have traveled this journey and have a personal interest in learning more about this topic and sharing this knowledge with our listeners.

Our guest today is Dr. Russell Riggs, who spent 25 years in the ER treating all kind of patients. His interest in treating knee pain grew from his father’s experience, as well as his own, plus from all of the patients he saw in the ER who struggled with this issue.

Many factors have made knee pain one of the top conditions globally: three of the leading causes are obesity, aging and an unprecedented number of knee injuries. Another common cause is the tendency for young athletes to concentrate on one sport while growing up, which can lead to overuse injuries of the knees.

Dr. Riggs co-opened Reflex Knee Clinic in Tigard, OR back in 2011 and has since opened two more: One in Bellevue, WA and a third in Scottsdale, AZ. During today’s episode, we delve into various non-surgical options for knee pain/injuries/conditions.

Some of the topics that we cover during our time with Dr. Riggs:

TAKEAWAYS:

Join us today to learn more about how you can keep and/or get your knees healthy again!

WORK WITH DR RIGGS

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

Candace and Kyle are delighted to interview British nutritionist and author, Jackie Lynch, founder of the online Well-Well-Well nutrition clinic and host of the hugely popular diet & lifestyle podcast The Happy Menopause - which was shortlisted for the 2022 International Women’s Podcast Awards. She is also the author of The Happy Menopause: Smart Nutrition to Help You Flourish (Watkins, 2020) which was Highly Commended in the 2021 UK Health & Wellbeing Awards. You can visit Jackie on her website www.well-well-well.co.uk. Follow her on social media at @WellWellWellUK.

Here are some of the main areas we covered in our fast paced conversation with Jackie about the key elements of a happy menopause - from practicing optimal nutrition and stress management to taking bioidentical hormones (if you can get them) and creating a positive mindset around the menopause experience:

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

In this episode, Candace and Kyle take the time to pause, reflect and kickoff the New Year with a wrap up of the best of WTF 2023, our favorite episodes and yours, what we learned, accomplished, enjoyed, or indulged in, and how we tried to make our world - the world of women’s health - a better place.

Much is being talked about how to make and keep effective New Year’s resolutions, and we introduce a phrase that particularly resonates with us; How to imagine our better future selves and spinoff with a few new concepts we like better than To Do lists and resolutions.

In this episode, we reveal your favorite and most frequently shared WTF episodes of 2023 and some exciting analytics, including the astounding increase in our followers (up by 64%) and streamings (up by 91%) - and we celebrate going global with WTF listeners in 20 countries worldwide!

We are growing (!) and think we can say that you told your friends about us (!) and are really feeling what we do!

Episode References and Mentions:

Your Favorite WTF podcast 2023: From the Horse’s Mouth, Dr. David Zava, PhD sets the record straight on how hormone testing and bioidentical hormones can help women feel great again! 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7DUBLiqEyl8o6eXABlqUC0

Your Most Shared WTF podcast 2023: The Art and Science of Natural Hormone Balance in Perimenopause and Menopause with Kenna Stephenson, M.D. 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6MMdiw0d5RZeHvY5d2l3Pl

Kyle's Favorite Episode: Women and Cardiac Disease: Getting to the Roots with Andrea Nakayama, Functional Nutritionist 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2zdeJCPGL98nnz6REMZQJc

Candace’s Favorite Episode: Pro-Aging with Gabby Reece, Volleyball legend, Fitness guru and podcaster

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2dGbbrJptdeveYOctJy07a

Favorite Alternatives to the New Years Resolution:

The Nudge Word or Motto

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/nudge-words-resolutions-and-nostalgia-the-week-in-well-being/ar-AA1maFCt

The “I WON’T Do” list. How Women Rise, by Sally Helgeson and Marshall Goldsmith 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36204301-how-women-rise

Favorite Concept: Healthspan vs. Lifespan – Read this great discussion in TIME magazine

https://time.com/6341027/what-is-healthspan-vs-lifespan/

Favorite Read: Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s Currents and Flourishing As We Age, by Mary Pipher 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38884171-women-rowing-north?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_18#CommunityReviews

Favorite Sleep supplement:

Cortisol Manager by Integrative Therapeutics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOisS8PeK2g

Favorite Quotes:

Let us take a moment to honor Suzanne Somers, the glamorous, comedic actor turned hormone guru who, sadly, passed this year, and whose blockbuster book, The Sexy Years, blew open the dialogue around menopause and put bioidenticals on the map. Suzannne was one of the first to empower women to insist on safer treatment options during menopause! “One thing I love about aging—and I do love aging—I’ve got a wisdom that no young person can buy. You earn it.”

The Sexy Years:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/120110.The_Sexy_Years?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

"So many women I've talked to see menopause as an ending. But I've discovered this is your moment to reinvent yourself after years of focusing on the needs of everyone else. It's your opportunity to get clear about what matters to you and then to pursue that with all of your energy, time and talent." — Oprah Winfrey

"Gravity and wrinkles are fine with me. They're a small price to pay for the new wisdom inside my head and my heart.” – Drew Barrymore

"My belief is that it’s a privilege to get older. Not everybody gets to get older.” — Cameron Diaz

“The trick is to age honestly and gracefully and make it look great so that everyone looks forward to it.” – Emma Thompson

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]

In this episode, Kyle and Candace tackle one of the most challenging conundrums in healthcare for women in menopause: in particular, how the symptoms can be more severe in women of color (WOC) than they are for white women and last longer - a fact that goes largely unrecognized by doctors!

Landmark research into the racial discrepancies in menopause, the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN) (launched in 1994) followed a group of over 3,000 women in perimenopause and menopause for decades and found significant differences: that Black and Hispanic women reach menopause earlier than white, Chinese and Japanese women, and also experience certain menopausal symptoms for 10 or more years — almost twice as long.

Even more concerning, the Office of Minority Health (a division of the DHHS), reports that black women are at greater risk for cardiovascular disease, strokes, cancer, asthma, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS.

The disparities extend further into the realm of maternal health as WOC are far more likely to suffer from fibroids and 3-4 times as likely to be affected by pregnancy related deaths.

Furthermore, when WOC seek treatment for these symptoms, they often encounter physicians who are unaware of the differences and dismiss their concerns — a common experience for all menopausal women, but even more familiar among women of color.

Dr. Monica Williams-Rilley is NOT one of those doctors! As the founder and medical director of Deep Rooted Health, and a Cliovana expert practitioner, she is leading the charge towards more inclusive healthcare for WOC with hormonal issues. Dr Williams is a Board-Certified Family Physician specializing in Functional Medicine, sexual health, and wellness. She has dedicated the last 25 + years in practice to teaching her clients how to meet their goals of living healthier lives through strategic lifestyle planning. 

Here are some of the key points of discussion we cover in this podcast episode:

-Major factors contributing to the racial disparities and increased risks in health care for women of color

-Health impacts of systemic racism and the multiple stressors unique to WOC

-Symptoms and imbalances most common in WOC during Perimenopause/Menopause

-Why Fibroids are more prevalent, “the norm”  among black women

-How keeping things inside makes menopause worse… in the community of color, women are taught to keep this to themselves, the importance of speaking up and expressing ourselves ….

-Example of a routine visit, evaluation doing a health history back 10 years, all the way to the womb; the vital importance of listening

-Which treatments and lifestyle changes bring most benefit – diet, exercise, lifestyle changes (ending toxic relationships), acupuncture, meditation

-How we can create a more equitable health care system through healthy communication and becoming better listeners

-How to help providers who work with WOC to recognize the earlier/more persistent symptoms they are experiencing  perimenopause and menopause.

CONNECT W/ DR WILLIAMS

Work with Monica: Deep Rooted Health

@deep_rooted_health

CONNECT W/CANDACE + KYLE

Candace Burch:

YourHormoneBalance.com

[email protected]

Kyle McAvoy:

[email protected]