Light Therapy for Seasonal Depression: What works?

It’s that time a year again! How did it come back so fast? With summer winding down and fall weather returning, depression can rear its ugly head for those who experience seasonal dips in their mood. Light therapy for seasonal depression works. Often called “light box therapy” because historically it required sitting in front of a large box of light to get treatment. Nowadays, there are more options for light therapy treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder. The best light therapy is the one that you will actually use! read more

Executive Functioning Skills: Do You Have Them?

Calling it executive functioning makes these skills sound fancy, complicated, and only for the most sophisticated among us. But really executive functions are automatic skills that run in the background and are in charge of helping life run smoothly. They help us in almost all we do every day.  Regardless of how bright a person is, struggles with executive functioning (called executive dysfunction) will make it difficult to stay on top of tasks. Executive function deficits are often seen in ADHD, learning disabilities, and depression. read more

14 Benefits of ADHD

When determining if someone meets criteria for ADHD we focus on what a person is struggling with and what isn’t working for them. For people with ADHD, the symptoms are significant and interfere with their ability to function. The symptoms of ADHD don’t generally enhance self-esteem or make someone feel on top of the world. Oftentimes, people with ADHD suffer from self-esteem issues; repeatedly feeling like a failure or feeling shame for struggling with seemingly simple tasks. Self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy can follow. So how is it possible that there are benefits of ADHD? I know you may be skeptical, but there ARE positive traits of ADHD! Let me tell you about 14 ADHD benefits. read more

What is Telepsychiatry? How a Virtual Doctor Visit Can Help You

Telepsychiatry visits are just like any other medical appointments- the only difference is they are conducted from the comfort of your own home or office using live video-conferencing. There are different names used for the same thing: virtual doctor visit, telehealth, telemedicine, telepsychiatry. They all mean the same thing: delivering health care services at a distance.



What is telepsychiatry?

Telepsychiatry visits are carried out using a HIPAA-compliant connection to keep your protected health information safe. The technology is similar to using Skype or Facetime, however, the telepsychiatry technology is encrypted. The technology has to meet certain medical standards to use. read more

What is Self-Respect?

WHAT IS SELF-RESPECT? In my profession, I see lots of people who feel broken. Some have been struggling for years with depression, anxiety, bipolar, etc…. but others are broken because they are afraid to be themselves. I wish I had a magic wand or even a magic pill, anything to make it easier for people to push back the blinds, stop hiding, and live true to themselves. I see self-respect as just that. Not hiding. Imagine the freedom that can come with self-respect. Let me define self-respect better for you. read more

Improve Sleep With a Weighted Blanket

When I was first contacted by the company Weighting Comforts I was so excited to try their weighted blanket. Not only do I love weighted blankets but these blankets are handmade in the United States by women who are refugees (a particular passion of mine). If you look at previous posts on my blog you will see I am a huge fan of healthy sleep hygiene and finding ways to improve sleep (read here for a reminder of sleep hygiene and healthy habits for sleep). Getting restorative sleep is a major contributor to improving someone’s mental health. People don’t feel at their finest when they are sleep deprived. Weighted blankets for adults can be a helpful tool to improve sleep. read more

Have Medical Questions to Ask Your Doctor? 4 Tips to Get Them Answered

How many of you have had the experience of going to the doctor, having tons of medical questions about what is going on with your body, and then leaving the doctor appointment without asking any of them? Or leaving feeling more confused than when you went in? I know I have!… and I’m a physician myself! As a physician, let me give you advice on what you can do to more effectively ask a medical question. When you have questions to ask your doctor your goal is to ask in a way that gets your medical questions answered. read more

Why You Need to Ask Your Doctor Questions!

Let me clear up a couple of myths regarding asking your doctor questions. Some people are too afraid and feel intimidated to ask a doctor a question. The truth is that we want you to ask questions! At least I do…But seriously, I think most doctors do too. Let’s talk about why you need to ask your doctor questions. The next blog will give you 4 tips to be more effective at getting your questions answered during the doctors appointment. You need to ask doctors questions so you can understand and take charge of your health! read more

Medication Prices Vary! How My Patients Save Money on Prescriptions

Ask my patients and they will certainly verify that I can’t stand it when they are overcharged for medication. I spend a good amount of time spreading the word about how to save money on prescriptions and wrote a post last year detailing 4 great programs that can help you to find cheaper prescriptions. Over the years, I have had many patients that can’t afford medication because of lack of insurance, high deductibles, or insurance plans that won’t cover it. There are huge cost differences between medication prices at different pharmacies. Read these tips on finding affordable prescriptions and don’t waste money again! read more

Suicide Prevention Plan: 5 Tips to Deal With Thoughts of Suicide

Preventing suicide does not happen by offering simple platitudes (“You have so much to be grateful for”) or by saying comments like: “It’s wrong”, “It’s selfish”, etc…but by coming up with a focused suicide prevention plan. Suicide and suicide thoughts are a response to incredible pain. The pain seems unending to the person experiencing it. Some people experience recurrent thoughts of suicide. Coming up with a plan for dealing with suicidal thoughts is essential and takes hard work in order to prevent suicide. The pain must be addressed and a safety net put in place. read more