NEW PATIENTS

What to expect during your first visit

When I welcome patients in my practice, it is as much a priority to help them feel happy is it is to make them healthy.

I was a patient before I became a doctor. I know how much stress a health issue can put on your life, and how vulnerable you feel when you are given a diagnosis. I understand how frustrating it is when your doctor can’t find out in your tests why you are still not feeling well after taking all your meds. What I realized while going through my personal experience as a patient is the importance of selecting a medical provider who can take the time to really hear you and to evaluate your health in all its aspects.

I am here to do much more for you than giving you a diagnosis and writing a prescription. I want to provide you with the best advice and the most up-to-date treatments, while sharing my knowledge and teaching you how YOU can achieve and maintain an optimal state of health. By optimal I mean, not just what shows on lab and test results, but essentially what makes you feel good in your own body and mind, what prevents you from getting sick and aging prematurely.

The great benefit of working on optimal health, rather than attending medical issues when they arise, is that it gives you more power over your own health, and over your life as a whole.

As I am both a conventionally trained physician and an Anti Aging and Functional medicine doctor, my patients appreciate that I can offer them an approach that combines both perspectives, the traditional and the holistic. For years, I have been working on the connection between body and mind, whether through my deep interest in Neurology and Psychology, or the many meditation and yoga practices I have engaged and certified in. So what does this mean it terms of the type of medical care I deliver to my patients, and how will it make a difference in your life?

EACH PATIENT IS UNIQUE

The first thing I want you to know is that each patient who comes into my practice is treated as unique. I do not believe in having a protocol that applies to all, rather in giving patients the standard of care that they deserve by focusing on who they really are. This is where “Conscious Health” starts. In order to help you reach your goals in becoming healthy and reversing the aging process, I need to know everything about you.

Each person comes in with a different body type and genetic makeup; each person has a different medical history and life experience. More importantly, each person has a unique mindset. All these factors not only indicate what is the best way to treat patients, but also how they are going to respond to a treatment or even to nutrition and exercise. For instance, many patients present with the same complaint of fatigue, and as many causes can be found for this one symptom. My role is to pinpoint what has offset the balance in your body and to address it efficiently. It can originate from a physical issue that can be detected on more specific testing than general labs, or it can come from a stressed mind which needs to be examined with equal attention.

FINDING THE CAUSE

Lab work and medical tests represent the “objective” scientific way of finding out about your health.Most often, in conventional medicine, we use general lab work and testing which is primarily meant to target the main diseases that require immediate intervention. They are sufficient tools for emergency medicine, but not to help diagnose and treat chronic diseases, or certain symptoms like fatigue, headaches, weight issues, sleep disturbances, abdominal discomfort etc…

However there are certain values on these basic labs that are not commonly addressed in a regular medical practice, but play a significant role in balancing your physiology, improving your health, and preventing disease. In order to get to the root of your health issue, I often run more advanced labs and non invasive tests. Functional medicine offers many different new labs, but it’s important to know which ones offer the most reliable results and are the most indicated for you.

The other way to find out about your health, which is equally as important, is based on the “subjective” symptoms that you are reporting. Whatever complaint you have is a problem that needs a solution. When your body or your mind is out of balance, all sorts of symptoms can arise. When you consult with me, I look for any nutrient or hormonal deficiency or excess, analyze your stress levels, and evaluate the food and environmental toxins, as well the thoughts and unconscious mind processes that can affect your physical and mental health.

BUILDING STRESS RESISTANCE

We find out more every day that stress is responsible for most life threatening illnesses and the wide range of emerging chronic diseases. So what can we do about this contemporary epidemic? The focus has been mainly on identifying the causes of stress and trying to control them. While this is very helpful, supporting this effort with an engaging stress-relieving practice and building physical and mental stress resistance are key. I highly encourage patients to have a daily practice that brings them to a state of relaxation for at least 20 minutes, along with a form of exercise that distracts their minds from their concerns and to-do lists. This should be part of any medical treatment as it has shown to slow down disease and prevent aging. How do you build stress resistance? In other words, how do you become strong enough to handle the unavoidable stressors in your life?

Again, when your body and your mind are balanced, you are in a less reactive state and as a result you are less vulnerable to illness. Among the modalities I use to evaluate and improve stress resistance, breathing plays a very important role. We hold our breath all together, or breathe more superficially when we are stressed, and we should know that deep breathing is essential to good health. We need to re-learn how to breathe, and use our breath as a powerful healing, disease-preventive, and anti-aging tool.

In my next blog, I will talk more about invigorating breathing you can practice everyday for vibrant health.

TREATING YOU TO CREATE VIBRANT HEALTH

Knowing that all your hormones start declining after the age of 35, that your ability to process and utilize nutrients decreases with illness, age, and stress, it is important to replenish and support the body so it can work as it is supposed to.

No matter how old you are, you want to feel energized throughout the day, have clear positive thoughts, and be free from pain and anxiety. This is the gateway to create more joy in your life.

PATIENT PORTAL

After your initial visit you will have access to your medical information and communicate with me physician through your private patient portal. You will be given your own username and password as soon as you become a patient of our practice.

Access your medical information and communicate with your physician through your private patient portal. You will be given your own username and password as soon as you become a patient of our practice.

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