Integrative Medicine Podcast

I was inspired by conversations I have seen in academic spaces I belong to about where “responsibility” lies in health change.  Does it lie with the individual (bottom up) or with the government (top down)?  As I was listening to this conversation happen, it made me think about how our health solutions for people are often bottom up, versus top down in their own household.  We ask people to eat spaghetti squash while their family eats something better.  We ask people to exercise at the end of the day after everyone else's needs are met.  We have normalized “finding 5 minutes to yourself” after a full day of giving, rather than starting the day with yourself in mind.  At a government policy level we know that placing the responsibility of health change on the individual isn’t effective. Individuals can’t thrive when their environment sets them up for failure.  And yet, that’s exactly what we ask you to do.  Fortunately, you’re the Queen, President and Prime Minister of

I’ve always been fascinated by pain. We can’t see it. We can’t measure it with a test.  And in a medical world where we barely listen to the patient experience - this presents a big problem.  The other problem with pain (well, one of the other problems) is that when pain lasts a long time, our brains change.  And in a medical world where you wait months for support - this presents another big problem.  Today’s podcast is about pain and I’m joined by Dr. Kirstie Grifiths, a Chiropractor and yogi (who you can find at @thechiropracticyogi who is on a mission to help people understand the red light, yellow light and green light around movement and body pain. There are moments where pain is a red flag (STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING) and there are many moments where pain is a green or yellow light (keep going!). Patients are often educated to stop moving when they have any pain - which increases the likelihood of exercising less over time (and further worsening their pain)   You can see the proble

For today’s podcast episode, I was joined by Dr. Shelby Harris, a clinical psychologist and sleep specialist supporting women to overcome insomnia with cognitive behavioural therapy. We discuss her book, A Woman’s Guide to Insomnia, and the unique challenges that women face with their sleep versus men.    Shelby shares tips and behavioural strategies to help you get started on your sleep journey and gives us the low-down on solutions that are evidence-based and have been proven to support a better night sleep.    If you’ve struggled with your sleep in the last year, this episode will help you fall in love with taking care of this part of your health. We talk about wearable sleep trackers, what the ideal amount of time to sleep is, and how to make subtle changes that could have a big impact on your sleep schedule.    You can learn more about Shelby on her website https://www.drshelbyharris.com/  or through social @SleepDocShelby   Shelby Harris, PsyD, DBSM is a clinical

It’s been a few years since our podcast on heavy menstrual bleeding (October 2020) and we have had a slew of questions from Instagram followers (follow here if you don’t already) about “is my period normal”. So here we go! In today’s podcast, we cover everything you need to know about whether your period is “normal” or if it’s something that needs treatment. We talk about menstrual variances such as:  Heavy bleeding, longer bleeding (more than 5 days) and bleeding that starts and stops.  Ovulation that doesn’t happen right on day 14.  Luteal phase (second half) challenges such as shorter cycles, longer cycles and spotting before your period.  Irregular cycles and changes to the total cycle length.    We talk about when to approach your doctor, how to take good notes about your cycle and when to get treated.  We also talk about the commodification of women’s bodies and menstrual health and how often influencers pathologize changes to the menstrual cycle and cause wome

In today's episode, we tackle weight bias and stigma head-on with a guest Dr. Sylvi Martin, a Naturopathic Doctor, registered nurse psychotherapist, certified intuitive eating counsellor, and mindfulness-based eating awareness training (MB-EAT) facilitator who has a dual passion for supporting patients with their eating behaviour while also supporting clinicians to eliminate weight bias in medicine and improve the delivery of nutrition therapy in a less harmful way.  We explore topics throughout the episode such as: How your weight or body shape may have affected the tests you received or the treatments you were offered from your doctor.  How weight bias has influenced your thoughts about yourself and others and may be influencing your health behaviours.  How your thoughts about food can affect the way you value yourself.  How the training that Naturopathic Doctors and nutritionists receive may be causing harm (and what to look for in a practitioner).  Dr. Sylvi Martin offers both p

Have you ever read the reviews of a restaurant that you love and thought “well that person is probably mean, that’s why they rated it a one-star”.    Or have you ever sat in a cold doctor’s office and thought “This person has terrible bedside manner, they can’t be right about what medication I should take”.    Health anecdotes are stories that have a villain, a hero and a battle! Should we use them to make decisions? Today’s podcast is all about this. If you’ve ever listened to a colleague, a friend or a family member share their experience and thought “I wonder if I should do that?.....” This episode is for you.    It’s common in the new year for us to be bombarded with new solutions to make ourselves better, more productive and healthier. I want you to be able to listen to stories with an ‘edge’ of critical thinking, to help you decide for yourself if a story is actually helping you, or if you’re too different from the person telling the story to get the same results.  &nb

I can distinctly remember whispering to my therapist that I didn’t really like what had happened to me after becoming a parent.  I honestly couldn’t tell if it was my physiology that was failing me, society or my perception of what parenthood was going to look like.  It turns out, it was probably all three.  In today’s episode, I’m joined by Dr. Laura Jasmin and Dr. Carly King, two Naturopathic Doctors and educators at The Confident Clinician. The work that Carly and Laura focus on is the impact of things like nutrition, lab testing, support and infrastructure have on maternal mental health and we’re diving deep into how the system is failing mothers and why Canada’s “no screening for maternal mental health” policy has affected all of us.  Even if your babies are old (mine are 11 and 13 and this still shows up in my life) this episode is for you. It will help you see yourself in our stories, be given permission to grieve what we could have had in those early months of parenthood and will p

Does un-dieting mean throwing in the towel and giving up on life? Absolutely not.  Today I’m joined by my friend and colleague (for a second time) Dr. Jennifer Huber, a Canadian Naturopathic Doctor, Registered Dietician and Intuitive Eating Coach who’s life mission is to help women make peace with food and their body in midlife.  Why does this happen? We share what happens in midlife and why un-dieting might be the answer to support midlife changes.  We dispel a ton of myths in this episode, including what “un-dieting” really means.  We ask great questions like: “When did you first start having thoughts about food in a moral way?” “What is your first memory of someone being upset about their body?” We highlight how these small little series of events lead to subconscious learning about food and bodies, and how that continues to shape how women feel about food in midlife - and especially in midlife.  Midlife has a lot of body changes, and when we mix this with women who are confused

The research on chronic pelvic pain in women should be changing the way we think about menstrual cramps, and today’s episode will help you question your own cramps, think about possible diagnoses that could be contributing to your cramps (like endometriosis) and give you insight into why we need to take care of your cramps - like yesterday.  Endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain has always been this elusive conversation. People’s pain is not correlated to the size of their endo lesions (meaning you can have very small lesions but very big pain), pain is also present after surgical removal and pain can persist when we give people medications that suppress hormone production (which in theory makes endometriosis and cramps very quiet).  Why does this happen? Probably central sensitization.  The research on chronic pain has looked at the changes that happen in the brain and central nervous system (which includes the spinal cord) rather than only looking at the changes that happen at the “spot” that

The concept of Neurological Reserve is probably new to you, but to Naturopathic Doctor, Dr. Pamela Hutchinson, who works with patients with neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's and MS, she is acutely aware of how important neurological reserve is for ALL women.  Our brains are a sensitive but amazing organ that literally runs our lives.  Do we ever stop and think about how things are going up there?  Do we ever consider how many programs or noises are running in the background? Or whether we are giving our brains enough time to reboot every day to face the demands we place on it? Whether you have struggled with a neurological disorder or not, your brain has a reserve that will affect the way you can show up in your life, recover from illness and trauma and may protect you from future neurological decline. Dr. Pamela and I discuss the ways you can start to take care of your brain today so that it's there for you in the future.  For over 21 years, Dr. Pamela Hutchison has been a p

When was the last time you had a biiiiiiiig loooooooong family meal? Do you even remember?  Was it mashed in between days of PB and banana on the way to hockey and a fast french toast dinner because nobody had the energy to make anything good (not that french toast isn’t amazing).  When I wanted to have a conversation about the Mediterranean diet and Slow Food, I knew I had the perfect person to join us as a guest. Dr. Antonella Aguilera-Ruiz ND is a chef, Naturopathic Doctor, lover of olive oil and teaches her patients the slow-food way. Although you can’t see us talking with our hands about communities, kitchens and olives, I promise this episode will leave you feeling re-inspired to create a Mediterranean-focused kitchen. Even if you don’t think you have time.  Antonella is hosting a course for our Confident Clinician network that is a perfect pairing of the Mediterranean diet principles and the behaviour change that people need to be successful. It’s intended for NDs, nutritionists, dietici

It’s common for people to think about supplements for joint pain. Maybe you’ve even tried one. The greatest challenge in treating joint pain with supplements is how consistent patients need to be, even if their joints are feeling a bit better.  Nutrition is an amazing opportunity to support joint health and today’s podcast discusses the what and how around food for joint pain. You have to eat every day, so how can we best support your nutrition plan to be supporting your joints every day too.  The vast majority of joint pain in people over 40 is arthritis (sorry to say!) and nutrition can change the way your joints feel. In this episode we cover The diets that have ZERO evidence for joint pain such as keto, carnivore and low nightshades.  The nutrition plan that can reduce joint pain in people with arthritis.  With the amount of noise online about food and inflammation, let’s set the record straight!  Enjoy the episode. 

Even if you’re living alone on a tropical island you’ve likely heard the online trend of syncing your menstrual cycle with your exercise.  Is it real? Or just another way to keep women small? I’ve taken my time bringing this conversation to the stage because I had a single woman in mind to bring on the show to discuss it. Dr. Alyssa Olenick has a Ph.D. in exercise physiology and specifically studies the impact of female hormones on training, adaptation and recovery.  We share a vibrant (read: passionately pissed) conversation about the cycle syncing trend and whether you should be changing your exercise each week of your cycle.  Alyssa is one of my favourite female scientists and I was thrilled we could share this conversation together.  What we covered in this episode:  What is “cycle syncing” and what happens through your cycle with respect to exercise.  What the research actually says about hormones and training.  Our thoughts on the commodification of women’s menstrual

We don’t want you to worry. But if you’re going to worry about something, let’s at least let it be the number one health risk women face in their lifetime.  It’s not breast cancer. It’s heart disease.  In this episode, I’m joined by my good friend and brilliant colleague Dr. Alex Verge, a Naturopathic Doctor who is changing the conversation about heart health for women. In this episode, Alex and I cover Why it’s common to miss the conversation about heart health with women in a medical setting.  How Estrogen impacts heart health and why risk changes after 50 What women can do in their 30s and 40s to prevent heart disease  Why testing and screening needs to be more often than you’re probably doing it.  I love all aspects of women’s health, but hold a special place in my heart for preventive cardiovascular care. If you have a heart. This episode is for you. It’s never too early to talk about cardiovascular health in women. We’re definitely not immune, and the culture of ignoring this

They are calling it a hormone revolution.  With almost half of Canadian women between the ages of 40 and 60, there are just a few of us (myself included) who are embarking on a hormonal transition that few know anything about.  In today’s episode, I clear up what is related to your hormones after 40 (and what isn’t) and what is happening to your body during each transition stage (yes there is more than one stage!).  In this episode we cover:  The “stages” of perimenopause What is happening hormonally in your body, and why you feel the way you feel.  What testing makes sense, and what you shouldn’t waste your money on.  Why feeling better in this stage of life is vital to your future health and the health of our communities.  Today’s podcast episode is sponsored by Smart Solutions. I’ve worked with Smart Solutions as an educator for two years and am encouraged by their continued dedication to providing evidence-based products and solutions to women to support their health n

Today’s conversation is about paying for health care, and how you are choosing to approach this conversation may be helping or hindering your own personal progress - whether you agree with paying for health or not.  We talk about the impact of “entry fees” and the communities that are harmed by non-universal health care, but beyond that, we cover the impact of mindset on who is responsible for your health (whether money is part of the conversation or not).  If you don’t value your health on any level, it’s very difficult to make the progress you truly desire. It’s a value conflict to not feel responsible for the cost of your health under any circumstance, but also desire the best care. It’s a conflict to want a lot out of your experience and never throw any skin in the game yourself.  If you’ve felt yourself uttering the phrase “I shouldn't have to pay for that” when talking about your personal health journey, I want us to unpack that and the negative impact it might be having on your path to s

Do you ever struggle to find the word you were thinking of?  What about walking into a room and forgetting why you were there? What about writing a sentence and then……wait…….what was I saying?  Brain fog is a common symptom that women feel in midlife, and although we think at this moment that midlife-related changes that impact our day-to-day cognitive function do get better with time, there are likely whispers of larger cognitive changes that start to happen in midlife.  We can easily ignore brain and cognitive health for decades. Really, most people ignore it until it’s a problem. But we know in the research that we can prevent negative cognitive changes in women if we address specific areas of their health in their 40s and 50s.  This episode covers a few important things The impact of nutrition on cognitive health and a couple of simple steps you can take to support your brain.  What happens to the brain in menopause and why it’s not doom and gloom.  Why taking action for you

In this week's episode I'm joined by my colleague Dr. Alison Danby, a Naturopathic Doctor in Ontario with a clinical and research focus on Autoimmunity.  We cover a few pervasive myths in the wellness space on autoimmune disease and what to look for in a "good" autoimmune health plan.  We answer questions like:  What does remission actually look like? Can you cure your disease? Does it matter if we find the root cause of your autoimmune disease or not? Can you avoid medication if you have autoimmune disease? Are the wellness trends you see online real? We address the grief, shame and blame that people feel when they have an autoimmune condition diagnosis and how to feel more confident about moving forward with an autoimmune condition in an empowered way.  Dr. Danby is the lead educator for The Confident Clinician's Autoimmune courses, and her next course on Evidence-Based Approaches to Rheumatic disease is open for enrollment right now. Early Bird Pricing ends October 7th. Naturopathic

Logic, science and evidence are not easy to find in the nutrition space online. Especially when looking at the “trends” and “recommendations” for women. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, support your joint pain or improve your mood, the online conversation about nutrition for women is often missing the big picture, focusing on data from test tubes or is just flat out wrong. Holly Baxter is a Dietician, world-level champion fitness model and the Director of Nutrition for Biolayne online programs. In this episode, we cover a lot of ground including: Can you pursue mental health goals and physique goals at the same time? What is reverse dieting and why women need to understand their bodies to develop patience in their nutrition program.  How to consider the ‘cost’ of your health goals and what impact nutrition is having on your overall health.  This episode is for any woman who has ever struggled with body image, has ever made nutrition goals and struggled with them or who is curious about the im

Did you know that over 50% of women will have hair thinning as they age?    This might be something we need to discuss eh?   In today’s episode, I share what happens to hair as we age, how to tell the difference between types of hair loss and what is possible for us as we age when it comes to our hair.    In this episode we cover: The lab testing you’ll need if you feel like you’re losing your hair.  What happens to hair as we age, and whether or not we can do anything about this.  Strategies to support thinning hair that you can start today.    We also talked about the aging process, seeing ourselves in the media and social media and how I want to open up this conversation about hair to normalize this experience that so many women feel shame over. Enjoy the listen!    If you’re a practitioner who supports people in menopause, this is the last day to save and catch the early bird pricing for my next course through The Confident Clinician happening