Lost or Found

On today’s episode, we have Rebecca Hurdis on the show to talk about her life as an adoptee.  Born in Seoul, Korea, Rebecca Hurdis is a transracial transnational adoptee.  She spent her childhood on the east coast, before moving to California when she was 20 years old.  Growing up in the 1980’s and 90’s when most of America believed in the model minority myth and assimilation for Asian Americans,...

On today’s episode, my friend, Dr. Heidi Olander, MD, shares her recent neurosurgical health crisis.  In spring 2020, she was noted to have a lesion in her brain, with the potential to be something malignant or benign- and she was recommended for neurosurgery for a medical diagnosis.  She walks us through her medical journey.  One of the commonalities in life is that we will all inevitably face on...

What’s clear is that even though we think we may know, most women do not have a good understanding of menopause.  We have an idea of what occurs, but do we truly know what is to be expected?  Menopause is diagnosed after you’ve gone without a period for one year, but, well, it doesn’t just last one year.  There’s been a longstanding viewpoint, which is oftentimes misogynistic, that menopause is vi...

Let me tell you about the podcast…

In this episode, Oriana Gliessman and I hold our first book club meeting!  We discuss Anita Moorjani’s memoir,  Dying to Be Me.   It’s the book I most recommended to my patients to read, as a doctor working in primary care.  What if we can all take a more active role in choosing our authentic life experiences, without experiencing a near-death experience to get there!?!   Dying to Be Me is about A...

On today’s episode, I speak with Kathy Nuss, who is an Occupational Therapist in Pacific Grove, Monterey, and we talk about mindful eating. Considering the fact that the rate of obesity has been consistently rising in the U.S., have we forgotten what comprises a healthy diet? The U.S. weight loss market is huge, selling “quick and easy” weight loss programs which are ineffective in the long run. O...

On today’s episode, we have Josie Teresi back on the show, and she talks about her son’s addiction.  When a family member becomes addicted to drugs or alcohol, not only do they face significant challenges, but it also impacts the rest of the family.  It affects not only the individual with the “problem,” but also causes sickness within the entire family unit.  The effects hardly go unnoticed: they...

Meditation is a simple practice that everyone can do- which can reduce stress, invite calmness and clarity into our lives, and promote happiness.  Even just a few minutes a day can make a big difference.  It can often be described as healing from within.  True meditation occurs in the Now and it involves paying close attention to the present moment – especially our thoughts, emotions, and sensatio...

Just in case you didn’t know, there is a newly described fourth trimester.  We know that there are three trimesters of pregnancy.  The fourth trimester is the time between birth and 12 weeks postpartum, and perhaps this is the period where I wonder if women are most neglected, as a mother. On today’s show, we have Hannelore Kieser-Deguara, and she is a Postpartum doula. The postpartum period can b...

There is a conversation that we are not having in medicine – and that is related to our dying.  Oftentimes when this conversation does happen, it is often too late for palliative care to do some good, to relieve suffering, to improve quality of life, during the time that we have left.  And because this conversation doesn’t happen, or doesn’t occur early enough, death has become painful.  Death is...

We have Dr. Bruce Lipton on the show today!  He wrote  The Biology of Belief , and he is here to talk about how our consciousness creates our life experiences.   Ultimately, we manifest our beliefs.  Our lives and our own health may be a manifestation of our belief system. Dr. Lipton is a stem cell biologist and is an internationally recognized authority in bridging science and spirit.  A cell bio...

When the body becomes imbalanced, it becomes irritated and inflamed. I believe most of us live our lives in the chronic inflammatory state. Stresses have many external sources – it could be the people in your life, your job, lack of sleep, lack of activity, the death of a loved one, chronic illness or injury, pollution, or even what we put into our mouths. While acute inflammation is good and life...

Empaths are highly sensitive individuals who have the ability to understand the experiences and feelings of others.  It can be like a super power, though without boundaries, it can also feel like a draining curse.  These are some signs that indicate that you could be an empath:  Have you ever noticed that you’re deeply tuned into the feelings of others around you?  Do you get overwhelmed in big cr...

We live in a society where we focus on the external or only that which we can see. But what if we’re more than that? To be whole, our complexity requires acknowledgement. If we strive for balance in our lives, we need to consider not only the exterior but also the interior, the visible and the invisible, the known and unknown, the ancient and the new. On today’s show, we have Rowan Foxx Giles here...

We have Monica Martinez, MPA, on the show today, to talk about her family’s experiences with foster care and adoption.  She is the Chief Executive Officer of  Encompass Community Services , Santa Cruz County’s largest health and human services nonprofit, where she provides vision for large-scale change at the local level.  Being a parent is not easy, and being a parent of a child who has experienc...

On today’s episode, my friend Oriana Gliessman talks to us about her life, as she has been separated from her husband for over a year, and they have decided to end their marriage.  In this thoughtful, insightful, and honest conversation, she uses the caterpillar metaphor of cocooning to describe her life right now: focusing her energy on getting to know herself again, discovering her own needs and...

Infertility is fairly common in the United States, as it impacts about 15% of couples.  Fertility is also known to steadily decline with age.  Infertility can affect one or both partners- about a third of the time, infertility can be traced to the woman, a third of the cases can be traced to the man, and in the remaining cases, there are issues in both partners or no cause can be found.  On today’...

Is it possible for our consciousness to survive physical death? On this episode, I speak with Dr. Jim Tucker, MD, who is a Psychiatrist and a Professor of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia, and is the director of the UVA Division of Perceptual Studies, as he discusses his work with children who report memories of previous lives. He is the author of Life before L...

Addiction is a chronic disease that affects the brain’s reward, motivation, and memory functions.  While alcohol or drug use is initially voluntary, and sometimes socially acceptable, some can stop with continued usage, and many cannot.  The truth about addiction is that it is pervasive in our society.  Mental health issues, emotional and physical pain, and stressors, are also recognized as drivin...

Most of us spend a lot of energy organizing our lives around steering clear of what we fear most.  What if fear isn’t something to avoid, fight, or feel badly about?  What if fear exists to actually help you?  When we ignore the message that our fears have for us, fear can become a health risk.  On today’s show, Josie Teresi and I talk about our fears, and the important message it may have in our...

This week, we have Kimberly Clark Sharp on the show, to talk about near-death experiences.  Near-death experiences occur when one is briefly dead or almost to the point of dying, and these experiences are often life changing. And having these experiences can dramatically transform people’s attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors. It brings up the possibility that some part of us may survive bodi...

In this episode, I speak with Cyprian Consiglio, OSB Cam, who is a Camaldolese Benedictine monk, musician, composer, author, and teacher of practical and integral spirituality. He is a Catholic monk, who is open to other religions and their teachings and who respects all aspects of our being human. Our conversation focuses on what the Catholic church and Bible teach in regards to the unknown myste...

Connie Sobczak founded the organization, The Body Positive , in honor of her sister, to ensure that her daughter would grow up in a new world – one where people are free to focus on the things in life that really matter. It is a community that offers freedom from the suppressive and oppressive messages from society, that cause people to be in a perpetual conflict with their own bodies. She is the...

Racial injustices exist in the U.S., and the implicit and explicit bias that exists contributes to racial disparities in healthcare.  I talked with psychiatrist Dr. Norman Reynolds, MD, about racism in the United States, and how it has affected the practice of medicine historically up until now – as it is one more reflection of the fact that we do not have equity in our country.  During the pandem...

Self-care is good for your health and well-being!  Sometimes we can’t control the stressors in our lives, but we can control how we react to them.  And when we take care of ourselves — and we take care of our mind, body, and spirit — we are building our resilience to handle the stressors that we can’t eliminate.  Join us in this fun conversation as Dr. Jessica Murphy, DO, and I discuss self-care. ...