The stress over the past 18 months has been enormous for many people and I have certainly seen a lot more anxiety in my patients. Prescriptions for anti-anxiety and insomnia have increased over the course of the pandemic and, as we know, it’s easy for people to develop a dependence on these types of medications. The long-term effects of taking anti-anxiety and insomnia medications can be detrimental to our overall health, so they should be taken in the short term. But the reality is that people … [Read more...] about Emotional First Aid: Identifying Natural Solutions for Anxiety
Amber Belt
Stress, Fear and Impacts on Immunity
Raise your hand if you’ve been stressed over the past 18 months! I’m guessing more than 90% of people reading this have had significant stress over the course of 2020 and 2021. Between the pandemic, elections and personal stress, I am seeing the multitude of ways that stress is impacting my patients and the levels of both stress and fear have a negative impact on health. The good thing about stress is that it can absolutely be a catalyst that sparks positive change. The bad news is that I … [Read more...] about Stress, Fear and Impacts on Immunity
Chasing Health from the Inside Out
Anyone else out there taking a deep breath and bracing yourself for fall and winter and the expected increase in seasonal viral illnesses? Yeah, me too. While an uptick in seasonal viral illnesses seems overwhelming considering what we’ve collectively been through over the past 18 months, I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to cross your fingers, squeeze your eyes shut and hope that you don’t get sick. You can take action to set your immune system up to take on these bugs when they come … [Read more...] about Chasing Health from the Inside Out
Five Fantastic Natural First Aid Essentials
Have you ever wanted to build your very own natural first aid kit but didn’t know where to start? Well, I’m here to help you! In June of this year, I launched NatureAid. NatureAid is the natural first aid course that I developed to help people identify what items they may need to put in their own natural first aid kits as well as how to use these items in a first aid situation. And participants get their very own natural first aid kit as part of the course! Today, I want to share with you … [Read more...] about Five Fantastic Natural First Aid Essentials
Why Do Muscles Cramp?
We are in full-swing summer, which generally means full-swing muscle cramp season! I get a number of questions in my practice and on social media about muscle cramps. Today, I’d like to help you prevent and get rid of muscle cramps so that you and your muscles can have a more enjoyable summer. What causes muscle cramps? There can be many reasons that cramps happen, but I’m going to go over two of the most common causes of cramps. My hope is that teaching you why you cramp will help you … [Read more...] about Why Do Muscles Cramp?
Managing Summertime Injuries
For many of us, warmer weather means more time outdoors playing. These activities sometimes will result in an acute injury. Let’s talk about how to successfully manage these injuries by harnessing your healing process so you can get back outdoors again! In this article, I’m going to be discussing ligament and tendon injuries. This covers ankle sprains, injured knees, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, shoulder issues, etc. Ligament and tendon injuries such as ankle sprains, golfer’s elbow, … [Read more...] about Managing Summertime Injuries
Five Supplements for Joint Health
If you’ve read my articles in Flagstaff Business News before or you follow me on social media, you know that I love helping people get healthy, get moving and get out of pain. A good number of patients I see in my office have joint pain from osteoarthritis. Since osteoarthritis is the most prevalent joint disease, I’m sure a lot of readers can relate! Osteoarthritis can prevent people from moving like they want to. Life gets less fun and less convenient if you have pain opening jars, chewing … [Read more...] about Five Supplements for Joint Health
What Kind of 2021 Reset Do You Need?
Most of us were more than ready to show 2020 the door and cross our fingers that 2021 will be better. It’s time to reset, but where do you start? For most of my patients, family and friends, the most useful resets need to happen in three areas. These areas are diet, stress and exercise. The pandemic has really shined a spotlight on all three of these areas and many, many people are struggling! One action I have taken to help people at a low cost is to offer group coaching programs that … [Read more...] about What Kind of 2021 Reset Do You Need?
Building Resilience: Five Simple Steps to Thrive
My friends, winter is coming. Between flu season and being in the midst of a global pandemic, it’s really easy to get sucked into the fear narrative, get angry at the behaviors of others, and feel powerless to do anything. Realistically, none of us can control other people’s behavior. We can’t stop people from having big family gatherings, packing bars or attending large events. We can’t control whether or not people practice social distancing or mask wearing, either. But, do you know what … [Read more...] about Building Resilience: Five Simple Steps to Thrive
Experiencing Back Pain from COVID-19?
COVID-related back pain…is it a thing? I’m going with a big YES. Time hunched over a computer almost always equals more back (and neck) pain. Today, I want to focus on low back pain. The low back and pelvis (also known as the lumbopelvic region) is a really fun area to study and treat. It really is an amazing and complex region with interplay between a whole lot of ligaments, muscles and other connective tissues. And while people tend to blame discs and nerves for all of their back pain, the … [Read more...] about Experiencing Back Pain from COVID-19?