The Busy PT's Guide to Finding Balance

Course Correcting

2013-04-26T16:35:00Z

If someone had told me on November 13, 2007, that I was signing up for 66 consecutive months of blogging, I would have said, "There's no way!" But, 284 posts later, here we are. One post at a time, you've invited me into your work and home. You've shared your life through comments. It's been a wonderful five-and-a-half years. That makes it more difficult to say goodbye. I love to write. I love to communicate. Both are integral to who I am. Years ago, someone pointed out that in pursuing the vision...(read more)

Pharmaceuticals: Healing or Hype?

2013-04-17T17:01:00Z

Last November my daughter experienced her first migraine-free month -- at the hands of gabapentin. The GI effects were worse than the headaches, so she stopped taking the medication. The headaches immediately returned. When my daughter's neurologist put gabapentin on the table, I was already familiar with it from two decades earlier -- when I worked as the clinical director of a rehab facility. The orthopedic surgeon prescribed Neurontin (generic wasn't yet available) for intractable nerve pain and...(read more)

Do You Take the Doctor's Advice?

2013-04-10T20:01:00Z

I heard an interesting statistic on the radio: After the long wait for their children to be seen by a pediatrician, only one-third of parents heed the doctor's advice. That means for every 99 pediatrician visits, 66 parents might as well have taken their children to lunch or bought them ice cream cones. They wasted precious hours and dollars on those children's pediatrician visits. I wonder how many adults do the same when they see their primary care physicians, or even specialists for that matter?...(read more)

I Know Better

2013-04-03T18:37:00Z

Last week I promised a statistical discussion about an article that appeared in The Washington Post . Before you get all down on statistics, let me make a confession. It wasn't until I reached the end of writing last week's post that the statistics even hit me. I'd glanced right over them and accepted their validity -- something I've cautioned against in previous posts. I know better. I still did it. A scholarly article appears in what many consider to be a well-respected newspaper. Put those two...(read more)

Hospitals Getting Fined but Who Really Pays?

2013-03-29T14:56:00Z

A recent article in the Washington Post boasts a national reduction in hospital readmissions of Medicare patients within 30 days of discharge. According to the article, Jonathan Blum, a top official at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, credits the provisions in President Obama's healthcare law for this reduction. The article goes on to explain how the financial penalties and rewards in these provisions impact the way hospitals are doing business. Rather than using their monetary gains...(read more)

What Did I Say?

2013-03-20T20:34:00Z

A common refrain in our home is, "Can you tell me what I just said?" I'm often surprised when people answer in the affirmative, given the multimedia lovefest taking place under our roof. We use verbal and nonverbal communication when we speak and when we listen. Last week's post, " When Listening Isn't Hearing ," shared verbal skills that help us move beyond hearing just the spoken words to being able to hear the speaker's heart. We can use verbal components of speech to help our clients, coworkers...(read more)

When Listening Isn't Hearing

2013-03-13T18:59:00Z

Have you ever tried to get your point across in multiple different ways -- only to leave the conversation knowing the other person didn't "hear" you? Do you find yourself more frustrated when that other person (the one who didn't hear you) considers herself a good listener? Especially if she's your supervisor? We say everything we know to say, and we can tell the other person is listening -- yet, understanding is elusive. Just because a supervisor listens, doesn't mean her employee feels "heard."...(read more)

The High Cost of Healthcare: Your Life

2013-03-07T18:45:00Z

I ran across an article in Time magazine about the costs of healthcare, " Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills are Killing Us . " I'll admit I haven't read it all yet. Since it's not healthy for your blood to boil too long, I'm having to read the 11 pages in doses. Author Steven Brill discusses inflated healthcare costs and the personal toll they take on patients. I've read, and written, similar articles. In this piece, Brill takes it up a notch, exposing the degree of greed that has overtaken healthcare....(read more)

Healthcare or Sick Care?

2013-02-27T21:57:00Z

I know a family whose six children have never had to see a doctor for an illness. They've had a few stitches and broken bones among them, but never a "sick" visit. A growing body of evidence suggests that it's possible to provide our bodies with the nutrients, hydration and exercise we need to maintain health. Some would add chiropractic to this list, in order to keep spinal alignment allowing for maximal neural communication. Regardless of which of these components you wish to include, sadly the...(read more)

A Post Mortem on Valentine's Day

2013-02-21T16:45:00Z

I've never liked Valentine's Day. When I was a kid in school, I feared not receiving any cards from classmates. In retrospect, an irrational fear -- but even today, thinking about it makes my stomach flip. Perhaps that fear of rejection lingered, casting shadows on the cards and chocolate -- because even during years when I've had a Valentine, this holiday has felt shallow, hollow. I've never attached meaning to it. I know some people who do. Some take the holiday to the extreme, choosing to propose....(read more)

The Most Important Step in Making a Decision

2013-02-13T22:12:00Z

Do you know the five steps to making a decision? A month ago, I didn't even know there were five steps to making a decision. Thanks to homeschooling my fifth-grader, I'm now educated. Sadly, I realize there's one step I too often skip. My guess is it's one that many of us skip. Unfortunately, it's the most important step -- the one that keeps us from repeating mistakes. Step One: Set Goals You can't make a good decision if you don't know the results you want to achieve. Step Two: Identify Options...(read more)

Coping with Sick Kids

2013-02-07T21:26:00Z

We've been passing mild sickness back and forth for about a month now. It's caused some minor inconveniences but nothing significant -- until the last few days. Our youngest daughter took a turn for the worse. This last week reminded me -- sick kids create a lot of collateral work! Can you remember the last time one of your kids got sick? Children blindside us out of nowhere. One minute they're fine. The next minute, we're scrambling to rearrange the day -- get coverage for work, secure transportation...(read more)

Choosing the Right Doctor

2013-01-31T17:05:00Z

How do you decide if a doctor (or other healthcare practitioner) is right for you? Back in the fall, we received notice we'd need to find new doctors. My post, " Twinkies and Insurance Companies ," tells the why. Here are a few factors I took into consideration in my search. 1. Ask people you trust for recommendations. 2. Knowing who to avoid can be as useful as knowing who to vet. 3. Inquire about the provider's clinical outcomes, bedside manner, wait times and practice parameters -- does he order...(read more)

Pressing the Reset Button for Optimal Health

2013-01-26T00:00:00Z

As we close out January 2013, I'm proud to say I've kept off those 30 pounds I lost in 2012 . I'm devastated to say losing weight wasn't the answer I expected it to be. I'm thinner but not healthier. Despite making what I thought were healthy eating choices, symptoms continued and daily meds became a way of life. The ultimate negative outcome: surgery, scheduled for March 20. On the recommendation of friends, I checked out It Starts with Food from the library. I can't say I agree 100 percent with...(read more)

Diagnosis Mystery

2013-01-16T21:02:00Z

Lesson of the week: Never assume that people doing a job have been educated or trained for the position they hold. This is a particularly frightening proposition in medicine. The hospital registration lady asked me to review the admission paperwork for accuracy. Most everything was in order. I updated one piece of personal information. Then I saw the diagnosis: Pure Hyperglycemeredemia. I was stumped. I readily admit my scope as a physical therapist is limited. However, I've had enough education...(read more)