When I first met Gene in my office, I could see right away that he was suffering from heart failure. He was so weak he could barely stand up, and his legs and feet were badly swollen. When I asked | Read More…
I have been using Joint Renewal for about three months now. I began to feel improvement in my knees – my right was shot and needed replacement according to my doctor – after about 3 weeks. There seems to have | Read More…
Shelley had been a patient of mine for more a decade. After her career as a flight attendant ended, she decided to follow her lifelong dream of learning how to fly her own plane. With the full support of her | Read More…
You probably know someone like Jonah. Although he was only in his early 40s when he first came to see me, Jonah seemed much older. For the past decade, he had been suffering from joint aches and pains, headaches, dizziness, | Read More…
During my 20-plus years of practicing medicine, I’ve seen thousands of patients discover the benefits of integrative medicine. Sometimes the ones who benefit most are those who were so dubious to begin with that they would not even discuss alternatives | Read More…
A few years ago, Southern California wildfires forced hundreds of families to leave their homes. While local agencies did an outstanding job of setting up shelters to house those who were displaced, many people found out the hard way that | Read More…
There is good evidence that many health conditions are linked to unresolved emotional issues, and back pain is no exception. So after our best efforts, a patient sometimes discovers that, until he or she tackles a difficult emotional situation, remedies | Read More…
A few years ago, Sean came to my office with a complaint that has become more and more common. Although he was newly married, he was having what he referred to as performance problems in the bedroom. So naturally, he | Read More…
Another patient suggested George see me for a physical because he was experiencing joint pain. Although George was in good health for his age (nearly 70) and had minimal signs of arthritis, there was room for improvement, especially in the | Read More…
Like so many of my patients, Stephen was doing everything he could to stay healthy. He exercised nearly every day, quit smoking, cleaned up his diet, and devoted time for meditation every day to reduce stress. In the eight years | Read More…
Poor Rhonda! She came to me a few years ago, complaining of headaches and overwhelming anxiety. And no wonder — her husband, Ben, had passed away only a few months earlier. Despite that, her three children, their spouses, and their | Read More…
Many of my patients have been to multiple doctors without getting good results. So it’s not at all unusual for me to see a patient who has been diagnosed and treated for several different illnesses and still is miserable. That | Read More…
I had to hand it to Ava, a longtime patient who had probably tried every diet known to mankind. She was very careful about following diets and always lost weight. But as soon as she reached her target and stopped | Read More…
After 20-some years as a police officer, Roy had grown used to having a headache just about every day. “It’s my afternoon companion,” he told me with a grim smile. Roy had come to me for a physical a few | Read More…
“I hope you don’t expect me to join a gym and work out with a bunch of 20-year-olds,” Marty told me after I suggested he get more exercise. “Because I don’t think they make leotards in my size.” Marty had | Read More…
A patient I’ll call Ralph was having a difficult time with Alex, a woman he had been seeing for several years. It’s a familiar story. She didn’t want to make plans for a future together, and he felt frustrated and | Read More…
Poor Jake! Some patients have such good intentions but have a hard time acting on them. That was Jake. Not only was he obese at 345 pounds, but it seemed that no matter what he did, he just kept gaining. | Read More…
A patient I’ll call Connie came to me after breaking her foot in a skiing accident. The break was bad enough to require surgery. After the operation, Connie developed a condition known as complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). Symptoms include | Read More…
For as long as Gina could remember, she had been dealing with constipation. As a child, Gina’s mother gave her enemas to help maintain regularity. In her teens, a doctor recommended laxatives, and Gina found relief. For the next 20 | Read More…
For as long as he could remember, Mark was fascinated with cars — toy cars, real cars, handmade models, it didn’t matter. Mark just loved cars. He earned a very good living writing sitcoms for various television shows, so he | Read More…
“The oysters on the half shell were the specialty of the house,” Brian explained, “and as much as I love raw oysters, I knew they could make me sick, so I didn’t have any. In fact, that’s what bothers me | Read More…
Most of my patients come to me after discovering that conventional medicine has little to offer other than drugs that suppress symptoms, so they’re open to vitamins and other nutrients. Not Aileen! She was not just skeptical about vitamins, she | Read More…
Often, patients assume that the doctor they see for one condition does not need to know about other health issues. I understand why an individual may think that, but whenever medication is involved, it’s best to be cautious. Ned, for | Read More…
Like too many patients, Jenny was looking for a way to lose weight that was fast and easy. Whenever I mentioned my standard advice about exercising and eating more fruits and vegetables instead of fast-food burgers and microwave meals, her | Read More…
I first met Ted when his daughter, Helen, brought him to see me. Helen was concerned about her father’s ability to care for himself. At age 84, Ted was a widower who lived alone in a condominium complex. Neighbors had | Read More…
Nearly 10 years ago, Andy first came to see me at the urging of his wife, May. She was very upset over her husband’s constant loud snoring that had already driven her from their bedroom to a guest room. But | Read More…
“I was talking to my wife one evening when my left arm started feeling strangely wooden, like it was numb. Then my wife mentioned her sister, Debra, and I thought to myself, ‘Who the heck is she talking about?’ “As | Read More…
A longtime patient, Toni is a remarkable woman, who raised three children while running her own printing business. She was one of the first women to get an athletic scholarship to college. As a member of the university track team, | Read More…
Some patients are more challenging than others. Jeanette was one of the difficult ones. An elementary school teacher for many years, Jeanette was continually coming down with colds, most likely due to sick children turning up in her classroom. The | Read More…
After a second divorce, Anthony, who had been a patient for several years, began taking antidepressants. When he came to see me for a physical, I asked if there were any health problems we needed to talk about. “Everything’s pretty | Read More…
“There’s just no way I can stay out of the sun. I mean, I’ve never even had an indoor job!” That’s what my patient Keith told me during our first visit. After working as a lifeguard to put himself through | Read More…
Some patients seem determined to ignore advice, even when it comes from their own doctors. Abby, 52, whom I’d been treating for years, was a talented designer who spent hours every day working on a computer. Ever since I began | Read More…
After watching his father struggle with Alzheimer’s disease, Wayne was understandably concerned about whether he might develop the condition. Despite that, Wayne’s lifestyle left an awful lot to be desired, especially his habit of binging on fast food and sitting | Read More…
A perfect Southern gentleman — that’s how I would describe Bert, who I have known socially for many years. Bert is from Georgia, and he is one of the most gracious, thoughtful, and kind individuals I’ve ever known. Even though | Read More…
Nick came to see me a year or so ago with a complaint common among middle-aged male patients — he had to get up at least once each night to urinate and then couldn’t get back to sleep. Having his | Read More…
Vanessa had been a patient for about ten years. At first, her only problem was maintaining a healthy weight. After a great deal of fad dieting and the birth of two children, Vanessa told me she had given up on | Read More…
“I hope you know how to fix my knee without knee replacement surgery, because I really don’t want to do that, since I’m only 42.” Patty was a new patient who had come in for a physical. Like so many | Read More…
Sonia was in her late 50s when she came to see me with a long list of symptoms. She had seen several other doctors over the years. All had prescribed various drugs, but nothing seemed to work. “I’m so tired | Read More…
Gary had been my patient for about six years, and during that time, he steadily gained weight. Every time I mentioned it, Gary shrugged it off or made vague promises to “do something” about it. Finally, when his blood work | Read More…
Like many of my patients, Alicia came to see me because a friend told her I was good at diagnosing “mystery ailments.” Alicia was suffering from a long list of symptoms, including headaches, muscle spasms, digestive distress, repeated upper respiratory | Read More…
“I’ve had cold hands and feet all my life, but this is something new,” said Doris, a retired accountant, who had come to my clinic because she was experiencing numbness in her hands. Although the feeling always returned, she was | Read More…
Jeff became a patient a few years ago after his twin brother, Jerry, had a stroke at age 67. Jeff and his brother both had high blood pressure and both had made only token efforts to control it. Now Jeff | Read More…
Phyllis was a successful family-practice attorney who was proud of the fact that she had built her own thriving practice from nothing. But over the years, her devotion to work led to a slow deterioration of her health. The most | Read More…
Sarah, 47, had suffered from bladder problems for years. Doctors repeatedly prescribed antibiotics, which Sarah took without question. But the UTIs kept coming back, and they were often followed by antibiotic-induced yeast infections. “The year before I went to see | Read More…
After several trips to the emergency room, Brian came to my clinic because he was having terrible digestive problems. No matter what he ate, he developed painful cramps and nausea. The tests done in the hospital looked fine. But if | Read More…
