Often, people are surprised that an allopathic doctor has such a whole-health, integrative approach to medicine and wellbeing. Physicians raise an eyebrow, patients are puzzled and my coaching clients struggle with what to ask to get the biggest “bang for their buck”.
I’ve come to realize that serendipities are all around us. Marianne Williamson calls them miracles and, in a way, they are. Ask for support and it appears. Bring awareness to your challenges and resources are presented.
So, when I asked myself why I feel so deeply aligned with integrating body, mind and soul when I work with women, the perfect Podcast* landed in my inbox and the lightbulb went on.
It's been obvious to me for a while that the pain and discomfort that many women feel, especially at midlife, is not just related to hormones or aging bodies but to exhaustion, fatigue and overwhelm that stem from the ways their situation settles into their soma.
Women are giving so much to so many and leaving too little for themselves. The classic triad of burnout has been shared in countless ways* but when a woman finally realizes she has no more to give, she lands in the office asking for a prescription to make it all go away.
While she may understand that the problem is deeper, society has taught her that there is an easy way out of most physical ailments and that her physician should be able to help. This is a remnant from the 1970’s when big pharmaceutical companies started to realize they could draw greater income from maker bigger and bigger promises. And people believed them. Just like the recent surge in Ozempic® (semaglutide) prescriptions for weight loss and the follow-on medical articles chronicling the significant long term side effects that result from thinking you can lose weight with an injection. You can, but you pay with your health.
If I’m honest, it infuriates me that some providers and some big pharma are using women to make money. It’s not everyone or every company but it’s hard to distinguish the good from the greedy. And it distresses me to the point of insomnia that some women believe them. We are smarter than that!
The solution is inside of us. Sometimes a prescription or procedure is necessary, and it takes training to discern the difference but, almost always, true healing can only happen with a full dose of self-awareness and an injection of inner awakening.
When we try to be someone we are not, our body fights back. And this is, essentially, every moment of every day for many of us.
When we strive to achieve based on external measures of success, our mind gets messed up.
When we push to accomplish someone else’s dreams, our spirit goes into survival mode. Our body, mind and soul become disconnected from our essence. And this essence is the life blood that nourishes our happiness.
Find out who you are, and happiness will follow. It’s simple but not easy. It’s accessible but just outside our comfort zone. It’s there for the taking but can take a lifetime to find.
For years I thought my role was to be a shoulder to cry on – and most patients cry when they touch into the realization that life is passing them by. For decades, I would sit and listen; share and care; offer love and support. Gently touch their knee or offer a Kleenex.
Until one day I decided 'enough is enough'. These women are smart and they’re being dupped by a healthcare system that offers more than it can give. Doctors don’t have all the answers (some answers, yes, but definitely not all). Dare I say, if someone is selling you something external to your body that you need to take or administer, do your homework because it’s likely not what you need most.**
As women yearn to be whole, healthy and fully alive, they need the steppingstones laid out on a pathway to peace. And, under their own power, they need to take the first step.
This may be hard but, when we look back, we may forget how bad it was.
Pain becomes replaced by pleasure.
Anxiety is calmed by comfort.
Stress is surrounded by serenity.
Authenticity blossoms from within.
I’ve finally realized that, as a medical doctor, I can see the ways that this level of knowing oneself offers the elixir to existence on our own terms.
To build habits that invite genuine peace, calm and relaxation open a wellspring of healing hormones and calming neurotransmitters. The body is bathed in endorphins that work much more powerfully than medications to harmonize the nervous system.
When a woman is rooted in her values, living from integrity and unapologetically authentic, she is the healthiest, happiest version of herself she could ever be. She is attractive, sexy, sensual and self-loving.
As a doctor, my job is to know when a medication will help.
As a physician, I can read the radiology reports and guide therapy.
When an organ needs to be removed or repaired, I have a surgeon’s skill.
But when a woman shares that her body is betraying her, her mind is foggy and her soul is lost, I know the answers are not within my textbooks (we actually used those!).
The solutions that will light her soul on fire can only be found by her willingness to step onto the path that foretells her future.
My work with women blazes that trail.***
I understand the physiology, the nervous system dysregulation, the ravaging effects stress can have on our anatomy. But I also have intimate insight into the human frame, the female psyche and the ways women relate to the world we live in.
We are beautifully broken. We are imperfectly perfect. We are human. We are not victims - we are co-creators of life.
My work invites women to BE what they already are.
You are…
Strong. Powerful. Authentic. Awakened. Real. Whole.
You are enough.
* Evolve Podcast with Carolyn Swora: Luke Lorio June 13, 2023 episode
**If you are taking medication for a diagnosed medical condition, see your healthcare provider before stopping or altering your regime because making changes may be very dangerous. Some medications are necessary and lifesaving.
***The next session of the Empowered Women's Circle on July 6, 2023 will share a recording of a full body practice that awakens sexual and sensual pleasure for women who yearn to rekindle their sexy spark that may have become lost or hidden over the years. Join us to receive this video, reignite your relationship and enjoy some valuable 'woman to woman' time (recording available even if you can't attend July 6th).