EHN Canada's new Eating Disorders Program, launching March 1, is helping those turned away by public healthcare options
TORONTO, Feb. 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Bellwood Health Services, part of the EHN Canada nationwide network of premier treatment centres, is offering a new program designed to treat both eating disorders and concurrent mental health and addiction disorders.
The program launches March 1, 2021, and not a moment too soon for those who have felt neglected during this pandemic, highlighting the increasing need for more mental health services for vulnerable populations.
With COVID-19 restrictions and increasing resource demands on hospitals everywhere, many day programs that were previously provided in the hospital setting have had to be reduced or temporarily shut down, resulting in growing wait lists within the public sector. While many hospitals are trying to supplement these programs through online platforms, patients who would have typically gotten 40 hours of treatment each week are, for example, now only receiving up to two 90-minute sessions per week.
It is simply not enough to effectively treat people dealing with an eating disorder like anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa, especially when they are forced to stay home and face many triggers alone.
Where are all those suffering with eating disorders going? Patients are looking to facilities such as Bellwood, knocking on our doors asking for comprehensive concurrent eating disorders treatment.
Its availability and willingness to take in patients is not the only thing that sets the new Bellwood Eating Disorders Program apart from others. It will also be one of the few programs in Canada to treat co-occurring conditions such as substance abuse and trauma, along with eating disorders.
Bellwood Executive Director Terri Marques explains, "The unique part of this program is that we are marrying the treatment of addictions and eating disorders. In Canada and around the world, it is most typical to either do one or the other."
Why is this so essential?
She continues, "When you fix either the addiction or the eating disorder, the other can suddenly get more activated. It is a desperate need to cope with life. At Bellwood, we want to do both, attacking both issues at the same time and treating the whole person, instead of compartmentalizing care. We have over 35 years of experience working with addiction. We are leveraging that knowledge into the Eating Disorders Program."
Bellwood's Eating Disorders Program will include:
Evidence-based methodologies, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), applied through group and one-on-one therapy
An experienced team consisting of physicians, psychiatrists, registered dieticians, and mental health clinicians
Meal supervision
Nutritional rehabilitation and psychoeducation
Patient specific physical health and wellness activities
Family therapy
This program is right for patients who:
Are 17 years of age or older
Meet current DSM-V criteria for an Eating Disorder
Require structure and support in order to make changes to their eating, exercise, and/or purging behaviours
Have a BMI of 15 or more
The program is set to launch at Bellwood Health Services in Toronto, ON and "it's going to be life-saving, improve quality of life, and help individuals regain control of their lives," Marques assures.
For more information on EHN Canada's new Eating Disorders Program, please visit: https://bit.ly/3px0flX
ABOUT EHN CANADA As a trusted leader in addiction and mental health services, EHN Canada is committed to increasing access to high quality treatment for all Canadians. With facilities across the country, EHN Canada is the nation's largest private network of residential, outpatient, and online programs. We have over 75 years of collective experience in treating mental health, trauma/PTSD, and substance use disorders.
Whether in-person or virtual, each of our treatment centres is designed for healing, including a dedication to medical excellence, clinicians who provide compassionate and non-judgmental care, and an inclusive community of peers and alumni. Our team of doctors, psychiatrists, nurses, psychotherapists, social workers, occupational therapists, and support counsellors has expertise in treating complex clinical diagnoses and concurrent conditions.
Moreover, we value long-term outcomes and recovery for our patients and their loved ones, which is why supportive services like our Aftercare and Family Programs are so important. Our recognition and understanding of the challenges faced by patients today means we provide treatment that is personalized, effective, and sustainable.
TREASURE ISLAND, Fla. – The founder of Footprints Beachside Recovery Center in Treasure Island had strong words for a tenured professor at Columbia University and called on the professor to be fired, according to a news release issued by the addiction treatment facility on Tuesday.
Late last week, an article published by Insider.com highlighted a new book by Prof. Carl Hart, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Columbia University. According to the article, Hart advocates for recreational drug use, including the use of heroin and decriminalization of illicit drugs, in his new book titled Drug Use For Grown-Ups, Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear.
“My heroin use is as recreational as my alcohol use,” Hart writes. “Heroin is one of the tools that I use to maintain my work-life balance.”
At one point, Hart ponders what is wrong with a “few lines (of heroin) by the fireplace at the end of the day?”
Experts at Footprints Beachside Recovery Center say those ideas are wrong and dangerous to espouse.
“We’re talking about heroin here, not an entry-level drug, but a hardcore opioid. Collectively, opioids have killed more than 750,000 people in the U.S. over the past two decades,” said John Templeton, founder of Footprints Beachside Recovery Center. “This guy is certifiably out of his mind. It’s both extremely dangerous and irresponsible to try to normalize recreational heroin use, especially in the midst of a national opioid epidemic and crisis.”
According to a report issued by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, heroin is arguably the most problematic drug in the world, and more users die each year from problems related to heroin use, and more are forced to seek treatment for addiction, than for any other illicit drug.
“We know that heroin is exceedingly dangerous, even more so that pharmaceutical opioids, and add to that, most of the time people have no idea what it has been cut with,” said Templeton. “When people are addicted, and lucky enough to still be alive, we regularly see that they have lost everything in their lives due to heroin, and once you’re dependent, you cannot stop without professional help.”
Beyond the potentially fatal consequences to the user, the U.N. report also suggests that those who use heroin are indirectly helping to fund organized criminal enterprises, human traffickers, insurgent groups and terrorist organizations.
“There’s a reason so many organizations have implemented drug testing and zero tolerance policies,” said Templeton. “Teaching at a university should absolutely be a position where the individual responsible for educating others should be sober. When you’ve seen the deaths, the loss and the pain we have seen over the years at Footprints, it’s my opinion that Mr. Hart should no longer be allowed to teach in a classroom, given his self-professed admiration for casual and recreational use of heroin.”
Founded in 2008, Footprints Beachside Recovery Center is a small, private, holistic substance abuse treatment center for adults and is located in Pinellas County, Fla. Footprints provides specialized treatment plans for patients from throughout the U.S. and around the world. Opioid addiction recovery programs at Footprints focus on ensuring safe withdrawals and often combine holistic treatment with medication assisted therapies to reduce cravings and provide more successful recovery outcomes for patients.
Powerful True Story Inspires Others to Seek Adventure, Turn Each Day into a Gift
Fort Wayne, IN, February 23, 2021 — Brittany Moser’s short life was not defined by how she died, but rather, by how she lived each day to the fullest and the profound impact she had on those around her. Brittany died from a rare condition, Addison’s disease, in 2017 at the age of 32. She had been a happy-go-lucky flight attendant, soaring high above reality, when her diagnosis suddenly brought her down to earth.
Rather than buckle under the weight of fear, she chose to be fearless and embarked upon the adventure of a lifetime with her best friend — her father. Free and Fearless: The Amazing Impact of One Precious Lifeis Brittany’s unforgettable story as told by her father, Philip Moser.
“This book is not about the grief of losing a child, but about making the most out of what we are given and living our lives positively and not out of fear,” Moser writes. “Brittany inspired me, an ordinary farm boy, to explore life, to climb mountains and to write a book.”
Free and Fearless is an honest, poignant account of Brittany’s legacy and the ripple effect that her outlook on life had on everyone who knew her. Philip hopes that by hearing her story, readers will be inspired by Brittany’s contagious spirit and unwavering desire for new adventures and experiences — even in the shadow of an incurable illness.
Among Brittany’s valuable life lessons that Philip shares with readers are:
1. How precious life is and how we can affect the people around us; 2. How an open mind and a positive attitude can inspire us to do things we never thought possible; 3. How to move out of our comfort zones and into a challenging existence that can turn each day into an exciting gift to be explored; 4. How to not let fear control us, and to use our abilities to seek unique, positive and inspiring adventures; 5. To embrace change as a natural part of life; 6. And finally, that we won’t be remembered by our things or our savings accounts, but by how we made other people feel.
“I want to share the same inspiration that I received for 32 years,” Philip added. “In the end, love truly does conquer all, and Brittany wanted us to know that.”
Author Philip Moser grew up on a farm in Angola, Indiana. After high school, he began working in different aspects of the grocery business, a career that continues to this day. He and his wife, Marilyn Wells, raised two incredible daughters, Camille and Brittany.
Health Canada approves DUPIXENT® (dupilumab injection) as the first biologic for the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in children aged 6 to 11 years
DUPIXENT® is the only biologic medicine approved to treat atopic dermatitis for this patient population.
Fifth indication for DUPIXENT® in Canada following approvals for moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in adults and adolescents, severe chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis, and severe asthma in adults and adolescents.
For those living with atopic dermatitis, itch has the highest impact on a patient's quality of life.1
Results from a survey conducted among Canadian children with atopic dermatitis found that 70 per cent experienced loss of sleep and 30 per cent experienced anxiety due to their condition.2
MISSISSAUGA, ON, Feb. 23, 2021 /CNW/ - Sanofi Canada announced today that Health Canada has approved DUPIXENT® (dupilumab injection) for the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD) in children aged six to 11 years whose disease is not adequately controlled with topical prescription therapies or when those therapies are not advisable.3
"As the first biologic treatment for atopic dermatitis approved for this age group, DUPIXENT® is a promising new option for treating children living with this chronic disease," says Dr. Melinda Gooderham, Dermatologist and Medical Director at the SKiN Centre for Dermatology. "Because it targets type 2 inflammation, the underlying cause of the disease, it may help young patients gain more control over their symptoms during childhood, a pivotal time in their development."
DUPIXENT® is a fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits the signaling of the interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) proteins and is not an immunosuppressant. Data from DUPIXENT® clinical trials have shown that IL-4 and IL-13 are key drivers of the type 2 inflammation that plays a major role in AD, asthma, and severe chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP).4
AD, the most common form of eczema, is an inflammatory disease classified by dry, itchy skin. In its moderate-to-severe form, it is characterized by rashes that can cover much of the body, and can include intense, persistent itching, skin lesions and skin dryness, cracking, redness or darkness, crusting and oozing.5 Inadequately controlled AD can have a physical, emotional and psychosocial impact, causing sleep disturbance, symptoms of anxiety and depression, and feelings of isolation.6
For children living with AD, studies showed that the impact extends beyond its physical symptoms. A survey conducted by the Eczema Society of Canada among Canadian children from infancy up to the age of 18 (and their caregivers) living with AD found that 70 per cent experienced loss of sleep due to their condition, 20 per cent missed school days and 30 per cent experienced anxiety.7 These factors can have a negative psychological impact on children, particularly in regard to their concentration and performance at school along with their willingness to socialize.8
"Atopic dermatitis is a chronic disease that has an indelible impact on all patients, both physically and psychologically, and can be devasting to children during a vulnerable time in their life," says Marissa Poole, Country Lead, Sanofi Canada and General Manager, Sanofi Genzyme Canada. "With this new indication, DUPIXENT® now has the potential to help the many Canadians who experience this disease including children, adolescents and adults."
About DUPIXENT®
Since its initial approval in 2017, DUPIXENT® remains the only biologic medicine approved by Health Canada for the treatment of patients six years and older with moderate-to-severe AD whose disease is not adequately controlled with topical prescription therapies or when those therapies are not advisable.9 DUPIXENT® is also approved in Canada for the treatment of adult patients with severe CRSwNP and for the treatment of severe asthma in patients 12 years and older.10
DUPIXENT® is jointly developed by Sanofi and Regeneron under a global collaboration agreement.
About Sanofi
Sanofi is dedicated to supporting people through their health challenges. We are a global biopharmaceutical company focused on human health. We prevent illness with vaccines, provide innovative treatments to fight pain and ease suffering. We stand by the few who suffer from rare diseases and the millions with long-term chronic conditions.
With more than 100,000 people in 100 countries, Sanofi is transforming scientific innovation into healthcare solutions around the globe.
Sanofi entities in Canada employ approximately 2,000 people. In 2018, we invested more than $127 million in R&D in Canada, creating jobs, business and opportunity throughout the country.
9 DUPIXENT® Canada Product Monograph. February 22, 2021.
10 DUPIXENT® Canada Product Monograph. February 22, 2021.
SOURCE Sanofi Canada
KAATSU and PEAR Sports Partner to Develop a Dynamic App for Recovery, Rehabilitation and Performance Benefits
The pioneer and gold standard in Blood Flow Restriction technology offers instructional app to make KAATSU equipment and protocols more accessible and easy-to-use
Newport Beach, California – February 23, 2021 –PEAR Sports and KAATSU Global have partnered to develop KAATSUfit, built by PEAR. This new app provides short videos that explain KAATSU and demonstrate effective multi-function movements and exercises for users of all ages and abilities. As the global leader in the emerging Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) market, KAATSU significantly reduces the time required for injury rehabilitation, shortens post-exercise recovery time, improves athletic performance, and enables healthful longevity. PEAR Sports, the leader in smart digital coaching technology, is pleased to develop a world-class instructional experience for users of KAATSU equipment undergoing a physical therapy or training session in the clinic, at home, or on the go. KAATSUfit is available for download on both iOS and Android from their respective app stores.
KAATSU was originally invented in Japan in 1966 by Dr. Yoshiaki Sato. The company pioneered the BFR market and remains the world’s leading automated BFR system for exercise, rehabilitation and recovery. The patented pneumatic bands and algorithms modify blood circulation in the arms and legs which results in a cascade of positive physiological effects and hormonal release. The proprietary program is supported by decades of research at top academic institutions and hundreds of peer-reviewed published studies. Its efficacy has been proven in over 20 million KAATSU sessions across 49 countries.
Steven Munatones, Co-Founder & CEO, KAATSU Global, expressed his excitement, “PEAR has created a best-in-class coaching app to make KAATSU’s patented products more usable to anyone seeking improvements in their fitness and performance as well as reducing the time to recover from workouts or to rehab from injuries. Our app will make it easier to effectively use KAATSU products and to incorporate the unique benefits of the different KAATSU modes in your workout and recovery plans. We’ve worked with Olympic athletes, paraplegics, professional football teams, and the U.S. military -- all have benefited from the original BFR system -- and now anyone can easily get up and running with KAATSUfit.”
KAATSUfit, built by PEAR focuses on getting users of all ages and abilities to properly set up and safely and effectively use KAATSU equipment. It includes demonstrations and exercises featuring Cory Keirn, Doctor of Physical Therapy and a former trainer with Major League Baseball, and Tina Newman, an inspirational KAATSU Ambassador and aesthetician, who used the program to reduce the pain of arthritis, tighten loose skin, and become exceptionally fit at 56 years of age. The demonstrations incorporate a variety of fitness equipment, like TRX® straps. The modalities range from easy to difficult, including movements for those with limited mobility and strength, to exercises used by Olympic, professional and tactical athletes.
Waynne Dartnall, President, PEAR Sports, added, “We are thrilled to continue work with the KAATSU team to develop future innovative digital solutions, including AI guided programming that will direct users to the personalized content they specifically need. We’re also looking to jointly develop new content and add even more use cases, especially for chronic care conditions like weight loss and diabetes.”
“I’m a real proponent of the KAATSU training, especially for the elderly and those recuperating from an injury,” said Dr. Joseph Mercola, an osteopathic physician and best-selling author. “After careful review, it is clear to me that the KAATSU equipment is the best BFR equipment on the market. The bands are just tight enough to allow arterial blood flow but not venous flow. This gives you the same benefit as heavy lifting without the dangers associated with heavy weights. With KAATSU, you can build muscle faster, safer and easier. It is also a wonderful tool for post-surgical rehabilitation, allowing you to regain physical function in a fraction of the time that one would normally anticipate.”
About PEAR Sports
PEAR Sports is perfecting the personalized delivery of digital health, wellness and fitness programs. Our platform and solutions deliver on-demand customized coaching that creates great experiences for customers and enterprises. To learn more about how PEAR’s digital coaching and wellness solutions can increase user engagement for your business, please visit www.pearsports.com.
About KAATSU Global
KAATSU Global pioneered the Blood Flow Restriction market and continues to be the world’s leading BFR company that offers a series of BFR equipment for hospitals and clinics as well as for the home and office. Its protocols are used by athletes of every age and ability, and its equipment is used by individuals from every walk of life, anywhere and anytime, for recovery, rehabilitation and performance. www.kaatsu.com
Let God Transform Your Brokenness into Something Beautiful
Seattle, WA, February 23, 2021 — The next time you experience failure, feel insecure or sense that you’re in over your head, embrace that moment — because it can be the turning point you need to learn and grow in wonderful new directions.
“We’re going to fail. The truth is, that’s exactly where God wants us to be so that He can grow us,” writes Christine Soule in her inspirational story, Broken and Beautiful. “The key is discovering who you are in Christ — your true identify. And that’s especially significant if you, like me, have a past of brokenness.”
Soule’s life was a jumbled pile of broken pieces. Her father was married seven times; her mother four times. Between her parents’ divorce when she was 5 years old and the day she allowed the power and presence of God into her heart, she watched her sister have an affair with her adoptive father; met 15 siblings she never knew at her biological father’s funeral; turned to drugs and alcohol; got pregnant at 17; had twins less than two years later; and became a victim of human trafficking. She had to break the cycle for the sake of her children. With nowhere else to turn, she dropped to her knees and prayed. And that’s when everything changed.
Broken and Beautiful is Soule’s remarkable story of how God took the pieces of her broken, astonishingly dysfunctional life and transformed it all into a breathtaking mosaic of joy and purpose.
“The places where you feel hopeless are exactly what He wants to redeem and fill with beauty, dignity and strength. He has a plan for your pain. A wonderful intention for your failures. A purpose for your hardest, darkest stories,” Soule writes.
Told with honesty and surprising touches of humor, Soule shares her journey from drug-addicted stripper to exuberant Jesus lover with a passion for helping others embrace God’s love. Broken and Beautiful is a raw, authentic story of hope, from a place of experience.
Author Christine Soule lives with the love of her life, Mitch Soule, in Seattle. They have five kids and three wonderful grandchildren. She is the founder and CEO of Providence Heights (www.providenceheights.org), a nonprofit created to house women and children in need and to provide counseling, education and jobs.
Let God Transform Your Brokenness into Something Beautiful
Seattle, WA, February 23, 2021 — The next time you experience failure, feel insecure or sense that you’re in over your head, embrace that moment — because it can be the turning point you need to learn and grow in wonderful new directions.
“We’re going to fail. The truth is, that’s exactly where God wants us to be so that He can grow us,” writes Christine Soule in her inspirational story, Broken and Beautiful. “The key is discovering who you are in Christ — your true identify. And that’s especially significant if you, like me, have a past of brokenness.”
Soule’s life was a jumbled pile of broken pieces. Her father was married seven times; her mother four times. Between her parents’ divorce when she was 5 years old and the day she allowed the power and presence of God into her heart, she watched her sister have an affair with her adoptive father; met 15 siblings she never knew at her biological father’s funeral; turned to drugs and alcohol; got pregnant at 17; had twins less than two years later; and became a victim of human trafficking. She had to break the cycle for the sake of her children. With nowhere else to turn, she dropped to her knees and prayed. And that’s when everything changed.
Broken and Beautiful is Soule’s remarkable story of how God took the pieces of her broken, astonishingly dysfunctional life and transformed it all into a breathtaking mosaic of joy and purpose.
“The places where you feel hopeless are exactly what He wants to redeem and fill with beauty, dignity and strength. He has a plan for your pain. A wonderful intention for your failures. A purpose for your hardest, darkest stories,” Soule writes.
Told with honesty and surprising touches of humor, Soule shares her journey from drug-addicted stripper to exuberant Jesus lover with a passion for helping others embrace God’s love. Broken and Beautiful is a raw, authentic story of hope, from a place of experience.
Author Christine Soule lives with the love of her life, Mitch Soule, in Seattle. They have five kids and three wonderful grandchildren. She is the founder and CEO of Providence Heights (www.providenceheights.org), a nonprofit created to house women and children in need and to provide counseling, education and jobs.
Dismantle Social Constructs and Discover the Life You Were Meant to Live
Las Vegas, NV, February 22, 2021 — What better way to tackle existential angst than with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia? Or perhaps a more constructive way might be to take an introspective deep-dive into the ideologies you hold as true and ask yourself, “Is this the life I chose, or the one chosen for me?”
Christina Dylag’s Tiny Little Boxes: How to Cope with Existential Dread by Way of Ice Cream and Other Means takes readers on a soul-searching journey peppered with humor, philosophical musings and plenty of ice-cream-flavored metaphors to help them uncover any preconditioned social constructs and learn to distinguish between personal fact and fiction.
“A life constructed for us by society can be satisfying for a while, but at a certain point, the tension between who we want to be and who we are becomes unbearable,” Christina writes. “We want to follow our dreams and find fulfillment. We settle instead for a destiny carved for someone else. When we search for answers in religion or romance, we are still left with a nagging sense of emptiness.”
Christina’s book delivers a vastly different approach to the world of self-help. It’s unique, funny and fresh, with a free-flowing narrative that mirrors the fluidity of a stream of consciousness. Much of the book centers on the topic of straying from the norm and carving out a new and highly individualized path.
The result is a mind-broadening nudge that gives readers permission to live, to explore, and to break the barriers of their own little boxes. This book was written to expose and unravel the ideologies that we as humans unconsciously hold as truth, Christina explains. Tiny Little Boxes delves into our predetermined belief systems and how we might reassess or re-approach our conditioned world. Beyond our inherited notions of success, the self and existence lies a more expansive sense of freedom.
Christina Dylag is a writer and co-owner of Velveteen Rabbit, an award-winning craft cocktail bar in Las Vegas which has been featured in Forbes, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bon Appetit, Saveur, Vice, Maxim, Playboy, and others. Christina is 70 percent water, roughly 30 percent sushi and a shy whisper of human form. She lives in Las Vegas and will likely be survived by her giant pet rabbit, Steve.
For more insights from the author, please visit www.Nihilisticecream.com, or follow the author on Instagram (@nihilisticecream) or on Facebook (@nihilisticecream).
Tiny Little Boxes: How to Cope with Existential Dread by Way of Ice Cream and Other Means
New Survey Reveals How the Pandemic Has Affected Our Weight
In a new study conducted by personal trainer and nutritionist Rachel Attard, we find how the pandemic has really affected women’s fitness.
Throughout the many rounds of pandemic lockdowns, we have been engulfed in the virtual world. Among the online meetings, virtual classes, and binge watching of different shows, how have we really been doing regarding exercise and nutrition? Rachel Attard conducted a survey of 2, 398 women from the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom to address that very question.
Weight Change
Overall, 36 percent of respondents gained weight, with the majority being from the U.K. and Australia. Conversely, 26.1 percent of the overall respondents managed to lose weight during lockdown (mostly from the U.K.), due to having more time to focus on exercise and proper nutrition. Additionally, of the women from the U.S., 30.8 percent claimed their weight stayed about the same, 27.9 percent gained up to 10 pounds, and 18.4 percent lost up to 10 pounds.
Nutrition
When it comes to nutrition, 25.3 percent of the women from the U.S. along with 28 percent of the women from Australia claimed that their diet had been less healthy due to snacking more frequently. However, 28.4 percent of the respondents from the U.K. reported that their eating habits were much healthier, as they had more time to cook their own meals while working from home.
Exercise
The survey also revealed that the main hardships of exercising at home were lack of motivation (25.3 percent), adjusting to maintaining an at-home routine (22.3 percent), and low energy/negative thinking along with loneliness (12.1 percent). Surprisingly, 49.7 percent of respondents said that they would not return to the gym, as they enjoy the online classes and programs from home. Also, 21.4 percent said they would not return, but because they fear places with too many people. Through these difficult times we have experienced during this pandemic, we will now see where the future of fitness will take us.
Rachel Attard
Rachel Attard is a fully qualified group fitness and personal trainer. She has a Cert III and IV in Fitness, a Bachelor of Science and a Sports Nutrition Certificate.
Her real passion is helping women discover how to live happier and healthier lives by making the right fitness and nutrition choices. Above all, she’s a real fitness enthusiast and loves to share her secrets to looking good and feeling great with any women out there who are struggling to get in shape.
BECOMING A DOCTORS’ DOCTORNew Memoir by Michael F. Myers, MD, Lays Bare theMental Health Challenges of Physicians, Highlighting the Importance of Psychological Treatment for the Medical Community
Michael F. Myers, MD has devoted his life to the mental health of fellow physicians, having cared for hundreds of physician-patients and authored multiple books. In his new memoir, BECOMING A DOCTORS’ DOCTOR, Dr. Myers offers an insider’s look at the struggles doctors face as they shoulder the social and emotional costs of serving the community, and highlights the importance of mental health treatment for medical professionals. At the same time, he offers insight and hope to anyone coping with depression in themselves or in their loved ones.
Research estimates that roughly one quarter to a third of medical students develop symptoms of depression, including suicidal thinking. Moreover, practicing physicians have higher rates of depression than the general population. “Given the stigma in medicine associated with psychiatric illness and how hard it is to trust others, including psychiatrists, with what’s happening to you, many ailing medical students and most physicians are careful or strategic about whom they consult,” explains Dr. Myers. At the same time, when one is depressed, it can be difficult to reach out for professional help. “You feel vulnerable, frightened and unworthy, and you’re often sensitive to rejection or what you might misperceive as rejection,” he writes.
Dr. Myers’ interest in helping fellow doctors began when his roommate died by suicide during their first year of medical school. That was the start of his thirty-five-year career counseling both individual physicians and doctor-couples, and developing a deep understanding of the challenges these professionals face.
In BECOMING A DOCTORS’ DOCTOR, the author details his journey with authenticity and transparency, discussing his personal experiences and sharing vignettes of treating doctors for depression, bipolar disorder, alcoholism and more, as well as helping them to manage loss – of patients, relationships, and family members. In addition, he devotes a chapter to the AIDS crisis – when doctors faced enormous losses of patients along with the risk of infection themselves, not unlike the current Covid-19 crisis. Dr. Myers also addresses the painfully difficult subject of suicide, offering a unique understanding of those who see it as a reasonable avenue out of their pain.
Throughout, the book sheds light on the institution of medicine itself – and how it has evolved when it comes to expectations regarding doctors’ mental health, as well as in regard to such issues as gender and sexual identity. “As a doctors’ doctor I have spent decades listening to chilling and heartbreaking accounts of how shunned or judged my patients have felt by their peers and the institutional rules of the profession of medicine. Those of us who treat physicians have a moral responsibility to do everything in our power to fight these destructive forces by educating, advocating and working for policy change,” writes Dr. Myers.
Engaging and compulsively readable, BECOMING A DOCTORS’ DOCTOR shines a light on a subject that is little discussed. “Physicians are no different than other people. They too are subject to life’s challenges and curveballs,” attests Dr. Myers. By understanding what doctors are facing, we can better understand ourselves – and offer the support medical professionals need to be the best caregivers they can be.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
DR. MICHAEL F. MYERS, author of BECOMING A DOCTOR’S DOCTOR, is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry and recent past Vice-Chair of Education and Director of Training in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at SUNY-Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn, NY. He is the author or co-author of eight other books, including Why Physicians Die By Suicide, The Handbook of Physician Health and Doctors’ Marriages. His publications also include more than 150 articles covering such topics as marital therapy, men and reproductive technology, divorce, sexual assault of women and men, AIDS, the stigma of psychiatric illness, gender issues in training and medical practice, the treatment of medical students and physicians, boundary crossing in the doctor-patient relationship, and ethics in medical education and suicide. He has received multiple awards for excellence in teaching, and has served on the editorial boards of several medical journals. Along with his continuing clinical research, teaching and outreach in the field of suicide, Dr. Myers is a recent past President of the New York City Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Dr. Myers lectures widely throughout North America and beyond on these subjects.
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