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How to Keep Your Baby Happy and Healthy in the New Year
Josh’s Top 3 Ways to Keep Your Baby Happy and Healthy in the New Year
Happy New Year folks! With this time of year comes the battle of the various colds, flus, and other viruses for adults and kiddos alike. The following are 3 tips to help keep your baby happy and healthy.
*Note: If your baby is too little to do these tips then that means mom is doing all of these things. It’s these basics that keep us healthy in so many ways.
Josh Tip #1:
Keep your baby’s rhythm consistent with lots of sleep. Slow down and do less .
Josh Tip #2:
Feed your baby good, healthy food and no sugar. Sugar weakens their immune system tremendously.
Josh Tip #3:
Lots of exercise. Outside time while bundled up is the best to help them thrive in many ways
If this doesn’t work please remember babies are built to get sick. Becoming sick can help their immune system get stronger to fight off all of these powerful illnesses. Getting sick gives their body this information it needs to clean out their house and purge out toxins. Sickness also helps their body create more embryonic stem cells that their body will then differentiate into what they really needs to continue to grow and heal. So this is why after being sick your babies and kids will go through a growth spurt. As adults we have our own personal growth spurts. All of this is why I find it so great to work with babies, kids and all people when they are sick. Their body is trying to do the work and I help them heal and regain balance at fuller level. I highly recommend a session during sickness for everyone, especially babies who are just learning how to use their immune system.
If you would like to speak with me for a FREE consult please click here, or call our office at 406-586-2626. I would be happy to answer your questions or fill you in on what I do here at Spring Integrative Health.
Healing Naturally with Constitutional Hydrotherapy
This time of year, around the holidays, I get a lot of questions from my patients about how they can best support their immune system. The naturopathic toolbox for immune support is vast! However, nothing is quite so fundamentally supportive of the immune system as Constitutional Hydrotherapy.
The History of Constitutional Hydrotherapy
Healing naturally with Constitutional Hydrotherapy is a time-tested naturopathic healing therapy that involves alternating an application of hot and cold towels to the chest and back. The inspiration for naturopathic hydrotherapy is Father Kneipp, a Bavarian herbalist and priest who lived and practiced his “water cure” in the late 1800s. The entire treatment takes about 60-75 minutes and cultivates the ultimate parasympathetic, rest-and-digest, immune-boosting relaxation.
If I could receive this treatment once weekly, I would! But I do make a point to block out my schedule for a Constitutional Hydrotherapy treatment at least once every 2-3 months (and more often if I’m feeling unwell.)
What Hydro Therapy Does for the Body
Constitutional Hydrotherapy is not only an opportunity for your body and mind to rest and reset, it “pumps” the blood and lymph through contraction and dilation of the blood and lymph vessels. The contrast of hot towels and cold towels increases blood flow to the vital organs in your abdomen and chest (such as your heart, liver, lungs, and digestive tract), and stimulates movement of lymph in the body.
Immune System and Lymphatic Tissue
Your immune system lives in your lymphatic tissue, and by promoting movement of the lymph, the immune system can, in a sense, expand its reach and recycle itself. (Other ways to move your lymph include massage, yoga and stretching, breathing exercises, walking and hot/cold plunges at a hot springs). Lymph nodes are an example of where your immune system lives. You know how your neck may get swollen with tender lymph nodes when you’re fighting a cold, sinus infection, or other illness? Constitutional Hydrotherapy helps to move that congested lymph and reinvigorate your immune system to fight off infection.
Treatment
In addition to hot and cold towels, we apply gentle electrical stimulation to your chest and back and low abdomen during treatment. This provides an energetic boost to the cells to encourage detoxification, elimination and movement of waste products and nutrients.
When I feel like I’m coming down with something, or when I feel worn out from playing and working too hard, I make sure to carve out time for a Constitutional Hydrotherapy treatment. In some special circumstances, we are able to administer IV therapy at the same time as you lie swaddled in hot towels and wrapped in a warm blanket. Sounds divine, doesn’t it?
Questions?
If you have questions regarding Constitutional Hydrotherapy please give us a call 406-586-2626 or Click Here to request a treatment online!
For more on Dr. McKenzie Mescon click the image below.
Modern-Day Mental Health
Anxiety, depression, and anger. These mental health “symptoms” run rampant in our modern-day culture. Antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications are some of the most prescribed medications in our country. An article published by the American Association of Naturopathic Medicine reports that “20.9 million American adults suffer from a mood disorder, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.” While many of these medications are life-saving and life-improving, many people are looking for alternatives to medications or ways to make their medications work better.
At Spring Integrative Health we find that combining all of the tools (conventional medicine, pharmaceuticals, natural and holistic interventions) get the BIGGEST results. Here are our top interventions for vibrant mental health:
1. Manage Stress
Stress is the NUMBER ONE contributing factor to anxiety, depression, frustration and anger. Our lives in the United States are full of family, society, and personal pressure to perform at our peak levels at all times. Also, many of us have a history of trauma or dysfunction in our lives. These are huge contributing factors to our total stress levels. Talk to your mental health provider and/or doctor on ways to manage your stress from a physical and emotional level. (We are huge fans of Meditation and Mindfullness here at Spring).
2. Treat the Whole Body
To us that means adding in soothing body therapies like acupuncture, massage, or craniosacral therapies.
3. Reach Out
Isolating when you are feeling blue or anxious can often make the symptoms worse. Having a good team of counselors, doctors, friends and family has been shown to have a positive effect on depression.
4. Check Your Vitamin Status
Often nutrient deficiencies will increase your risk for developing depression and anxiety. Being deficient can also make these feelings worse if you are already experiencing them. A doctor can check for levels of vital nutrients in your body such as folate, B12 or vitamin D.
At Spring Integrative Health we take a multidisciplinary approach to your mental health. We believe health encompasses good physical, mental and emotional health!
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health issues please reach out! 406-586-2626 or Contact us here on our website!
Top Three Tips to Maintain Healthy Breast Tissue
Hey there, it’s Dr. Krieger here! I am the integrative cancer provider at Spring. Did you know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month? I thought it would be appropriate to discuss a few quick tips to help keep your breast tissue in tip-top shape. Here are my Top Three Tips to Maintain Healthy Breast Tissue:
Healthy Breast Tissue Tip #1: Get regular exercise
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The American Cancer Society notes that NUMEROUS studies over the past 20 years show markedly decrease in breast cancer risk with regular physical activity. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. If you break a sweat, that’s even better!
- https://www.cancer.org/latest-
news/get-moving-to-help- reduce-your-risk-of-breast- cancer.html
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Click Image for more on Cancer and Exercise info!
Healthy Breast Tissue Tip #2: Eat cruciferous vegetables
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- Cruciferous vegetables are part of the Brassica plant family. They include the following vegetables, to name a few: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, radishes, turnips, watercress, Brussel sprouts, bok choy, arugula, collard greens and rutabaga.
- Cruciferous vegetables contain phytochemicals (Indole-3-Carbinol, glucosinolates, sulforaphanes) that have been shown in research studies to slow cancer growth and development. These foods may lower your risk of breast cancer by 40 percent. So eat up, folks!
- https://www.aicr.org/foods-
that-fight-cancer/broccoli- cruciferous.html
Healthy Breast Tissue Tip #3: Stop using antiperspirant deodorant
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- I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you’re supposed to sweat. Especially underneath our arms. Sweating through the axillary region (armpits) is a great way to help detox the breast tissue as well as keep us cool and regulate our body temperature. Antiperspirant deodorant contains aluminum and stops and suppresses this action. Therefore when this happens we can’t move toxins out through our skin. If you’re using an antiperspirant deodorant, try only to use this with intense exercise (if needed). Or switch to a completely natural deodorant instead. We have a couple of great options at the clinic if you’re interested, just ask!
- If you want to take it a step further, check out this armpit detox protocol: https://www.medicalnewstoday.
com/articles/319624.php
Click the image below for information on Natural Deodorants!
Questions for Dr. Krieger? She offers FREE 15 minute Phone Consults.
CALL TO SCHEDULE 406-586-2626 or CLICK HERE to request an appointment online!
Helping Your Child Heal
By Josh Overcash
All children deserve to thrive. When it comes to our young children we will do anything for them when they need it. There are many options out there for treating pediatric health conditions. One route to take in helping your child heal is working through Accunect and Craniosacral Fascial therapy. These treatments have been profound in helping children get through some really hard childhood conditions. Conditions such as: major sleep issues, complex viruses & bacterias (RSV, pertussis, croup, chronic ear infections, etc…) lots of child digestion issues or baby reflux/colic, torticollis, nursing issues, mental/physical delays and so much more.
Accunect
Accunect supports a balanced state of being on all levels (physically, mentally, and emotionally) increasing the functional intelligence at a cellular level. While the cranial work frees up any restriction that keeps the body stuck, to support increasing the function within the nervous system, organs and endocrine system. Which supports movement at a cellular level and helps the brain breathe again. Through these therapies every cell of the body is in the highest state of healing mode, the body gets over the condition and stays in the high healing place. That is where the growth really happens. From a deep place of optimal health. Kids just bounce out of the state of imbalance easily. They are then able to thrive and grow up from a balanced state of being!
Starting Healing Early
Imagine a 9 month old baby that isn’t sleeping deep/long that also gets scared easily around people and sensitive digestion. All of this often gets sorted out in a handful of sessions. With a little creativity you can visualize what that might be like for that person if those common childhood conditions continues as they grow into adulthood. Allergies, IBS, anxiety, migraines, chronic fatigue, possibly autoimmune, who knows? That is hypothetical because we don’t usually track children that way. So let’s just support them the best way possible and as quickly as possible.
Supporting Primary Caregiver
Another common aspect that is necessary to support is the primary caregiver (usually the parents). In a household everyone feeds off of everyone els’s energy. Therefore a parent that is stressed out will stress out a child. The ancient Chinese saying, “If the baby is hungry, feed the mother” has many aspects of truth. When a parent radiates out, ‘I’ve got you, I am here for you and I still love you’ that one of the most important factors. Brene Brown says it best, “Children are not perfect, they are wired to struggle. It is our job to show that they are still worth it and loved.” No one can do that all the time if they are depleted and stressed out. To recognize that children are supposed to struggle in order to grow is a big eye opener for many people and supports a positive shift in their perspective.
Helping Your Child Heal
All in all assess where life is for you and your family and what the stressors are in your world. Work on overcoming those stress factors and if they are stuck, that’s where the work of Accunect and Craniosacral Fascial Therapy can help out tremendously. If there are specific conditions your baby is dealing with such as: sleep issues, digestive problems, IBS, or any of the issues mentioned above please give me a call I would be happy to help your baby heal. The sooner it gets resolved, the easier it is to resolve and the least amount of stress for everyone.
If you would like to speak with Josh Overcash please call 406-586-2626 for a Free Phone Consult or Click Here to visit his provider profile.
Skin-Brain Connection?
By Doctor Holly Thompson
Eastern medicine has always considered skin conditions to be external indicators of internal conditions, and recognized the importance of the gut in all aspects of health. All Chinese herbal formulas for skin problems are based on resolving the internal disharmony that is behind the outbreak.
The long and very successful history of Chinese herbal medicine for dermatological issues speaks to the efficacy of this approach. Like all problems in Chinese medicine, the signs and symptoms and details of the whole person are taken into account to determine a particular pattern that is at the root of the problem. Treatment is designed to address the problem at both the level of the root and the symptom. Typically, this is done with both internal (herbal formula) and external (topical medicine and/or acupuncture) treatment.
Western medicine has traditionally looked to resolve skin issues with topical medications or steroids, and not looked for internal reasons for conditions such as acne.
But, it wasn’t always this way.
Seventy years ago, two dermatologists, John Stokes and Donald Pillsbury, proposed a gastro-intestinal mechanism for overlapping anxiety, depression, and skin conditions such as acne. Stokes and Pillsbury hypothesized that emotional states might alter the normal intestinal microflora, increase intestinal permeability and contribute to systemic inflammation. They experimented with probiotics to correct the microbiome.
For whatever reasons, Stokes and Pillsbury’s work fell by the wayside.
Until recently.
The microbiome (mostly gut flora-the good and not-so-good bugs that live in our intestines) and all its possible influences are currently amongst the most researched areas in medicine. As part of that research, the gut-brain-skin connection is again being studied. There have been a number of studies in Europe that indicate probiotics can be effective in the treatment of acne. Studies done in Russia and Italy found that giving the probiotic bacteria L. acidophilus and B. bifidum to acne sufferers improved outcomes and accelerated the time needed for standard therapies to work.
Another study found that giving a lactobacillus-fermented dairy drink improved acne over the course of 12 weeks. While all this research is wonderful and confirms what we have known in both Chinese medicine for some time, the problem is that it will be years until this knowledge will be put into use in standard conventional medicine. We have the ability, today, to use time-tested Chinse Medicine Dermatolgy to treat skin problems at the root for lasting results.
If you are suffering from acne, or other skin conditions such as rosacea, eczema, or unexplained rashes and want to deal with it at the root cause level, give the office a call or send me a message today!
Gaining Your Health Back
By: Josh Overcash
We all experience a different reality based on our past experiences, our beliefs, and filters of how we see the world. This reality is actually a perceived reality, and no two people experience it the same. Our beliefs about the world affect our physiology and by changing our perceptions and beliefs, we can profoundly shift our health and well-being. Misperception of reality can create stress in the body. Dysfunctional thought patterns and belief systems contribute to acute and chronic disease as well as decreased life satisfaction and mental health. Current research shows how thoughts affect cell structure. How then, do we go about shifting our deeply held understanding of life, our health, the world we live in, and our relationships with others (and ourselves)? It can take a lifetime of focusing on personal growth and development for a person to achieve a truly balanced state of being. To shift things faster, you may want to enlist the help of a trained professional in energy medicine balancing techniques, like Spring Integrative Health’s Josh Overcash. Josh is trained in Accunect, BodyTalk, and Craniosacral Fascial Therapy.
How can energy medicine can help shift thought patterns and in turn, improve health and well-being? Quantum physics and consciousness inform the modalities that Josh works with. Using a special form of biofeedback, he is able to identify where his clients are ready to move forward. Then, by balancing the brain and the nervous system while holding space for deep relaxation, transformation can occur.
How does this actually work? Gentle tapping stimulates the nervous system and the heart meridian system and creates a ripple effect throughout the body to update awareness and bring the body into more balanced state. Each session is specific to the person on the table. Using a sophisticated protocol system, Josh is able to pinpoint and focus the session where the client needs it most- physically, mentally, and/or emotionally. Sometimes there is crossover between the modalities themselves and levels of the body/mind complex involved in a specific concern- for example shoulder pain may be addressed by releasing soft tissue with craniosacral fascial therapy, then helping a client release a deep-seated belief about not feeling safe that creates “guarding” in the shoulders and chest, and finally balancing the organs that are related to meridians that run through the shoulder.
Josh’s heart-centered approach and calm demeanor make him an effective witness to the change his clients experience during their sessions. Always inspiring his clients to live better and become witness to their own life situations, Josh helps people move forward with confidence and without judgement.
Clients leave Josh’s office feeling centered, aware, and at a higher level of consciousness. This balanced and relaxed state of being encourages further healing even after the client has left the office! After all, it is when the body is relaxed and the brain is in balance that truly spontaneous healing occurs.
Home Hydrotherapy Techniques and Benefits
Here are a couple of our favorite home hydrotherapy techniques! As always, please contact your doctor before doing any home therapies.
WARMING SOCKS:
Warming socks are a form of hydrotherapy. Using this treatment will help stimulate the immune system and relieve congestions from the head. As such, warming socks are often recommended for use during colds, flus, sore throats, ear infections, headaches, nasal congestion, coughs, bronchitis, and sinus infections. The warming socks treatment is best if repeated for at least three nights in a row–unless otherwise instructed.
Please do NOT do warming socks if you have fever-induced seizures or open wounds on your feet.
Home Hydrotherapy Procedure
1. It is imperative before you begin this treatment that you warm your feet first. This is very important as the treatment will not be as effective and could be harmful. Soaking the feet in warm water for 5-10 minutes or taking a warm bath or shower should be sufficient.
2. Next, take a pair of cotton socks and wet with cold water from the tap. Be sure to wring the socks out thoroughly.
3. Place the cold wet socks on your feet. Cover with thick wool socks. Go to bed. Avoid getting chilled.
You will find that the wet cotton socks will be dry in the morning. Many patients report that they sleep much better during the treatment.
WARMING THROAT COMPRESS
Much like the warming socks, the warming throat compress helps relieve pain and congestion, specifically in the throat and neck lymph nodes. This treatment increases circulation and increases white blood cell activity to help sore throats and chest colds.
1. Warm the throat with a warm washcloth or hot shower.
2. Dry the skin thoroughly and apply a wash cloth that has been soaked in cold water and wrung out so that it is not dripping wet.
3. Wrap a wool scarf over the washcloth.
4. Go to bed this way. By morning the washcloth will be dry.
