Healthy Options 7/5/23: The Health Benefits of the Alexander Technique

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

What is the Alexander Technique?
How can our physical structure be affected by the way we breathe? What does stress have to do with it?!
What are a couple of simple examples we can try, to practice the Alexander Technique?
What is the difference felt in our body when we gently allow our lungs to inhale and exhale, versus straining to take a deep breath?
How do our physical and emotional habits inhibit or enhance our posture & poise, and the ways we move?
How can we become aware of our natural breathing so we can be more relaxed as we move through our day?
How might these techniques help us to be more confident and productive, in performing and/or other areas of our lives?

Guest/s:
Tracy Van Fleet is a Grammy Award winner, mezzo-soprano and voice teacher based in the Los Angeles area. As a soloist, she performs with the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and has appeared with some of the most prestigious orchestras around the world. She is a Level 3 Total Vocal Freedom coach, and is in the process of qualifying for certification as an Alexander Technique Teacher.

Lisa Rogers Lee is a chamber singer, oratorio soloist, and voice teacher with a private studio called Voice for the Whole Singer. She has appeared with numerous opera companies throughout the United States, and is an educator and mentor of singers of all ages. She recently became a Level 2 Total Vocal Freedom coach, teaching Alexander Technique principles to singers.

Lisa Lee and Tracy Van Fleet are the founders of the Ageless Singer, a program designed to support and empower female singers over the age of 50.

More information on The Alexander Technique.

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 5/3/23: Lyme disease & tick-borne illness, and how to be tick-conscious, to protect ourselves

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

Where are ticks found & how can we identify the ticks we may find, in their different life cycles? What size are they right now?
What is Lyme disease and why is it often difficult to diagnose- and treat?
What are co-infections? What are the different illnesses which are showing up now?  What is Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Borrelia, Alpha-gal, & Powassan Virus?
What are the ways that we do treat tick diseases? Is there an effective way to prevent Lyme after a tick bite? Is using a single dose of antibiotics a valid and effective strategy to use right after a tick bite?
Why should we not wait if we have symptoms after a tick bite? What are symptoms we might experience?
What does clinical diagnosis mean?
What are some preventative techniques we can use to minimize our risk of getting a tick-borne illness?
What kinds of clothing, and repellent, are effective to try to prevent tick bites?
What is permethrin and what are the benefits to using it on our clothes, socks and shoes?
How do we check for ticks? Why do a tick check and why is it a good idea to shower after we’ve been outside?
Why should we check our pets for ticks? What about people who come visit and may bring ticks?
If you get a tick bite, how do you remove the tick safely? What might we do next? How long does a tick have to be imbedded for it to be able to transmit disease?
Should you send a tick to a lab for analysis?
Do we have decisive testing for tick diseases? Are there any vaccines yet?

Guest/s:
Dr. Beatrice Szantyr, Internist and Pediatrician who lectures on Lyme disease and related tick-borne disorders in Maine and nationally, to both professional and community groups. She is an active member of the Maine CDC Vector Borne Disease Work Group, and a member of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society.  Dr. Szantyr also had served on the 2022 Federal Tick-Borne Disease Working Group, Access to Care and Education Subcommittee. 

Additional Information:
EPA info on effective repellents
www.epa.gov/insect-repellents
www.epa.gov/insect-repellents/find-repellent-right-you

University of Maine Tick Lab
Protect Yourself from ticks & tick-borne diseases:
extension.umaine.edu/ticks/

Tick testing Amherst MA. (tests for more diseases):
www.tickreport.com

Lyme Disease Association
Research, Education, Prevention and Patient Support   
lymediseaseassociation.org/

Lyme disease.org
Powered by patients. Home of Lyme Times and My Lyme Data:
www.lymedisease.org/

Maine CDC Lyme disease Frequently Asked Questions
www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/vector-borne/tick-messaging.shtml

Maine Tracking Network: Tickborne Diseases
Improving public health with better information
data.mainepublichealth.gov/tracking/data-topics/tickborne-content

University of Rhode Island Tick Encounter
Tick-borne Disease prevention Education
web.uri.edu/tickencounter/

This article is brief enough for a patient to bring to a doctor’s visit for them to consider:
The Management of Ixodes scapularis Bites in the Upper Midwest
wmjonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/110/2/78.pdf

For clinicians:
LymeCME
Free, Evidence-based, AAFP-Accredited Courses that Physicians Can Trust
www.lymecme.info/

Previous Healthy Options programs on ticks & Lyme, with links to other websites of interest, can also be found at:
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2022/10/healthy-options-10-5-22-the-ticks-are-still-here-what-you-need-to-know/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2022/05/healthy-options-5-4-22-yearly-update-on-ticks-lyme-and-tick-borne-illnesses/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2021/05/healthy-options-5-5-21-ticks-those-blood-sucking-parasites/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2020/06/healthy-options-6-3-20-ticks-and-tick-borne-illnesses/

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 4/5/23: Browntail Moths & other invasive insect species

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

1. What’s different this year about where we might find browntail moths (BTM),
and how has the weather affected their population so far this year?
2. Which areas of Maine have seen more of the BTM nests this year, and which are seeing less?
3. What is the life cycle of the browntail moth?
4. How do we identify BTM nests, the caterpillars, and the moths?
5. What are all the ways that we can manage these nests when we see them, and how do we safely get rid of the caterpillars? Would stepping on them and squishing them (!) be of any benefit?
6. What are the toxic parts of the caterpillars and why should the toxic hairs not come in contact with clothing or skin?
7. What does a BTM caterpillar rash look like?
8. What is the best way to take care of trees that have BTM nests & caterpillars?
9. Which trees are more susceptible to the nests? Do trees recover after a BTM infestation?
10. How do you clip nests and when is the best time to do so? What do you do with the nests after they are clipped? Is it enough to place clipped nests in soapy water to dispose of them?
11. Why is it crucial to not leave the nests on the ground? Why shouldn’t you mow nests which may be on the ground? Why mow when the grass is damp/wet?
12. How would you treat trees where the nests are so high we cannot reach them? When should you consider hiring a licensed arborist to clip nests?
13. Why would people consider using chemicals/toxins on the trees, rather than cutting off the nests within reach, hiring an arborist, or even using drones to clip them?
14. Why should we check under the eaves of houses, under porches, and even in wheel wells of our cars, when we have been in an area with the caterpillars?
15. What other caterpillars and moths can be confused with BTM? Why should we take care to identify BTM versus other beneficial insects?
16. Is it helpful to turn off lights at night from late June through August when the adult moths are congregating and “looking for love”?
17. Why are using bug zappers detrimental?

Guest/s:
Tom Schmeelk, Maine Forest Service entomologist

Additional Information:
“Knock Out Browntail” with info & links on the Maine Forest website.
YouTube video: Tom Schmeelk illustrates browntail moth overwintering webs, offers tips for identification, and gives instructions for removal and destruction of webs within reach from the ground.

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 3/1/23: Brainspotting

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

Rhonda Feiman speaks with Kim Austin, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, & Brainspotting practitioner. Brainspotting is a brain-based psychotherapy which uses the eyes and the field of vision to treat trauma, anxiety and more.
1. What is Brainspotting & how does it work?
2. What is the difference between Brainspotting and the EMDR eye movement technique?
3. What do we mean by a “brain spot”? What do we mean by one spot being stuck or activated?
4. What is the connection between the eyes and the brain and why is that so important in this technique?
5. When is it appropriate to use this technique?
6. How does Brainspotting help in the treatment of trauma ?
7. How would Brainspotting help with creativity?
8. Why is music used in Brainspotting treatments?
9. Is there a special type of music used?

Guest/s:
Kim Austin, Licensed Clinical Social Worker and certified Brainspotting therapist with a private practice based in Atlanta, Georgia & online in Maine & NY. She specializes in the treatment of trauma, having first trained in EMDR, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, which is used as an effective technique to help clients dealing with trauma. She then trained in the modality of Brainspotting, a brain-based psychotherapy which also uses the eyes and the field of vision to identify where a person is holding trauma or negative experiences.

Websites of Interest:
Kim Austin
Brainspotting

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 11/2/22: Non-Violent Communication

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
How might we communicate with more awareness, compassion, and empathy, and how can our nervous system play a vital role in our being calm in ourselves, and in our interactions with others? Rhonda Feiman speaks with Peggy Smith, co-founder of the Maine Non-Violent Communication Network, & certified trainer with the International Center for Non-Violent Communication.

-What is Non-Violent Communication?
-What are some techniques to help calm strong emotions?
-What is empathy? What is “self empathy”? Can you learn how to be empathetic?
-What do we mean when we speak of “warm accompaniment”?
-What do we mean when we say that struggle and conflict can be about the perception of needs being met, or not met?
-What is the amygdala and what does it have to do with our emotions and our nervous system?
-What does it mean to self-regulate the nervous system and emotions?
-What role does our nervous system play in Non-Violent Communication? What are techniques that can be used to help our own nervous system and strong emotions as we communicate with others?
-What is “shoulding” and why “should” we stop doing that :-)?
-Non-Violent Communication is more than just learning a script; what is the thought process behind Non-Violent Communication?

Guest/s:
Peggy Smith, co-founder of the Maine Non-Violent Communication Network & certified trainer with the International Center for Nonviolent Communication. She is also a certified trainer with the International Center for Nonviolent Communication, and has worked both in Maine and internationally, with the Seeds of Peace International Camp, sharing Non-Violent Communication skills with educators from the Middle East and South Asia.
A student of Mindfulness since 1991, Peggy Smith was ordained as a teacher by Zen Master and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh, and has incorporated Mindfulness practice in the teaching of Non-Violent Communication. She holds a Master’s degree in Literacy and Language Arts from the University of Pennsylvania, and taught in public and alternative schools for 32 years before devoting herself full time, to Non-Violent Communication training.

Nonviolent Communication, (NVC), is based on the principles of nonviolence– the natural state of compassion when no violence is present in the heart. NVC begins by assuming that we are all compassionate by nature and that violent strategies—whether verbal or physical—are learned behaviors taught and supported by the prevailing culture.
NVC also assumes that we all share the same, basic human needs, and that all actions are a strategy to meet one or more of these needs. People who practice NVC have found greater authenticity in their communication, Increased understanding, deepening connection and conflict resolution. The NVC community is active in over 65 countries around the globe.

Websites of Interest:
The Center for Nonviolent Communication
Clarity Services, Open Communication at Work

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 10/5/22: The Ticks Are Still Here- What You Need to Know

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
TICKS have not gone away even though the season has changed. We speak with our tick specialist, Dr. Beatrice Szantyr on tick awareness, bite prevention, & treatment, Lyme & tick-borne illness.
1. Why are we doing a tick program in the Fall?
2. Do we still need to be vigilant about tick-borne illnesses in the Fall & Winter when the weather gets cool and cold?
3. Do ticks stop spreading disease when the weather is cold?
4. What is the life cycle of ticks throughout the year?
5. What are some preventative techniques we can use to minimize our risk of getting a tick-borne illness?
6. What precautions should hunters in particular take, when out in the woods? And in handling animals?
7. What is permethrin and what are the benefits to using it on our clothes, socks and shoes?
8. What products are useful for putting on our skin to prevent tick bites?
9. What are co-infections?
10. What does clinical diagnosis mean?
11. What is a prophylactic preventative course of antibiotics, and is this a valid and effective strategy to use after a tick bite?
12. If you get a tick bite, how do you remove the tick safely?
13. Should you send a tick to a lab for analysis?

Guest/s:
Dr. Beatrice Szantyr, Internist and Pediatrician who lectures on Lyme disease and related tick-borne disorders in Maine and nationally, to both professional and community groups. She is an active member of the Maine CDC Vector Borne Disease Work Group, and a member of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society. Dr. Szantyr served on the 2022 Federal Tick-Borne Disease Working Group.

Websites of Interest:

University of Maine Tick Lab, Protect Yourself from ticks & tick-borne diseases
Tick testing Amherst MA. (tests for more diseases)
Lyme Disease Association, Research, Education, Prevention and Patient Support
Lyme disease[dot]org. Powered by patients. Home of Lyme Times and My Lyme Data
Maine CDC Lyme disease Frequently Asked Questions
Maine Tracking Network: Tickborne Diseases. Improving public health with better information
University of Rhode Island Tick Encounter, Tick-borne Disease prevention Education
This article is brief enough for a patient to bring to a doctor’s visit for them to consider: The Management of Ixodes scapularis Bites in the Upper Midwest

For clinicians:
LymeCME Free, Evidence-based, AAFP-Accredited Courses that Physicians Can Trust

Previous Healthy Options programs on ticks & Lyme, with links to other websites of interest, can also be found here and here

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 9/7/22: The Healing Garden

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
Host Rhonda Feiman speaks with three of the founding members of The Healing Garden, a new non-profit health & wellness organization based in Midcoast Maine, to discuss heart-brain coherence and how energy medicine can be beneficial for our health.

Key Discussion Points:
1. What is The Healing Garden in Belfast, Maine? What projects and workshops are The Healing Garden offering to the public?
2. What is the relationship between the the heart and the brain? What is heart-brain coherence?
3. What is it like to experience a heart-brain coherence meditation?
4. What is the vagus nerve & what does it have to do with stress, and flight, fright & freeze?
5. How does the breath affect our nervous system? How is the breath important in healing?
6. How can mainstream medicine and holistic practice work together?
7. How do you stay positive in your attempts to heal even when it’s very difficult?
8. What are the chemicals involved in flight, fright, freeze and stress, and what did neuroscientist Dr. Candace Pert discover about the molecules of emotion? Do we really experience emotions in our stomachs?

Guest/s:
Dr. Deb Peabody is a practicing Family Physician who left mainstream medicine to embrace a new medical practice after discovering the Functional Medicine model of healthcare. She is also a Hospice volunteer, and a board member of The Healing Garden.
Diana Maria Chapin, president of The Healing Garden, is a Reiki Master, and in her practice in Belfast, she works with energy healing & meditation, and helps clients to develop wellness skills.
Dr. Kerri Vacher, vice president of The Healing Garden, is a Naturopathic Doctor and Family Nurse Practitioner who combines several healing modalities in her practice, including cranial sacral therapy, meditation, yoga, and diet & nutrition therapies.

Websites of Interest:
The Healing Garden Maine
Dr. Candace Pert
Heart-Math Institute
The Heart’s Electromagnetic Field is Your Super Power: Training Heart-Brain Coherence
“Heartbreak- A Personal and Scientific Journey” Healthy Options interview with author Florence Williams 2/2/22

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Healthy Options 8/3/22: How are local clinics here dealing with the overturning of Roe V. Wade?

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

Host Rhonda Feiman speaks with Lindsey Piper and Mareisa Weil from Maine Family Planning to discuss the evolving situation in Maine- and what striking down this law means for reproductive rights here and nationally.

1. What has changed in Maine since Roe versus Wade has been overturned?
2. What is safe reproductive health care?
3. What is the difference between the morning after pill and a medication abortion using pills?
4. Is using the medication in a medical abortion safe and effective?
5. What is the timeframe for a safe medical abortion?
6. What is an ectopic pregnancy? Can an ectopic pregnancy be life-threatening?
7. What is the difference between early pregnancy loss, and a miscarriage?
8. How have restrictive laws affected medical personnels’ ability to treat and save the lives of women experiencing ectopic pregnancy or miscarriages?
9. What is the federal Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA)? How does that law protect providers?
10. What is age-appropriate sex education? How is MFP working with young people?
11. How has the overturning of Roe versus Wade affected reproductive health care and access to medical care?
12. What is a typical day in the life of a Maine Family Planning practitioner? What has changed since restrictive laws are being enacted in many states in the US?

Websites of Interest:

Maine Family Planning
SAFE MAINE
Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA)
National Network of Abortion Funds
Plan C Pills
SCIENCE NEWS: 5 misunderstandings of pregnancy biology that cloud the abortion debate

Guest/s: At Maine Family Planning, Lindsey Piper is a nurse practitioner specializing in sexual and reproductive health and Mareisa Weil is Vice President for Development & Community Engagement.

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download