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.

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Healthy Options 5/4/22: Yearly Update on TICKS, Lyme, and Tick-borne Illnesses

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical assistance: Joel Mann & Amy Browne

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

Ticks ARE out- and biting (ugh!), so it’s time for our yearly update on TICKS, Lyme, and tick-borne illness, with tick specialist, Dr. Beatrice Szantyr.

Key Discussion Points:

1. What is a tickborne illness?
2. What tickborne infections are viruses and which are bacterial, and how can they be treated?
3. What is the prevalence of Lyme disease, and other infections in Maine?
5. What percentage of people get a rash with Lyme infections and what does that rash look like?
6. Besides deer ticks, what other kinds of ticks are here now in Maine? What kind of diseases/infections can we get from them?
7. What is anaplasmosis and Powassan virus and why are we so concerned about these infections?
8. What can we do to protect ourselves from tick bites?
9. What do I do if I’ve been bitten? Where can I send the tick to analyze what it may carry, and will this help in my possible treatment?

Guest: Dr. Beatrice Szantyr, an 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 most recently served on the 2022 Federal Tick-Borne Disease Working Group, the Access to Care and Education Subcommittee.

Websites of Interest:
Tick testing Maine
Tick testing Amherst MA. (tests for more diseases)

MANY websites of interest from previous Healthy Options programs can also be found at:
Healthy Options Archive 5/5/21
Healthy Options Archive 6/3/20

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 4/6/22: The serious problems of PFAS “forever chemicals” with Patrick MacRoy

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical assistance: Joel Mann & Amy Browne

The serious problems of PFAS: The “forever chemicals” in our food, water, land & everywhere…

Key discussion points:
1. What are PFAS & “forever chemicals”?
2. Why are we so concerned about them?
3. What products contain PFAS?
4. Are PFAS in our water, soil & products, and how did they get there?
5. What food packaging contains PFAS?
6. Is there a way to minimize your exposure to PFAS?
7. What are the long-term health ramifications of exposure to PFAS?
8. Is there any acceptable level for PFAS exposure?
9. Is it possible to filter out these chemicals if they are in your water?
10. What can we do about toxic levels of PFAS in our bodies?
11. Is there anything to be done to remedy toxic levels of PFAS in the soil?
12. How is this issue handled in the USA vs. how they deal with it in Europe?

Guest:
Patrick MacRoy, Deputy Director of DEFEND OUR HEALTH, a public health organization based in Portland, Maine, which advocates for safe water, safe food, safe products, & a toxic-free environment. DEFEND OUR HEALTH is actively engaged in exposing the dangers of PFAS- the “forever chemicals” contaminating our food, water, soil, and products.

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 3/2/22: Browntail Moth in Maine: Protecting ourselves and our local communities as BTM spreads in Maine

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical assistance: Joel Mann & Amy Browne

Browntail Moth in Maine: Protecting ourselves and our local communities as BTM spreads in Maine

-What part of the Browntail Moth (BTM) is toxic to humans?
-What can we do to minimize our exposure to Browntail Moth caterpillars?
-What are some ways to reduce their spread, locally & statewide? Are there new methods to use?
-When is a good time to clip the webs? What do the webs look like & how can they be confused with other species that we don’t want to clip?
-Is it possible to use the compost after Browntail Moth/caterpillars have been seen?
-How long should the clipped webs stay in soapy water?
-What is the lifecycle of the Browntail Moth? What cycle are we in now?
-When should we turn our lights down and off so the male Browntail Moths don’t get attracted?
-Why are bug zappers and other devices that attract them not a good idea to use?

Guest: Maine Forest Service entomologist Tom Schmeelk, who is charged with managing the state’s response to the Browntail Moth (BTM) problem here in Maine.

Websites of Interest:

“Knock Out Browntail” with info. & links on the Maine Forest website

Belfast Library video presentation Feb. 2022: Browntail Moth and What You Need to Know- with entomologist Tom Schmeelk

Healthy Options interview with Tom Schmeelk April 2021

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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