Happy, Healthy Docs

Congress Gets Serious About Stress and Mindfulness

Listen to this inspiring YOUTUBE video I found regarding mindfulness. In a Congressional hearing, Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH) asks Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius about stress reduction via mindfulness, and how it can help our nation.  What's this about?

Stress management requires being mindful, or self aware in a given moment.  For example, if I'm feeling strong anger, rather than reacting and yelling, I might ask, "What am I feeling right now?  What's going on in my body?"  I might answer, "I'm really feeling hurt under the anger, and my heart is pounding."  So to slow the pounding and feel the hurt rather than yell, I breathe deeply for 10 minutes.  Being mindful helped me create a workable stress management strategy.  Now I'm calmer, I feel better physically, and I prevented an argument.   

Mindfulness meditation is an excellent tool to learn self-awareness - and to manage stress.  It helps with anger management, reducing violence, ameliorating pain, curbing compulsive/addictive behaviors, and more - areas now getting national attention.  So next time I'm upset and want to soothe myself with a donut, I might instead become aware that I'm really feeling disappointed and take a walk instead.

To do it:  Sit quietly.  Close your eyes.  Take deep breaths.  Become aware of your breath, your emotions, your body, by asking, "How am I experiencing myself?" For example, ask, "What emotion am I feeling right now?"  Or, "Where is there tension in my body?"  Then sit with that awareness.  Ask again:  "What emotion am I feeling now?"  A new one may rise up into your awareness.  Do this for 5-10 minutes. 

With practice you'll really get to know yourself well.  Becoming aware of your emotions is important, especially if this is difficult for you.  Why is it important?  Until you know how you truly feel about something, you won't change it.  Emotion is a much better motivator than denial. 

Learn to Reverse Negative Behaviors in a NO-COST STRESS MANAGEMENT Phone Seminar 2/17/09

 Are you stressed out because you have not very useful behaviors you'd like to change but can't?  Do you get easily angered and yell?  Are you disorganized?  Do you procrastinate, overeat, smoke, etc.?  Everyone has something.  So why don't we change?  One reason is we believe we can't.  You might find yourself thinking, "It's too hard, too much work, takes too much time, I'm not capable of changing that, I don't know how, I've tried and it didn't work, etc."  Most of us unconsciously think these thoughts all the time.  What we don't realize is that they drive our behaviors and keep us stuck in the negative ones.

A trick to changing behaviors is to bring to conscious awareness the UNDERLYING BELIEFS we have about not being able to change them, and to replace them with beliefs that work.  To help you see this in action, I'm offering a FREE TELEPHONE SEMINAR tonight from 8-8:45 pm EST.  I'll do a GUIDED RELAXATION EXERCISE to help you work on your particular problem.  You call in from the comfort of your home or office.  CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.  This session will also provide a sample of what we'll do in the Meditation and Relaxation Training Phone Seminars (DESCRIPTION) on 2/19, 2/26 and 3/5/09 from 7-8am or 8-9 pm.  Read more about that in the post below, which also tells you how to enroll in the 3 session series. 

New Tough NY Physician Discipline Laws

  On 11/3/08, new legislation became effective in New York making the disciplinary system more strict for physicians reported to the Office of Professional Medical Conduct (OPMC) for misconduct, and makes such information more accessible to consumers. 

These law changes make it even more imperative for clinicians with addictive and psychological problems to seek immediate treatment to regain their health and avoid discipline.  A report to OPMC can result in quick publicizing of charges, and possible losses of license, job, career, income, self-esteem, and thousands in legal fees.  Colleagues in leadership positions should ensure such individuals get help ASAP.  Such individuals can also self-refer or be referred to the Committee for Physician Health at 1-800-338-1833 or 518-436-4723. 

A synopsis of the law changes include:

1.  OPMC now makes charges against a physician public much sooner: after they are served vs. after an order is issued, and before appeals.  

2.  OPMC can more easily obtain a physician's personal medical records if they believe s/he may be impaired by addictive and psychiatric disorders.    

3.  Physicians must update their profiles every 6 months, a condition for license re-registration.  

Other law changes involve mandating clinical competency exams, reviewing malpractice histories to see if doctors should be investigated, and more.  Courts must also notify OPMC of physician misdemeanor and felony convictions, such as DWI's.

Go to www.abramslaw.com for an article fully describing the new law, "The Office of Professional Medical Conduct:  How Changes In Public Health Law Section 230 May Affect You" by Lawrence F. Kobak, DPM, JD and Michael S. Kelton, Esq.