Over the past several months, there have been a number of questions about Mountain Sage Holistic Clinic and the services we provide. Here are the most frequently asked questions and answers.

1.       Can you write prescriptions if I need them?

Absolutely! As a family nurse practitioner I am licensed as an independent clinician, which means I order lab tests, x-rays, other imaging and diagnostic tests, along with any necessary medications. This makes Mountain Sage Holistic Clinic a full service clinic for managing your health concerns.

2.       Do you take insurance or Medicare/Medicaid?

At this time we are not contracted with insurances, Medicare, or Medicaid. BUT we do provide the documentation required by those payors for you to submit to your insurance. While we can’t guarantee that they will reimburse because the policies vary. Many people have fairly high deductible plans and find that this type of service will be applied to the deductible or be reimbursed according to your policy.

3.       Do you have any payment plans?

It is very important to us that our services are available to everyone. With that, we are open to working out a payment plan to suit individual needs.

4. Do you manage bio-identical hormones?

Yes, we do manage bio-identical hormones. Hormone replacement therapy is very useful for many men and women struggling with hormonal issues. There are synthetic versions of hormones and bio-identical versions – which means the medications match the hormones that are naturally made in the body. The bio-identical versions are also very customizable, the dose can be adjusted to each person’s needs. The synthetic versions have fixed doses and are not customizable.

5. What types of health issues do you see managed at MSHC?

Any type of chronic condition like: diabetes, chronic fatigue, stomach and bowel issues, adrenal fatigue, thyroid problems to name a few. Also health promotion, disease prevention, and wellness visits are a important part of staying healthy.

6. Do you do labs?

Many of the labs that are needed can be done through MSHC as we have the kits available to complete the collection. These kits are then completed in the privacy of your home or at MSHC. Occasionally blood work needs to be drawn from a standard lab and at this time those can be ordered and completed at the lab of your choice. In the future we plan to have this available in house.

7. Do you have a FaceBook page?

Yes, we do! On it you will find updates and links to the articles posted in the Roundup along with other interesting wellness info.

Please feel free to email me with any non-medical questions or concerns that you may have through the Contact Us page. We are always interested in hearing about your interests, needs, or how we can serve the community better. For appointments call 455-2807 Monday-Friday and Saturday until noon. The Complementary 15-minute Wellness Strategy Sessions are still available to see if the Holistic approach is right for you.

Have a blessed Christmas and Hanukah! Enjoy you time with family and friends during this Holiday season!

Be well-
Tracy

Living at this northern latitude can create some challenges in maintaining good health. The snow, cold and increasingly darker days can prompt us, like the bears, to go into hibernation mode. Unfortunately, we can’t sleep through the winter and need to find ways to emerge mentally healthy in the spring. Winter Blues or Seasonal Affective Disorder can really have a significant effect on some people, 1 out of 7 people struggle with this issue. Those who have WB or SAD tend to sleep more, have an increased appetite (especially for carbohydrates), be irritable, gain weight, have increased body aches, and may have trouble with interpersonal relationships. There are some simple ways to manage this:

1. Get some sunlight early in the morning. This helps to set the body clock and studies have shown that 20-30 minutes of sunlight in the morning supports the neurotransmitters (dopamine and serotonin) that regulate our mood. This works best if you can get out within an hour of waking, but any time of the day is better than none.

2. If daylight is difficult to obtain, try a daylight lamp. This should be 5000 - 10,000 lux brightness rating. Verilux makes several models that have full spectrum light. You can use it for 30 minutes while enjoying that first cup of coffee in the morning.

3. Vitamin D supplement. This is the sunshine vitamin and it really does help to lift your mood, as well as decrease aches and pains. Not to mention the wonderful effects for your immune system! (This is one of my top 3 supplements.) It’s best to get a level done since most people really do need a significant amount, but a reasonable starting point is 2000 units daily.

4. Get some exercise. I know for a lot of people ‘exercise’ is a four-letter word, but even 2 walks during the day, for 15 minutes each can make a big difference. There was an interesting study that took 2 groups of people with mild to moderate depression symptoms and compared prescription medications with daily walking of 30 minutes and the benefits were exactly the same – but no drug side effects for the walking group!

5. Eat protein 2-3 times a day. Meat, fish, chicken, eggs, or plant-based are all good sources. This is not a huge amount; just the size of your palm is plenty. This helps decrease the carb-craving we can get in the winter and avoids the ‘winter weight’ that is so common – which can give you the blues when your jeans don’t fit!

6. Plan to do some activities that you enjoy, especially helpful if you get together with people you enjoy. Just spending time in pleasurable activities can do wonders for your mood. (Maybe that’s why we see so many babies born in Sept and Oct!) Any type of activity helps increase endorphins – the ‘I feel good’ brain chemicals.

7. Please also watch for signs of your mood worsening. Score yourself on these 2 questions over the past 2 weeks, how often have you been bothered by any of these symptoms:

1) Little interest or pleasure in doing things 
2) Feeling down, depressed or hopeless.

Not at all=0, Several days=1, More than half the days=2, Nearly every day=3. If you score 3 points or more, you may want to discuss your situation with your provider for other strategies.

Be well-
Tracy