Advanced Family Medicine

Love & Logic: Is it the Right Approach to Parenting? There’s no doubt that being a parent is a huge source of happiness, but it also represents a significant amount of responsibility. And no matter how good of a parent you might be, all parents encounter moments of doubt, anxiety, and uncertainty, which can place us outside our comfort zone and impact our personal development. In this way, because our children can help us learn more about ourselves, they can act as our teachers. At the same time though, our children deserve our  unconditional love , a huge part of which involves teaching them life’s true values and sowing the seeds of their own personal development. And in our opinion, one of the most effective tools for learning this is a parenting system known as Love and Logic. What is the Love & Logic Parenting System? Founded in 1977 by Jim Fay and Foster W. Cline,  Love and Logic  is a parenting system that focuses on practical tools and techniques that make p

Stressed? Use These 4 Simple Simple Techniques to Gain the Upper Hand Stress and anxiety are challenges that nearly every one of us face at some point in our lives. After all, modern life is filled with things that can pull us in a million different directions, until we feel like we’re constantly playing catch up. In fact, 77% of Americans regularly experience physical symptoms caused by stress, 48% feel their stress has increased over the past five years, and a whopping 1/3 of us feel we’re living with “ extreme stress .” Clearly, stress is a big problem that needs to be handled in order to maximize our physical and mental wellbeing. But how? Dealing with Stress Whenever we  experience stress , the key to healthy management is based squarely on our perception. In other words, when stress occurs, we’re basically left with only 2 decisions: We take responsibility for our stress by honestly asking ourselves how we got into this situation, and what we can learn from it, or

Menopause: How You Can Cope with Life’s Big Change When approaching menopause, many women  become anxious about the symptoms  they’ll experience during their transition, since they’ve been conditioned to expect side effects such as hot flashes, weight gain, anxiety, reduced energy, problems sleeping, and more. In other words, women think that throughout the process, they’ll be miserable—at least some of the time. But is this actually the case? Let’s take a look. Do All Women Experience Menopausal Symptoms? Menopause , which is defined as “occurring 12 months after your last menstrual period and marks the end of menstrual cycles,” is something that all women go through. And according to the article, “Menopause can happen in your 40s or 50s, but the average age is 51 in the United States.” However, just because every woman eventually goes through menopause, this doesn’t mean that each one will experience the same symptoms—or even any symptoms at all. According to  this Las

Anorexia Nervosa: Causes, Symptoms, & Treatments What is Anorexia Nervosa? At its most basic, anorexia nervosa is mental disorder characterized by an obsessive desire to lose weight. In fact, individuals suffering from anorexia often greatly fear gaining weight, even if they are already weigh less than their physician would consider healthy or safe. As such, anorexia sufferers hold distorted body images about themselves (e.g. they feel fat when they’re actually very thin), which is what pushes them continue losing weight.  In order to force their bodies to do this, individuals suffering from anorexia can employ a variety of methods, including excessive calorie restriction or exercise, vomiting (also known as purging), as well as the use of laxatives or diuretics. In most cases, individuals with anorexia can’t control this behavior, even when It becomes life-threatening. What Are Some Signs or Symptoms of Anorexia? Unlike many other mental conditions, the onset of an

Why Influenza Vaccinations Are Important to Your Family’s Health According to the  Centers for Disease Control , anywhere between 151 and 156 million flu vaccines will be distributed this year within the United States, although not all of these doses will be used. And while this might be considered a large number, keep in mind that there are more than 316 million individuals living in this country, which means that less than 50% of the population will obtain a flu vaccine this year. Here at Advanced Family Medicine, many of our patients frequently express concern about the effectiveness of immunizations; perhaps because they received a flu vaccine in the past but still came down with the flu. On the other hand, some individuals consciously choose not to get vaccinated against the flu as they’re simply not concerned about acquiring it. Whatever your reasoning may be though, the importance of getting vaccinated against influenza this year cannot be understated. The flu season t

Your Condensed Guide to Dupuytren's Contracture What is Dupuytren's Contracture? Dupuytren's contracture involves a benign progressive thickening of the skin of the palm, as well as the thickening of the palmar fascia, which is connective tissue responsible for finger contraction and grip strength. What Are the Signs & Symptoms of  Dupuytren's Contracture? Although advanced cases of Dupuytren's contracture involve loss of grip strength, the condition can begin simply with the development of a small, painless lump on the palm, often near the base of one or more fingers, along with  mild aching and/or itching. While Dupuytren's contracture can technically affect both hands, there is a tendency for symptoms to appear only on one hand or the other. In addition to these symptoms, as time passes, the palmar fascia actually changes from collagen type I to type III, which is thicker and allows less range of motion. Once this occurs, knots can form unde

Common Cold 101: What it Is & How You Can Avoid It Now that the days are short and the weather is cold, this means that cold season is once again upon us. But to help you and your family remain happy and healthy during the Holidays, we here at  Advanced Family Medicine  thought it would be a good idea to answer some of the more frequent questions we receive about the common cold. What is the Common Cold? Did you know that the  common cold  isn’t a single illness, but is actually a set of symptoms that can be caused by more than 200 types of viruses? It’s true, although the Rhinovirus is thought to result in between 10% and 40% of all annual cases of the common cold. But whatever the cause, according to the  CDC , as much as 20% of the population can fall ill to the common cold each year (in some instances, multiple times per year), which typically involves sneezing, a sore throat, nasal congestion, draining, and itchy / watery eyes. In more severe cases, the common cold

How Tylenol Works, & How It Can Help Your Child Find Relief You’re a great parent. You do a lot for your children, and you never want to see them hurting or ill. Unfortunately, a big part of life is dealing with various levels of pain and getting sick, so it’s inevitable that, at some point, your child’s going to hurt themselves or fall ill. And for toothaches, minor bumps and bruises, and other types of “owies,” it’s likely that—after giving your child a big hug and wiping away their tears—you give them a dose of Tylenol or a generic form of acetaminophen. However, did you know that the next time you child comes down with the  flu or another illness , Tylenol can work as an effective treatment to reduce their temperature? How Does Tylenol Help Reduce Fever? Surprisingly, the answer to this question is that we really don’t know. Despite acetaminophen’s  widespread use , “experts aren’t quite sure how the drug works.” However, some researchers think that this drug works

What You Should Know About Cancer Screening Before Talking with Your Doctor No doubt about it, cancer’s a scary topic; one that makes people immediately uncomfortable, since it’s touched nearly all of our lives in one way or another. And perhaps worst of all is how cancer can seemingly appear out of nowhere, wreak havoc on our lives, and snatch our loved ones away in the blink of an eye. Because cancer is so widespread and can be so unforgiving, along with the fact that medical technology continues to advance at a breakneck speed, we here at  Advanced Family Medicine are often asked by our patients about cancer screening. After all, the earlier you find the cancer, the better the chances of survival, right? What is a Cancer Screening? Simply put,  cancer screening  is “looking for cancer before a person has any symptoms.” What many patients may not understand though, is that there isn’t a single test your physician can run in order to screen you for all possible cancers. In

What a Full Body Skin Exam Is, & Why You Need to Have One Have you had your complete physical exam yet this year? If not, you might want to schedule one soon, as most medical insurance policies cover these types of exams once per year. I know, I know, just the thought of going through a complete physical is enough to make some people uneasy. But the truth is that these complete exams are vitally important to your health, due in no small part to the full body skin examination that occurs at this time. What Happens During a Full Body Skin Exam? During your skin “check up,”  your AFM physician  will check all the skin over your entire body for abnormal (or in most instances, slightly abnormal) lesions, including moles and other types of growths, especially those that change shape or size, itch or bleed frequently, or don’t heal like other wounds. But why do this in the first place? Because abnormalities like the ones described above may signify pre-cancerous skin lesio

Another Hair Gone: What Causes Hair Loss & What You Can Do To Treat It Whether you’re a man or a woman, bringing up the topic of hair loss is sure to cause some tension for anyone suffering from it. After all, in today’s beauty obsessed world, each and every one of us want to have the thickest, healthiest head of hair possible. And although it can take a toll on your ego, there are also some health concerns that may be indicated by sudden hair loss. But the reality is that hair loss is a normal part of everyday life. In fact, according to WebMD, we each lose about  100 hairs per day  as some of our hairs complete their  telogen phase  and naturally fall out. In ideal circumstances though, there are many other hairs in their  anagen and  catagen  phases, which ultimately balance out hair loss and keeps your hair looking as thick as it always has. However, what happens when this process is interfered with? Let’s take a look. What Causes Hair Loss? Although abnormal, inc