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General Healthcare Cost Humour Lifestyle Opinion Pharmacology Psychiatry Psychology Public Health Reflection

Well, Well, Well: Products and services compete for shelf space in trendy wellness market, but are they worth your money?

When a friend recently asked me to join them for a class at Inscape, a New York-based meditation studio that New York Magazine described as the “SoulCycle of meditation”, I was skeptical. On the one hand, I usually meditate at home for free, so paying almost $30 for a meditation class seemed a bit silly. On the other hand, my meditation practice had dropped off considerably since the beginning of the year. Maybe an expensive luxury meditation class was just what I needed to get me back into my regular practice. Stepping off bustling 21st Street into the clean modern space, I heard the sounds of, well…nothing. It was incredibly quiet. Before getting to the actual meditation studios, I had to pass through Inscape’s retail space. The minimalistic shelves hold a variety of supplements, tinctures, and powders that include unique ingredients like Reishi medicinal mushrooms and cannabidiol extract. Many contain adaptogens, herbal compounds that purport to increase one’s resistance to stress, though their efficacy has never been quantitatively proven.[1] These products’ promises run the gamut from shiny hair and stress relief to aura cleansing. I may be a super-skeptic, but even I am not immune to the lures of top-notch marketing. With great consideration, I purchased one of the many magical powders for sale labeled as ‘edible intelligence.’

Since wellness has become trendy, a considerable space in the retail market has opened for associated products dedicated to helping people live their best lives. As Amy Larocca pointed out in her June 2017 article The Wellness Epidemic, “[In the wellness world] a loaf of bread may be considered toxic, but a willingness to plunge into the largely unregulated world of vitamins and supplements is a given.” Even a recent episode of Modern Family poked fun at the wellness trend when Haley Dunphy applied for an ultra-competitive job with fictional wellness guru Nicole Rosemary Page. During her interview at Page’s Nerp company headquarters, Page laments, “People say that Nerp is nothing more than a con-job, a cash grab vanity project from a kooky actress. I want to turn Nerp into the next Disney-Facebook-Tesla-Botox. It’s a world changer.” Though Page is a fictional character, I can’t help but wonder whether the character was inspired by the very real Amanda Chantal Bacon, the founder of Moon Juice, which bills itself as an adaptogenic beauty and wellness brand. Bacon’s Moon Dusts retail for $38 a jar and come in varieties such as Spirit, Beauty, and Dream.

The bottom line is that a sense of well-being needn’t come at the price of thirty-plus dollars an ounce. In fairness to those who choose to spend lavishly, I believe that plunking down a chunk of cash might create an intention to use and derive value from a product, thus positively influencing one’s perception of how well the product works. Rest assured, however, that living with intention and gratitude can be just as easily accomplished without spending any money at all. Carving out time in the day to create a small ritual for yourself can be as simple as spending a few minutes in the morning listening to jazz as you drink your first cup of coffee or allowing yourself to become immersed in a good book before drifting off to sleep. These simple acts allow us to bestow kindness upon ourselves that is especially important in our stressful and busy lives as medical students. My suspicion is that by performing such rituals with intention, we derive much of the same benefit whether our mug is filled with the trendy mushroom coffee or just plain old Folgers.

I’m always thinking about ways I can improve my own well-being, but as graduation approaches I also find myself thinking about how these practices might help my patients as well. One of my fundamental goals as a future psychiatrist will be to help my patients see the value in themselves and in their own lives. I predict that for many of my patients, achieving this goal will depend perhaps on medications but also on the deployment of simple wellness tactics such as I described. I’m not going to lie…I’m still intrigued by many of the wellness products that can be found in places like Inscape, Whole Foods, and the Vitamin Shoppe, especially when I think about the potential benefits they might have for my future patients. I figure that if these products do even half of what they promise to, some of them might even be worth the money. So what happened when I added a sachet of intelligence powder to my usual morning smoothies? Pretty much nothing. At one point, I got excited when I began to feel my fingers getting tingly. Then I realized I had been leaning on my ulnar nerve. Not so brainy after all.

[1] Reflection Paper on the Adaptogenic Concept, Committee on Herbal Medicine Products of the European Medicines Agency, May 2008.

 

Photo credit: Open Grid Scheduler / Grid Engine

Categories
Emotion Lifestyle

Could mindfulness meditation help us to care for patients?

“We can only give away to others what we have inside ourselves”-Wayne Dyer

Empathy is the ability to understand and experience life from another person’s perspective, which allows an individual to care for others in a genuine way. In medicine, it is arguably one of the most crucial qualities required to be a good doctor. Research shows that empathetic doctors are perceived as better caregivers, and are less likely to face malpractice suits. (1-4) In another study, which looked at how physicians’ empathy affected clinical outcomes for diabetic patients, it was found that the physicians perceived as more empathetic were more likely to have patients with blood sugars and cholesterol levels under control. (5)

Demonstration of caring and altruism during the medical school application process is almost essential for entry. However, several studies have shown that student empathy is negatively affected by medical education, particularly on entering the clinical years of training. (4, 6, 7) Various factors have been explored to explain this. The higher workload of the clinical years, exam pressures, as well as facing the realities of medicine on the wards (as opposed to previously idealised media images), could all be contributing to the phenomenon.

Moreover, medical students come from a background of overachievement, and stress and anxiety can result from not performing to the standards they expect of themselves. (4) Perhaps as medical students we have also learnt to put on a mask of compassion, kindness and emotional distance to protect ourselves from the realities of life; or maybe it is emotional blunting from just meeting too many ‘people with problems’. (7) Whether the reason for our rise in cynicism is attributed to one or all of these explanations, it seems apparent that the care and compassion we are able to show to patients is primarily associated with our own mental state. With a continuous backdrop of studying and time pressures, the stresses of all life events are heightened.

There has been a large amount of research into the stress, burnout rates and psychological consequences of medical school training. In one multicentre study at American medical schools, burnout was found to be common amongst medical students, and it increased by year of study. (8) The general consensus is that the medical school experience is challenging and demanding, requiring resilience and a balanced lifestyle.

Could medical schools provide more support to ensure students are well equipped to face a career filled with emotionally demanding situations, whilst maintaining the levels of empathy and emotional understanding crucial for strong doctor-patient relationships? All schools offer some level of student support, such as counselling sessions for those students that are experiencing mental difficulties or life challenges. Unfortunately, it has been shown that a clear stigma continues to exist against mental health and guidance in simple life matters. This has been described as “the hidden curriculum”, a culture that exists where doctors and students are led to believe that we are invincible and cannot become ill, either mentally or physically. (9) Often the first signs of vulnerability to mental health issues manifest at medical school, which actually leads to breakdown much later on. (10) Rather than allowing our future doctors to reach their breaking point before seeking help, we could build strong foundations and encourage introspection alongside academic learning. This would help our medical students and doctors truly reach their potential.

One avenue that has been explored to prevent ‘compassion fatigue’ and burnout is through the practice of mindfulness meditation. One study found that post-intervention levels of anxiety and depression were significantly reduced. (11) Mindfulness is currently taught at 14 medical schools and is continually gaining popularity. The University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (USA) and Monash Medical School (Australia) are unique in that they have fully integrated mindfulness into their core curricula. (12) One study found statistically significant reductions in tension-anxiety in students on a mediation-based stress reduction (MBSR) program (from 14.5+/-7.2 pre-intervention to 12.4+/-7.0 post-intervention) in comparison to controls (11.3+/-6.3 pre-intervention to 13.4+/-6.9 post-intervention). (13)

What is Mindfulness?

Meditate by Caleb Roenigk
Meditate by Caleb Roenigk

Mindfulness is a process to become more conscious of the present moment in order to manage thoughts, feelings and strong emotions. (14) Although it was historically known as a Buddhist practice, with the aim to alleviate suffering and cultivate compassion, it can be practised without spiritual or religious affiliation. In the late 1970s, Jon Kabat-Zinn, a physician at the University of Massachusetts Medical Centre, developed Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), which takes away the esoteric aspects of the practice while retaining the core elements.  This has gained considerable popularity, particularly in the field of pain relief. (15)

 

A study into the effects of meditation practice on the brain, conducted at Harvard School of Medicine, found that with meditation there was increased gray matter in the frontal cortex, an area associated with working memory and executive decision-making. There was also thickening of three key regions displayed in the table below. (16)

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Furthermore, the amygdala, the area of the brain associated with the fight-or-flight response, and thus a key contributor to feelings of anxiety or stress, became smaller. (16) A second study by the same group found that practice for only 8 weeks appears to enhance regions of the brain associated with memory, sense of self, empathy and stress. (17)

Medical school and life as a doctor is a demanding career path. Thus, it can be argued that it is the responsibility of medical educators to both equip students with the academic knowledge required and the emotional intelligence to handle the day-to-day challenges. Mindfulness offers a method to teach medical students how to practically handle stressful emotions and situations, which helps them to become more centred, caring and empathetic. We can only give as much as we have, so it seems intuitive that students who are happier and mentally strong will provide better patient care. The evidence for mindfulness practice is very encouraging and it is interesting to see that two medical schools have already incorporated these practices into their curriculum.

Will mindfulness become as core to the medical school curriculum as the study of anatomy? If we value the mind as much as we do our bodies, then maybe it should.

Meditate and Prosper by Juhan Sonin
Meditate and Prosper by Juhan Sonin
  1. 1. Halpern J. What is clinical empathy? Journal of general internal medicine. 2003;18(8):670-4.
  2. Levinson W, Roter DL, Mullooly JP, Dull VT, Frankel RM. Physician-patient communication: the relationship with malpractice claims among primary care physicians and surgeons. Jama. 1997;277(7):553-9.
  3. Brownell AKW, Côté L. Senior residents’ views on the meaning of professionalism and how they learn about it. Academic Medicine. 2001;76(7):734-7.
  4. Newton BW, Barber L, Clardy J, Cleveland E, O’Sullivan P. Is there hardening of the heart during medical school? Academic Medicine. 2008;83(3):244-9.
  5. Hojat M, Louis DZ, Markham FW, Wender R, Rabinowitz C, Gonnella JS. Physicians’ empathy and clinical outcomes for diabetic patients. Academic Medicine. 2011;86(3):359-64.
  6. Ren GSG, Min JTY, Ping YS, Shing LS, Win MTM, Chuan HS, et al. Complex and novel determinants of empathy change in medical students. Korean journal of medical education. 2016;28(1):67-78.
  7. Hojat M, Vergare MJ, Maxwell K, Brainard G, Herrine SK, Isenberg GA, et al. The devil is in the third year: a longitudinal study of erosion of empathy in medical school. Academic Medicine. 2009;84(9):1182-91.
  8. Dyrbye LN, Thomas MR, Huntington JL, Lawson KL, Novotny PJ, Sloan JA, et al. Personal life events and medical student burnout: a multicenter study. Academic Medicine. 2006;81(4):374-84.
  9. Sayburn A. Student BMJ: Why medical students’ mental health is a taboo subject. London: Student BMJ; 2016 [accessed 4 Apr]. Available from: http://student.bmj.com/student/view-article.html?id=sbmj.h722.
  10. Marshall EJ. Doctors’ health and fitness to practise: treating addicted doctors. Occupational medicine. 2008;58(5):334-40.
  11. Shapiro SL, Schwartz GE, Bonner G. Effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on medical and premedical students. Journal of behavioral medicine. 1998;21(6):581-99.
  12. Dobkin PL, Hutchinson TA. Teaching mindfulness in medical school: where are we now and where are we going? Medical education. 2013;47(8):768-79.
  13. Rosenzweig S, Reibel DK, Greeson JM, Brainard GC, Hojat M. Mindfulness-based stress reduction lowers psychological distress in medical students. Teach Learn Med. 2003 15(2): 88-92.
  14. Ludwig DS, Kabat-Zinn J. Mindfulness in medicine. Jama. 2008;300(11):1350-2.
  15. Kabat‐Zinn J. Mindfulness‐based interventions in context: past, present, and future. Clinical psychology: Science and practice. 2003;10(2):144-56.
  16. Lazar SW, Kerr CE, Wasserman RH, Gray JR, Greve DN, Treadway MT, et al. Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness. Neuroreport. 2005;16(17):1893.
  17. Hölzel BK, Carmody J, Vangel M, Congleton C, Yerramsetti SM, Gard T, et al. Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging. 2011;191(1):36-43.

Featured image:
Meditation by Sebastien Wiertz

Categories
Lifestyle Narrative Reflection

Latest Entry

The in-class assignment was simple: write a short paragraph of your thoughts about narrative medicine. But after ten minutes, my paper was a mess; pen lines angrily crossed out sentences that had been started but not finished, my usually neat penmanship was messy, my vocab unsure. My writing screamed hesitation. After begrudgingly turning in my assignment, I realized just how long it had been since I had written in my journal, which I had left tucked away in a nightstand in my childhood bedroom. I thought it was an appropriate place to leave the book—covered in cheesy flowers with a creased binding—that had chronicled my high school and college years. As I was packing for medical school, it seemed almost off-putting at the time to continue to chronicle the next chapter of my life—what I naively perceived to be the real challenges of medical school—on the same page as my previous entry, in which I complained about the trials and tribulations of learning how to drive stick shift and tackling organic chemistry. Instead, tucked away in my new bedroom, is a leather-bound journal, a gift I received for medical school, emblazoned with the words “FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS.” Every inch of it is covered in cartoon birds. It has been sitting in a drawer since I moved in, untouched.

As I juggle this new chapter as a busy first year med student, that seemingly simple assignment reminds me how much I miss, and clearly need, a nightly journaling routine as my outlet to find peace with my hurried thoughts at the end of a hectic day. It is all too easy to fall into the daily hustle and bustle of med school life such that every day seems almost like the one before. Study, extracurriculars, preceptorship, sleep. Lather, rinse, repeat. All too often, before I fall asleep, I find myself falling into the trap of using my phone to mindlessly relax; catching up on my Facebook newsfeed, scrolling through photos on Instagram—or, if we’re being totally honest here—catching up on celebrity gossip (let’s just say, I’ve definitely been keeping up with the Kardashians). But by the time I “unplug,” my brain is often wired. So much for unwinding.

Yet, even as I write this entry (yes, write, not type!), I understand how relaxing it is to unwind and take the time to process the day’s events with the written word. To really chronicle how every day is not like the one before, but how each day actually brings a new perspective as a result of what I had done that day: conversing with a new classmate, grasping the latest material in class, practicing the hands-on skills I’ve obtained in my preceptorship, etc. I see how important writing about these experiences is for me; to have something tangible to look back upon, years after medical school. To read through each chapter—to remember how I had stumbled when learning to measure blood pressure and take a patient history—just as I reflect now when I read back on my teenage struggles.

It’s important that we, as future physicians, find whatever it is that provides us with this sense of mindfulness, whether it be exercise, meditation, spirituality, etc., and hold on to it. It is through this self-awareness that we can see not only how we have changed, but even more importantly, to find a moment’s peace in the midst of the commotion that each day brings as we pursue careers in medicine.

So, when I go back to my childhood home to visit my family, I’ll be sure to pack up my journal.

Featured image:
12.2.2010 <homework> 321/365 by Phil Roeder