Hello All and Happy Summer! I write to you from hot and humid Massachusetts.
It’s been a while since I last wrote to you, and I’ve been thinking of you often. Don’t believe me? In fact I truly have. I think of all of you who I’ve had the joy to work with over the last 14 years.
My work has always been to deeply listen to women, to work to really get to know each of you, and develop a relationship with each of you. I’ve been thinking a lot about how I do my work, what my favorite parts are, and what seems to be the most effective in supporting women. I realize that I often say I am in the business of trusting women. I do and I am. I trust that women know who they are, what will work for them, what won’t work, and where they are headed. My colleague, Kayla Luhrs, MD, shared the term “relationship-based medicine” with me. I love this concept, and it well-describes my primary goal. When we together create a strong trust, the relationship becomes a big part of the therapy. Don’t we all want to be heard, witnessed, affirmed, honored, seen and understood? Don’t we want our inner voice, our inner wisdom to stand and be recognized as truth? This gets to the heart of what fires me up as a healthcare provider. My greatest passion and purpose is to help women to reclaim themselves. To help them heal and whole themselves.
My work with each of you is to listen when you speak, and believe you. My work is to hear your worries, your moments of feeling unsure, the things you know for sure, and together listen to your wise voice so it can lead us into a co-created therapeutic plan. I bring my knowledge and resources, and I help us hear that sacred voice of yours. You just bring your whole-ish self (whichever parts are available in that moment) and we take off. The work is always co-creative, right? I will try to never tell you what to do, but instead give information, ideas, possible paths to explore, and then we together create a plan that honors you, honors your body, and follows your wise inner voice. I can’t tell you how much fun this process is.
Did you know that your every word matters? Did you know that every feeling you have, every idea, every skittering of a memory is utterly sacred? I’m realizing so clearly, thanks to this pandemic, that each of us is a miracle in motion. We are utter magic. We each have unique gifts within us. It is part of our life’s work to delight in our own inner brilliance all the while sharing it wholeheartedly with the world. Part of my work is to help you see this brilliance, these gifts within you. We can never be healthy or whole until we truly know (and revel in) the beauty and brilliance within our self, and then trust that the world is waiting to be lavished with it.
Glennon Doyle is reminding me of my own inner magic these days. I’ve been reading and re-reading her new book called Untamed. She also has the podcast ”We Can Do Hard Things” (with her sister Amanda) that is just making my head spin in exciting ways. AND she teamed up with another favorite of mine, Brene Brown, to do a podcast covering Untamed, and themes related. I can’t recommend these highly enough. I am living and breathing these ideas, some I’ve known for a long time, but evaluating from a new angle. Some are totally shockingly new.
Glennon and her sister recently did a ”We Can Do Hard Things” podcast called Our Bodies. It was incredible. In it, Amanda brought out the history of the BMI (body mass index). I knew it was a terrible tool of measurement. I rarely use it. But my eyes are now opened WIDE to the layers of damage it causes in its inaccuracy and racist/xenophobic origins. I will not be using this BMI in my work any longer. Instead I’ll be offering that we gauge health using other metrics, such as: How do you feel in your body? How are your blood pressure and labs looking? How does the food you eat make you feel? Do you have the energy you need to live your life with vigor? I love seeing the world from a new lens. How refreshing. I can’t wait to see how this further impacts my practice and my own life.
As you dive in and explore Untamed and We Can Do Hard Things, please know not all of it may be a fit. You might even get really angry about some of what you read or hear. It’s all very provocative, and some parts will possibly feel inaccurate from your perspective. That’s all just great. Notice what comes up for you. What springs forth from your own inner wise voice? And seek support from your people as you need. I am here for you too, of course.
Homeopathy:
I promised in my last newsletter that I’d speak about homeopathy. I can’t right now. I’ve written and rewritten it, but something about the writing of it just isn’t clicking. I finally realized it just isn’t the right time. So I will send you a newsletter on homeopathy, whenever it is actually the right time!
Lastly- Clinic News:
1. I will continue to be open on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9-1 AK time. The clinic will be closed August 2-13, and then will re-open August 16th, resuming the usual schedule. Please let me know if you have any needs in the coming weeks (scheduling, refills, etc…) I’ll do my very best to support you.
2. Every few years I slightly increase my rates. It’s that time again. I’ll be making a small rate increase as of August 16th 2021. Please let me know if you want a copy of my fee schedule, or have questions.
3. At some point, once this pandemic really feels over, I need to legally require that every patient has had an annual exam (at least vital signs, and evaluation of heart, lungs, abdomen, skin) within the last 12 months with a provider of your choice AND that a copy is sent to me. This is a legal requirement in Alaska, since I am unable to evaluate my clients physical health as a whole. I’ll let you know when I really must require this. If you are comfortable going to a clinic now, and are due for such a visit, please schedule one and request a copy to be faxed to me at: 833.689.9875. If you are uncomfortable going into a local clinic because of the pandemic, no worries. You have time!
4. I am continually revising and re-imaging the best possible way to practice and offer care to you. Dr. Pam Wibble once polled her patients and asked what they needed. What are the wild, audacious, bold needs of her patients? And then she crafted a clinic based on those ideas and needs of her patients. So I will ask you this same question: what do you need that I can offer? Can you imagine ways that I can redesign my remote business to better serve you? Any and all ideas are welcome!
Next Newsletter will be in September.
Sending my best to you, as always,
Becca
