My Friday Five

Research I'm reading: The Power of Placebo This study in the New England Journal of Medicine dates back to 2002, but still astounds me. A total of 180 patients with osteoarthritis of the knee were randomly assigned to receive arthroscopic débridement (surgeon cleaned up damaged cartilage), arthroscopic lavage (surgeon washed out joint), or placebo surgery (surgeon simulated sounds of a real surgery, made skin incision, but did not enter the knee joint). Over the next two yea

Book I'm reading: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King I have always wanted to be a great storyteller. I want to have people hanging on my words, waiting for the punch, feeling what I am leading them to, and watching them enjoy it. I cannot seem to learn this skill. I lack building suspense, timing, and bringing the humor. My brother-in-law is an excellent storyteller. I love when he shares the crazy things that happen to him. I take notes and try to learn. He

Product I'm reading about: Peptides A week doesn't go by without someone asking me about peptides or GLP-1s. I talked with a brilliant friend that owns a compounding pharmacy. She does not sell or distribute either since it is still illegal for compounding pharmacies to do so. She has contracted with a sterile pharmacy that, once legal, she will be able to fill prescriptions because she does believe in their potential benefits. They sound too good to be true, but I'm coming

What I'm reading: National Geographic article on how acupuncture eases pain I often get questions about dry needling versus acupuncture. I never know what to say because dry needling is acupuncture. The difference is the magic a licensed acupuncturist can bring to the table. Those special points that a certificate program doesn't teach. They way I can needle someone's hand and they get immediate back pain relief. Now we have evidience that acupuncture works better than what

Book I'm reading: Building a Thriving Practice I did it! I finished my second book ! Gift this to anyone you know that is building their own practice. Building a practice requires more than passion and a purpose. It takes knowing how to find your ideal client, confidence in what to do next, and suggestions on what has worked for others. These pages give a step-by-step roadmap on how to succeed. My goal in writing this book is to offer clear guidance, real-world examples, and

What I'm reading: Research study: 99% of 41-76 year old participants had shoulder issue on MRI Finnish researchers performed imaging scans on both shoulders of 602 adults aged 41-76. They found 99% of the participants had at least one rotator cuff issue. Issues include tears, tendon swelling, or thickening. Of these participants only 18% said they had any shoulder pain. Even when the researchers compared people with symptoms to those who were asymptomatic, abnormalities were