|
Hope. It's the thing with feathers.
|
|
|
|
In light of the recent easement on physical distancing, I am seeing more clients "In Office" as medically needed. I am happy to support you as needs arise, while also keeping all of us as safe as I possibly can.
General Pertinent Information for Clients:
- The clinic is open for appointments where a physical exam is needed, and or as medically necessary
- FREE CLOTH FACE MASK are available for you at the clinic, compliments of my friend Julie. Donations for supplies appreciated... check out her GoFundMe page!
- Please check in online and pay your co-pay ahead of time online for both in office and telemedicine appointments.
- Supplements can be purchased over the phone and then will be left in front of the clinic for easy pickup.
- My staff, Brittany, is now here 8 am to 12 noon daily.
- Please use the clinic line to text to set up appointments 402-730-9819 or your athena patient portal. All appointment request via the portal go to Brittany.
- Soon the clinic will be open all its usually scheduled hours, as Emma will be rejoining the WH team this summer.
- Gena will have appointment hours available from 9 am to 6pm, depending on the day.
- Text me with urgent needs at 402-770-3800.
- Non urgent medical needs, please send Gena a note via the portal.
- Prescriptions, please have your pharmacist fax over refill request.
- Thank you for paying your bill!
For In Office Appointments:
- For your safety - wait in your car and call the clinic line at 402-730-9819 when you arrive for your appointment. Brittany will check you in via the phone. This check in process will take approximately 15 min via this new over the phone "check- in" system.
- We will do our best to only have one person in the clinic at a time, and will clean and sanitize the exam room and other surfaces, while you wait in your car, then when everything is ready we will have you come in, say hello to Brittany - letting her know you are here and then she will have you go straight back to the exam room, where Gena will join you!
For Telehealth/Telemedicine via Zoom Appointments:
- Please text the clinic or send an appointment request via the patient portal if you would like an appointment.
- Telehealth/Telemedicine via zoom appointments will be 40 minutes in length, and billed on time = at 40 minutes, CPT 99214, or 99215 if we go over in duration to 55 minutes, modifier 95. Claims will be sent to your insurance. Self-pay fees are the same.
- Once you are scheduled in athena, by Brittany, Gena will send you a zoom link via email, usually the day before your appointment - please make sure your email is correct in the system.
|
|
|
I love that everything is budding and blooming, which means spring is here! ... and also it means SEASONAL ALLERGIES, are here and causing all kinds of trouble! Have no fear, we have got you covered with D-hist!
|
|
|
UPDATED - IMPORTANT! Please read.
COVID19/ upper respiratory infections
Self- isolate and call me to inquire about testing -if you have ANY of these symptoms:
-
Sore throat
-
Cough
- Chills
- Muscle Pain
- Shortness of breath
- Vomiting or diarrhea
-
Fever of 100.4 or more
-
Chest tightness/congestion
- New onset of loss of taste or smell
Self-isolate for 14 days after possible or confirmed COVID19 exposure and or after 3 days once all symptoms resolved. Self isolation means in your own home, in a room by yourself, someone to bring you food and water, own bathroom and own sink.
Home cares/self cares:
-
Wash all surfaces in the home at least once a day with Clorox. - virus can live on surface for many days, depending on the surface type.
-
Cover your cough - virus can stay in the air for 3 hours after a cough.
-
Really good hand washing with soap, often.
-
Vitamin C 1000 mg every 8 hours, if sick, or daily if no symptoms
-
Zinc 80 mg daily.
- *** YES to vitamin D, NOW OK TO TAKE... as there is new evidence that it is HELPFUL with COVID19 prevention and with infection.
-
Gargle with salt water twice a day, if sick.
-
Iodine drops, 3-5 in your water bottle and or gargle with liquid iodine twice a day, if sick
-
Drink 4 to 6, 32 ounce water bottles of water per day - drink, drink, drink water!
-
Drink “hot” tea couple times a day. Virus is sensitive to heat- heat kills the virus.
-
Make sure your pee stays light yellow.
-
Sleep. Take naps. Your energy will be really low.
- Exercise daily. Get outside as much as you can, staying 6 feet away from others. It's ok to spend time with the people in your social distancing time bubble...for me that is my spouse and my two girls.
-
Remember to continue with daily spiritual practices to lower stress and bring peace to your soul.
-
Stay out of the urgent care!!!
-
Send someone out for groceries only when needed - must be symptom free!
- Reach out to me if you become symptomatic, with any change in symptoms or questions - via text 402-770-3800!
- Remember - your body is amazing!!!
AVOID, these supplements/OTC medications IF you have COVID19 symptoms, as they are said to make COVID19 worse, by somehow inhibiting part of the feedback system in the inflammatory cascade, thereby exacerbating cytokine storm syndrome.
-
No ibuprofen (for sure NO!)
-
No elderberry (?)
- Generally speaking - elderberry is helpful in supporting the immune system...If you are taking these supplements currently as part of your self-care practice it is ok to do so until you start having any of the above symptoms of COVID19.
Go to the Emergency Department if:
-
Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath- worsening
-
Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
-
New confusion or inability to arouse
-
Bluish lips or face
Otherwise if you do not have these severe symptoms then the safest and best place for you to be is in your own home!
May you be well, peace- Gena
RESOURCES I appreciate:
CDC website
JH map
Video on coronovirus
Keeping your Brain Healthy by Tim Jennings, MD
For anxiety: Calm app, Insight Timer app, Tara Brach course on anxiety
Elizabeth Gilbert video interview, worth watching!
|
|
|
Living Well with Autoimmunity: an online workshop with Nurse Practitioners Kim Harm & Gena Foster
Join Kim and Gena on an intimate journey of exploring how to live well with autoimmunity! As an expert in autoimmunity, who is also certified in functional medicine, Kim will lead the group and will share her wealth of knowledge with all who attend. Kim will share in a lecture type style for the first 40 minutes or so of each session, followed by a time for questions and answer. Outline provided below.
Your privacy is important to us! Each client who attends will bring different gifts to this private group; thoughts, feelings, emotions expressed and shared by group members will be kept between those present. Members will create a safe space for everyone to share and support each other as they delve into these powerful, healing practices on how to live well with autoimmunity!
So what does the workshop entail? We will meet via online/ zoom meetings, from 9am to 10 am, on May 6th, May 20th, June 10th, June 24th & July 8th, 2020. Only those who RSVP will have access to the meeting link.
All of the topics will be personalized to humans with autoimmune disorders, so even if you have already learned these important elements for a healthy lifestyle, I promise you will find new pearls in this content - as it is specific for autoimmunity - just for you!
-
May 6th/Week 1: Foundational concepts of autoimmunity. What is it? Immune system. Hormones and AI, why more in women. Diet, life without...Wheat, dairy, more?AIP, fiber, blood sugar stability. Alcohol. Dietary proteins and good digestion for reduced autoimmunity. Tolerance-Gut
-
May 20th/Week 2: Physical Activity, sleep. Environmental toxin exposure reduction. Tolerance-skin and respiratory
-
June 10th/Week 3: Stress and sleep. Grief/ Why me? Gratitude journal. Tolerance-brain
-
June24th/Week 4: Sleep. Meditation
-
July8th/Week 5: Relationships with yourself and others. Self-compassion. Self-care. Handling relapses.
Cost: each appointment you attend will get submitted as an appointment to your insurance company, CPT code 99214, with a 95 modifier, then ICD-10 code based on what your current concern/problem/diagnosis is/are. For clients who have shared insurance plans or who’s insurance is out of network with me - the self pay fee of $100.00 for each appointment you attend.
Duration: 60 min
Please RSVP to info@wholeheartedhealthcare.com, each RSVP is a commitment to Gena, and to yourself, to attend all 5 meetings.
|
|
|
Wholehearted Healthcare, P.C. is excited to welcome Kim Harm!
Kim Harm, PhD, APRN-NP, IFMCP, is a Family Nurse Practitioner board certified in functional medicine. Her doctoral preparation was in lifestyle management. In particular, managing fatigue by promoting a balanced circadian rhythm with sleep and activity. Specializing in functional medicine which treats the root cause of imbalance, feeling unwell, and diseases was a natural progression from her graduate education. See www.ifm.org.
She has over 20 years of experience counseling patients on healthy lifestyle choices including how to eat, move, relax, sleep, and stop addictive behaviors including smoking. She is passionate about wellness and lifestyle counseling. She has a desire to serve others with a mission to promote optimal health and help everyone to feel well. She believes in healing with natural approaches as primary treatment.
She has a personal wellness journey to help her own healing and the healing of those she loves. Most functional medicine providers have a story of disappointment with strictly conventional medicine. Her journey is no different. Her personal journey has helped to inform her practice with particular interest in autoimmunity, thyroid issues, hormone imbalance, and brain health. She believes the whole body is connected and all parts must be treated simultaneously to heal. She uses evidenced-based interventions to promote healing. She believes in a relaxed, non-judgmental atmosphere to share your story.
Professional experiences include hospice care, primary care, cardiology and women’s health.
In her personal life, she most loves spending time with her husband and girls (including LolliPup the Mighty Dog). She loves sailing and reading. And the best is if she can do all of these while traveling.
|
|
Six years ago my sister, Angela, and I took a walk in the woods together and this little gem of a picture was taken. It popped up on Facebook memories feed recently, a hit me like a breath of fresh air, reminding me that I have been blessed with good family, friends and amazing mentors in my life!
Love on your people... in the end, all we have is each other.
|
|
|
|
Unearthing the Treasure
The health of the senses of this world
comes from the well-being of the body;
the health of one’s spiritual sense
arises from the body’s ruin.
The spiritual path wrecks the body,
but afterward restores it to health:
it destroys the house to unearth the treasure,
then with that treasure builds it better than before.
The water is stopped and the riverbed cleansed,
so that purer water might flow.
The flesh is cut open to draw out the arrow –
so that fresh skin might heal the wound.
Rumi [Mathnawi I: 305-308]
|
|
|
Join Gena on an intimate journey of exploring what self-compassion can do for your emotional, physical, and spiritual wellness. Learn to love without holding back, cultivate compassionate trust in your own basic goodness and the goodness of others. Learn to listen, nurture and mindfully allow yourself to show up in your own life as yourself. Each person who attends will bring different gifts to this private group; thoughts, feelings, emotions expressed and shared by group members will be kept between those present. Members will create a safe space for everyone to share and support each other as they delve into the powerful, healing concept of self-compassion.
What to Expect
The group will read two books:
Radical Compassion by Tara Brach, PhD,internationally known teacher of mindfulness, meditation, emotional healing, healing and spiritual awakening.
Self-Compassion by Kristin Neff, Ph.D., a research psychologist who uses empirical data, personal stories, practical experiences, and humor to explain how to heal destructive emotional patterns so that we can be healthier, happier, and more effective—our higher selves.
There are activities and personal growth exercises throughout both books that each member will complete before each session, writing them down in a journal. Gena will review the content and concepts from the assigned chapters and activities. Time will be set aside for personal sharing of responses—as members feel comfortable. Gena will also incorporate findings on self-compassion, mindfulness, and self-care from other sources.
Time: Thursday mornings from 10-11am
The group will follow this reading and discussion schedule of Brach’s book:
May 7th - Part One, Chapters 1, 2 &3
May 14th - Part Two, Chapters 4, 5, 6 & 7
May 21st - Part Three, Chapters 8,9,10 & 11
The group will follow this reading and discussion schedule of Neff’s book:
May 28th -Part One & Two, Chapters 1 & 2, and Chapters 3, 4, & 5
June 4th- Part Three, Chapters 6, 7, & 8
June 11th—Part Four and Five, Chapters 9, 10, & 11 and Chapters 12 & 13
Cost: each zoom appointment you attend will get submitted as an appointment to your insurance company, CPT code 99214, with a 95 modifier, then ICD-10 code based on what your current concern/problem/diagnosis is/are. For clients who have shared insurance plans or whose insurance is out of network with me - the self pay fee of $100.00 for each appointment you attend.
RSVP to info@wholeheartedhealthcare.com
|
|
|
As a child, my grandmother taught me that when a deer is hurt, they go away by themselves and find a safe place with food and water close by, to lay down awhile. This basic instinctive knowing, to meet ones own need of "time to heal" - I find to often to be ignored, stuffed, pushed aside, and or shamed by humans in our fast paced, overwhelmed, exhaustion praised modern culture. With the state of the world the way it is presently, getting through the day can be heavy, and takes so much more energy, even when you are "doing" way less then you usually do. When you notice these feelings, I encourage you to pause, slow down, work less hours per day - yes even from home, take the alone time you need away from your children/spouse/partner to maintain your sanity and meet your human need for solitude. Be gentle with your feelings. Move your body with respect to your energy level. Show yourself the compassion you need. Find safe places/people to share your feelings with and be kind to yourself!
Inhale.
Exhale.
Beside still waters.
THANK YOU FOR PHYSICAL DISTANCING
I am here if you need me, Gena
Photo: taken by Gena, summer 2017, Boundary Waters, MN. Notice, Kia (my dog who comes to clinic with me) is included, on the far left side.
|
|
|
|
|
|
