Smartypants Medicine

An easy way to be a good citizen. 🩸

Just a few days away and we still need donors! Please give a pint to save 3 lives! 💪 BEEF UP the Blood Supply and get a Gore’s burger lunch plus chances to win a Gore’s cooler bag and Gift Card! www.RedCrossBlood.org use code:GMP

PLEASE sign up today so we know how many burgers to bring!
This Friday 8/9
11am-5pm
Stephens City Fire Dept
5346 Mulberry St

Out spreading the word about how we are changing the healthcare experience! Direct primary care is a game changer for your health.

Thanks to Top of Virginia Regional Chamber & First Bank for the great evening!

Hope. Each day is new. Each new day is a gift to be alive, to breathe again. Have gratitude and don’t lose your hope.

So many that I have the honor to provide medical care and treatment for are longing for just another day with their loved ones, just another day to hug someone they loved. The gift of life is a miracle not lost on me.

Easter Sunday has a special place in our family as the anchor of hope for our faith.

We are grateful for a humble man named Jesus who saw the one, the marginalized, the broken, the sick, the accused, the imperfect, and LOVED them and changed their lives for the better. He used His life and power for the good of others. He lived sinless, served, loved, died, and came to life again so we could be forgiven, healed, restored, free, and have an eternal hope and life.

May you believe in Him, know Him, love Him, and live forgiven and free in Him. He is the anchor for our faith and a hope in every season life, be it sickness or health.

Know the warning signs. It could save your life or the life of a woman you love.

Signs and symptoms of heart attack:
(If you have any of these signs, call 911 and get to a hospital right away.)

✔️ Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes or goes away and comes back.

✔️ Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.

✔️ Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.

The most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort.

❤️ We work with our patients every day to help them better understand their heart risk and to take action to prevent cardiovascular disease. Be sure you have a primary care provider and get smart with your own health!

Grateful to have been invited to speak about direct primary care and the benefits for employees AND employers at the Workplace Wellness Summit by

Excellent line of up local healthcare professionals and forward thinking businesses!

❌ Labs results not as good as you’d hoped after your lifestyle changes?

❌ Exercise not as consistent as you’d hoped?

❌ Holding healthy boundaries for sleep not as consistent as you’d like?

📣 Listen up! You’re not a failure, health is a lifelong journey built over years of little choice after little choice. We’re here to support you on your journey to your healthiest self. It looks different for everyone. But all of have one thing in common, we’ve got to much at stake to quit.

🙌 Keep going! 🙌

Pic: Polar Express in Haggerstown MD. Magical if you believe.🎅🎄🥰

Say it isn’t so! Y’all our bodies were meant to move, we know it intuitively. But does it matter for our health? Yes it absolutely does. Come on a brief walk with me…

It’s true, this was not a picture from today. I forgot to take one. Me and the kids were bundled up in unmatched outfits, puffy coats and boots, and we brought strollers and dolls and sang songs…it wasn’t anything like this picture, but we walked around the neighborhood successfully, and we even ran a short bit. It wasn’t much, but it counts.

I’m striving to practice what I preach and help my kids show up for themselves now so it’s second nature for them to continue once I’m gone. Healthy lifestyles don’t happen on accident, they are learned, they are built. Building takes intention and effort, but the result is worth it!

I am well aware that we may not escape disease and we certainly cannot escape aging, but by controlling what we can, our movement, we are giving ourselves a fighting chance at a longer, healthier life.

Why it matters for you - in the US we heavily rely on vehicles to live our daily lives, screen time is climbing, we’re not hunting & gathering - for goodness sake we’re barely going to the store thanks to the admittedly brilliant home delivery services! Obesity is at epidemic levels. Metabolic dysfunction is plaguing us from insulin resistance, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, to fatty liver disease…need I go on? The problem is easy to come by and hard to prevent. So we had better wise up and get strategic or we too will end up diseased from a lack of movement. So what are we to do? I don’t enjoy long runs so am I a lost cause destined for disease? 100% No.

Allow me to introduce part of the solution- my friend, movement. Listen to this! In particular, for fatty liver disease, high blood pressure and insulin resistance, if we simply MOVE our bodies more, even without diet changes or weight loss, studies show we can move the needle in our favor on these disease states! What?! This is encouraging news. The small decisions matter. Let’s start moving.

What’s something you do to add in a little movement to your day?

Holiday heart syndrome refers to heart issues that happen because of overindulging in alcohol and salty foods. While eating and drinking too much is something that can occur any time of year, it’s called holiday heart syndrome because the holidays is when we overdo it the most and more people end up with heart problems.

All the salt and alcohol can cause your heart to beat irregularly, also known as atrial fibrillation (A Fib). It can be short lived and simply an alarming side effect of a bit too festivities, but in the long term, it can lead to serious heart issues, including heart failure, heart attack and stroke.

Symptoms of holiday heart syndrome include: Heart palpitations, Lack of energy or feeling over-tired, Dizziness, Chest discomfort and Shortness of breath.

While people already dealing with heart conditions are more likely to experience holiday heart syndrome, anyone can experience these symptoms particularly after drinking too much alcohol.

Avoiding holiday heart syndrome isn’t too difficult, even if you want to take part in all the fine foods and drinks. The key is to be mindful and take partake moderation. Drink your cocktail slowly. Don’t over indulge in sugary and salty foods - and try to spread these out through the day.

Another tip to lower your risk is to avoid using anti-inflammatories after festivities as these may elevate blood pressure and put more stress on your cardiovascular system.

If you do develop any of the symptoms of holiday heart syndrome you will need an EKG and heart evaluation so head to the nearest emergency department.

Get smart with your heart this holiday season!

—————-

Follow along for more practical medical information. ❤️ your Internal Medicine PA, Kelly

Winter blues? aka Seasonal Affective Disorder. These non- medication, evidenced based treatments make a difference!

Did you know that just because you have it one year you may not have it the next?

Did you know that you can get it in the summer season as well? 🤯

SAD is characterized by 5 or more depressive symptoms (depressed mood, loss of interest/pleasure, weight change, sleep change, psychomotor change, fatigue, worthless/guilt, concentration change, thoughts of death) that are present nearly every day and are seriously distressing, and is also marked by obvious impairment of daily functioning.

While these lifestyle changes on their own allow management for many, those who have have moderate to severe SAD or fail lifestyle treatment will likely need medication as well as therapy.

Make sure to discuss your symptoms with your medical professional and advocate for your mental health.

Have you tried any of these tips? Let me know in the comments!

🍁Happy Thanksgiving!🍁Our family is full of gratitude for countless things this year.

One thing we’re grateful for is you & your support of Smartypants Medicine!

We understand TIME is priceless. And it’s one thing this practice has given us- more time to care for you well and more time to spend with our family.

Thank you for joining us & believing in a better way to experience healthcare. 🫶

Have you paused to count your blessings today? Can you think of 10, 20, 100? Perspective is everything.

BREAKING NEWS!!! A weight loss drug more effective than Semaglutide has been approved by the FDA today. Tirzepatide (Zepbound for weight loss and Mounjaro for diabetes) showed a 15-20.9% weight change in a 72 week clinical trial. This beats Semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy) at a 16% reduction.

The trial was multiple countries and ethnicities, included males and females, and included over 2500 patients- nice population stats not all medications have.

Tirzepatide (Mounjaro/Zepbound) works by activating the GLP-1 and GIP receptors increasing satiety and reducing appetite. In contrast to Semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy) which activates GLP-1 receptors.

Tirzepatide in conjunction with exercise and healthy dietary changes (increase fruits and veggies, decreased saturated fats & trans fats, decrease sugar and refined carbohydrates) has the ability to decrease long-term negative health outcomes for 70% of the US population that deal with overweight/obesity.

Regardless of your thoughts on obesity and weight loss, it is important to have empathy for patients with obesity and understand just because some dietary change X worked for you, it may not work for everyone similarly. Healthy outcomes and improving quality of life are where it’s at!

I have seen incredible outcomes for my patients who have used GLP-1 agonists. A challenge has been finding a sustainable, affordable way to access these medications, hopefully that is next on the horizon along with long term studies showing weight loss maintenance and maintenance doses.

This is a medication class worth taking notes about. Science is amazing!

Small business owners!! It’s open enrollment season and we can provide a better, more affordable way to access healthcare for your employees. Give us a call at 550-692-6132 or email at [email protected] to learn more.

We look forward to working with your employees!

He said it! 🙌 Is your health prevention & screening testing up to date? Don’t know? Get established with a primary care provider so we can guide you on what’s best for your age & personal risk.

Unfortunately there are a multitude of things with our health we cannot screen for or prevent, so it’s wise to identify the risk we can & eliminate it. 💪

✅ If you need a personable, local primary care provider who takes your health seriously, while still being approachable sign up to be a patient with us! (Link in bio)

We offer a smart way to get your healthcare & YOU are smart for choosing it! 🤓

It’s a wrap on PA week 2023! Thank you to all the PAs who came before us and my current PA colleagues for remaining present in a challenging field. Your work matters! I agree 100% that PAs are a part of the US healthcare solution. Keep showing up!

It’s was a rare precious moment at the tail end of a manic Monday. A day in my life…

It’s rainy, cool and momentarily calm. I have more work to do after the kids go to bed. Patient notes to write. Business admin tasks to complete. But I’m beyond happy to have this flex schedule. It’s rare in medicine.

My girls are coloring quietly with friends in the other room. My littlest love and I are having the best time on the couch. Just pure human interaction. So many smiles & giggles. Then he relaxes in for a long overdue nap. It’s like an injection of warm bubbly joy in my arms. Yes. This moment is a gift. I know it. I appreciate it. There is no war here, no bombing, no present terror. A whispered prayer for Israel.

Today as a PA I texted, called, and emailed with patients. Ordered labs, X-rays, stress tests, colonoscopies, medications, and sent referrals. Had conversations on diabetes, continuous glucose monitors, food intake, heart disease prevention, post op leg swelling, soft tissue infection, hormone deficiency, mental health, sleep apnea, low back pain, concussions/TBI, exercise, weight gain and loss. Heard stories of life long careers, jobs at home and abroad, civilian and military, marriages, children, health wins and health struggles. I love the variety of primary care. The trust built and stories shared are fascinating.

I still have dinner to make and homework to help with and a messy floor. The days are long. Demanding on many different levels. But oh my God, I am so grateful for this life you have given me. A sweet blend of medicine, motherhood, and managing manic Mondays. I’m here for it.

He wakes up crying and all the kids are hungry. Time to get back into rhythm. But these were a precious few moments.

PAs serve as primary care providers, assist in surgery, and practice across a range of specialties. at every step of the healthcare experience, from diagnosis to prescription to ongoing monitoring and treatment.

Collaborating with our colleagues on the team allows us to provide a better patient experience! Learn more at PAsGoBeyond.com

Wash your hands folks! “Cold & flu season” has absolutely started! Which now includes a lot of Covid-19. (Positive patient result today)

Things to do for prevention:
✅ good hand washing
✅ healthy eating (whole foods)
✅ keeping your weight in an ideal range
✅ stop smoking
✅ get your vaccines up to date
✅ prioritize sleep
✅ clean frequently touched surfaces & objects 📱🚪🖥️🥤

Things not to do:
❌ take high doses of single component supplements
❌ gargle peroxide
❌ use bleach other disinfectants in or on your body

🥂Here’s to you remaining healthy & well the whole year.

🦠vidpositive

Here’s a link to medical products I commonly recommend on Amazon. Happy shopping! 🥳
https://amzn.to/3D9ESQM

*Disclaimer: I may receive an infinitesimally small percentage of the sale from Amazon, not from the product company.*

The power of 2. Some days you can go alone, other days you need a sidekick. Today was one of those days.

Exhibit A: Life. Bria and I started building fairy houses a few weeks ago but hadn’t finished the project, leaving it in the garage unable to be occupied by fairies, clearly. This week I came outside to her constructing a rock path in the front landscape. Upon further questioning she was building a path to her fairy house! She worked on the set up for hours, including a leaf roof! Neither she nor I completed this project alone, we needed each other.

Exhibit B: Health. Today I went for a 2mile run. One of the first post cesarean section. It was hard. My body didn’t feel great. My mind wasn’t too jazzed about it - the distance was shorter than I’m used to, the pace was slower than I’m used to. BUT, what I did do was finish. I got out there and did the thing and started my physical come back with my best friend by my side, going slow right along with me. (Pic 2 post run)

In health, it’s often as it is in life- the old African proverb sums it up: “If you want to fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Here’s to journeying a long healthy life with incredible people by your side. 🥂

At Smartypants Medicine, that’s what we do. We come alongside you and we tackle your health together. We are in it for the long haul. Shooting for health and prevention for the next decade, not just the next day. It’s a whole vibe. I love job. ❤️🤙

PAs are consistently at the Top of best healthcare jobs. Tell your young learners about the profession and get them shadowing. I didn’t learn about PAs until college! 🫣 we’ve come a long way since then. Shadowing is the best way to be introduced to the many roles in healthcare!

PAs are ranked #2 Best Healthcare Job of 2023 by U.S News & World Report. 💪Join the PA movement by becoming a member of AAPA and helping to tell the story of what makes PAs irreplaceable in medicine. https://bit.ly/4357tSN

In addition to your preventative annual labs, these are worth requesting!

Having a personalized approach to your health as opposed to insurance driven, cost managed care makes a difference.🤙

Our patients at Smartypants Medicine have access to reduced cost labs. Just another way we are removing barriers for you to getting the best care available. 🙌

Problem solving. Life is full of “unique to you” kind of challenges, it’s true. So it’s necessary to find a way to stay strong and move forward in the face of obstacles. Your life and your health depend on it. Here’s what I have found to be helpful.

1. Accept there will be challenges in life. Know it, expect it, and so avoid a victim mentality. Setbacks and problems are a shared experience among humanity. You are not the only one. Isolating thoughts foster negativity and depression.

2. Believe you are an overcomer. By having a “can do” mentality you set yourself up to succeed. This starts in your mind, & plays out in your actions. One thing we do in our home to teach our kids this mindset is to say affirmations- one of which is: “I am good at solving problems”. We also memorize Bible verses consistent with this mindset “I can do all things through him (God) who gives me strength.” Phillippians 4:13. Truth is, our self talk matters.

So, if you need to develop more resiliency in the face of your problems, start here: examine what you believe about yourself, then challenge your limiting beliefs. Next start proving it to yourself with action. You will begin to build your confidence and prove that you are, in fact, capable. This can be as simple as doing a search to learn how to change the battery in your robot vacuum, then go change the battery! You are now officially a problem solver! Then keep building on the complexity of problems you solve.

We need strong, resilient minds to overcome obstacles in life and with our health. Whether it’s dealing with a new diagnosis or doing the hard work of changing our lifestyle to remain healthy. This practice will serve you well.

Swipe to see how a daughter solved a problem for her father that impacted his daily life for the better. What a brilliant example.

Here’s a good reason you need primary care at every age. 🔥

“primary care is by far the most significant variable related to better health status,” correlating with lower mortality, fewer deaths from heart disease and cancer”

What if insurers decided to pay for direct care memberships? The healthcare system’s cost savings would be astounding & patient outcomes would improve & yet, high cost specialists outpace primary care in earnings year after year encouraging the ongoing shortage of primary care providers - the very thing that could make our country more healthy. 🙄

Do yourself a favor and get yourself a primary care provider!

More here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertpearl/2019/04/08/primary-care-does-anyone-care/

We’re happy to be nominated for best Medical Practice in Wi******er. Take a moment & vote!

https://www.winchesterstar.com/contests/starawards/

Legacy. Specifically, my Nana. 🥰This weekend was the anniversary of her heaven day. Me & my little lady honored her by spending time in the kitchen- we did it in Nana’s style with aprons and lots of love.

The kitchen was a special spot in her home where I have many memories- including many healthy meals I didn’t like as a child! ☺️ She was a dietitian and took great pride in her health. She worked at her local hospital in dietetics, was a first generation college graduate, the youngest of 4, a cancer survivor, a volunteer, a strong Irish woman, an Alzheimer’s sufferer & from what I hear a great dancer!

She frequently wrote me beautifully penned encouraging notes while I was studying medicine- commenting on our similarities of working with patients & that she was proud of me. Then she slowly lost her ability to write, to converse, to remember me... She never saw me graduate as a PA, but I know she would’ve been happy to see her legacy in caring for people and their health.

For those who’ve walked it, you know that the death of your loved one with Alzheimer’s is in some ways a celebration of their being freed from the painful grip of Alzheimer’s dementia. While we await better prevention and treatment of this disease, I will continue to stand with caregivers and patients who suffer through it. I will treat them with the respect and kindness and dignity they deserve. I will celebrate their death more than I will mourn. And with Nana, because of our shared faith, I will continue to have hope that one day in heaven I may get to see her dance and share a healthy meal together. ❤️

Health & Wellness is vitally important; BUT, it’s also an industry with a lot of marketing & pseudoscience!

Here are a few things evidenced based medical providers love to hate about the wellness industry.

❌ Detoxes & Cleanses - our bodies have their own built in organs & processes to detox that work 24/7: kidneys, liver, bowels, & skin! Don’t buy into hype.

❌ Supplements with “fix all” health claims - nothing is good for everything! Supplements have very little research to prove their safety or efficacy let alone multiple claims per supplement. Buyer beware.

❌ Fake “healthy” foods - there are too many to name that marketing teams have spun to appear healthy. A few to watch out for:

•Fruit Smoothies: touted as healthier than a milkshake, these alternatives often have 50g of sugar per serving, which is 12tsp! 😵 There’s also almost no fiber from the fruit.
•Veggie chips: healthier option than potato chips? Not really- they’re full of starch & oils & little fiber
•Yogurt: sure it contains protein & probiotics, but it’s also packed with added sugars. Read your labels for a low sugar variety.
•Dried fruit: check out the high added sugar content! Choose a “no sugar added” version or make your own

📚Hopefully you learned something helpful in this post so you can make better choices! Thanks for following along to “Get Smart with Your Health”

❤️ Your Internal Medicine PA, Kelly

Thanks for the feature article in Oldtownist.com! 🙌

We are proud to be offering an innovative primary care solution to our community!

We treat our patients like the VIPs they are and we prioritize prevention and personalized care.

To become a patient head to the website and click ”Sign Up”.

*We are currently on a wait list for new patients, but we will connect with you regarding your expected timeframe.*

You can sign up for their monthly magazine at oldtownist.com for free! Check it out if you’re in the Wi******er area.

Navigate the bloom season like the Smartypants you are with these pro tips!

Who doesn’t love saving💰?! Don’t miss these simple ways to keep more medical dollar bucks in your pocket.

❤️ Kelly, your Internal Medicine PA

Happy Doctor’s Day! We celebrate you!!

To all of the physicians who’ve dedicated years of their lives to serve our community and bring health to our complicated human condition, we appreciate you! 🩺

To the physicians who assisted in training me personally in PA school, to those who continue to collaborate with me to bring optimal outcomes for our mutual patients, thank you! You are absolutely invaluable in reaching further and extending care into our community.

To the physicians who value the entire medical team, who help with tasks well beneath their training when the team is in a tough spot, who educate with a collaborative vibe instead of egotism, who treat patients with compassion and expertise, who advocate for patient first care, we cannot thank you enough. Truly you are proof that team work makes the dream work! (Improved patient outcomes)🙌

📣Shout out to some of your favorite physicians below! Or better yet- send them a thank you card, a gift, or share a kind word with them. Your encouragement is oxygen for them, I promise. 🖤