Implementing a Stress Recovery Program Thomas Houle

Traditional to Functional Catch 22  Investing in patient care vs immediate ROI (treat and street)  Traditional = disease management  Functional= disease reversal / prevention  Not enough time to educate / poor reimbursements  Spend too much time educating – causes strain on the business  Customized medicine in not scalable  No two people are the same last time I checked  More Rewarding / Better Results / But MUCH More Difficult

Transforming the Practice of Medicine  Very Unique Jobs  Business owner and healthcare service provider  Two very full-time jobs – not for the faint of heart  Need to create success on two fronts  Business growth and patient results (Left hand vs Right hand)  Customers = patients  Service = getting patients better  Chief complaint = what the customer wants  Someone else may have failed here already  Struggle of working both on and in your business  Let’s bridge the gap  Streamline the education process to increase compliance, results, repeat business, referrals, etc.

The Lifestyle Matrix Resource Center Delivering tools and resources to clinicians and patients that inform and inspire the use of lifestyle therapies as indispensable health solutions  Provides both clinician and patient education  Practice building tools  Increase efficiency in which you educate to create compliance  Empower patients to partner with you in their own health and help them unleash the doctor within themselves  Transform the practice of medicine

Let’s talk about STRESS

Stress What is stress?  Do your patients know what stress truly is?  If you were to ask a patient what is stress, what would be the most common answer?  Both physical and perceived  Not just the mental / emotional  Do they understand the lifestyle contributors to the production of cortisol?  4 key stressors

Our Leading Health Problem Neuroscientists have recently clarified “stress” to mean… “Conditions where an environmental demand exceeds the natural regulatory capacity of an organism, in particular situations that include unpredictability and uncontrollability.” Neurosci Biobehav Rev Feb 21;35:

Metabolic Cost Normal Function is sacrificed to address acute issues –More acute issues, less normal function –No designated highway to address acute issues that arise

Stress in America  75-90% of all visits to family physicians are due to stress-related symptoms. [1]  43% of adults suffer adverse health effects of stress.  Stress in linked to the six leading causes of death. [2] 1. Available at: Accessed Feb. 4, How does stress affect us? Am Psych Assoc.

HPA Axis and the Stress Response System

Cortisol Rhythm

4 Key Stressors

Taxing the System  Cortisol is naturally high in the morning –Insulin Sensitivity is low Less efficient at processing sugar

Forged Neural Pathways - Addiction We are groomed to eat high glycemic meals to start the day…SUGAR!

Fat, Sick, and Tired

Stress Recovery Program Tools  Remember that question from earlier? –What is stress? –What if your patient understood HPA axis dysfunction and the metabolic costs of STRESS before you walked into the room? –Let’s form partnership by empowering them to partner with you in their own health You can’t be their to help them make the right decisions, you can only teach them right from wrong – they have a lot of choices…Let’s help them make the educated ones

Identify & Address Key Stressor The ARK program addresses stress by:  Getting to the root causes of stress during first office visit.  Restoring balance to the stress response system.

Patient Whiteboard Video  While they are waiting…

Presentation Pads  Each of the three stages of HPA axis dysfunction are outlined, along with the key clinical symptoms that correlate with each stage. Additional information is included highlighting the four major key stressors that activate the stress response system.

Presentation Pads  A useful guide for discussing the importance of neurotransmitter balance in counteracting stress, maintaining a positive mood, fighting anxiety, and maintaining healthy cognitive function.

ARK Patient Handbook  Lifestyle and nutrition recommendations to address each of the 4 Key Stressors Ch 1: Blood Sugar Control Ch 2: Mental & Emotional Stress Ch 3: Overcoming Insomnia Ch 4: Reducing Inflammation  Have patient read first 10 pages in addition to chapter relating to their key stressor

ARK Patient Handbook Chapter 1 – Blood Sugar Control

Implementation Guide

Clinical Implementation Resource Kit

Physicians’ Roadmap  How Chronic Stress Depletes Metabolic Reserve  How Stress Impacts Genomic and Epigenetic Signaling  New Ways to Maximize Current Laboratory Assessment of the HPA Axis  The Importance of Analyzing CAR (Cortisol Awakening Response)  Each Stage of HPA Axis Dysfunction and Innovative Treatment Options

Visit us at TheLifestyleMatrix.com for more information