Speaking

The Interplay between Women’s Hormones, Circadian Rhythms and Sleep

August 5, 2023 – 11am-1pm PST

National University of Natural Medicine, summer CE Conference

Register: 2023 Naturopathic Woman’s Health Conference (regfox.com)

There’s a dynamic interplay between women’s hormones, circadian rhythms and sleep that impacts their well-being throughout the lifespan. Let’s look at these dynamics across the menstrual cycle, and during the menopausal transition. A growing area of understanding is in how chronotype impacts symptoms, with evening type women experiencing more hot flashes and night sweats than morning types. This is due to the multiple levels of the circadian system that ideally are entrained to work in synchrony. Learn how to entrain the body clock for optimal hormonal wellness, along with naturopathic treatment of the sleep disorders that increase among women with age. 

 

Sleep and Mental Health: Non-Medication Interventions to Restore Sleep Quality and Improve Clinical Outcomes
August 10, 2023 – 8:00am to 4:00pm CDT

How many of your clients have sleep issues?

Or maybe the real question is how many of your client don’t?

Where we used to think mental health problems caused insomnia, we now know that the relationship is more circular than casual. Risky and addictive, drugs aren’t the answer. But without addressing sleep issues, and intervening in this vicious cycle, your treatment plans for mental health issues will likely be less effective and yield less successful outcomes.

You CAN help your clients improve their sleep and make your treatment of mental health issues more effective than ever before … and you don’t need to be a sleep expert to do it!

Whether you work with anxiety, depression, trauma, bipolar or any other disorders, this one-day training will give you the sleep assessment tools and treatment techniques you need to guide clients out of their sleep deprived world so you can improve clinical outcomes.

Attend this training and discover how you can:

• Naturally improve sleep in clients without the use of addictive medication
• Identify sleep disorders and differentiate them from mental health symptoms
• Improve sleep for clients of all ages – from kids to adults
• Snap clients out of sleep-depriving habits with behavior changing exercises

Sign up today, and add a new tool to your toolbox to bring greater healing to your clients through the power of sleep!

ADHD Summit 
Aug 26 – details coming soon

 

Help! I Can’t Sleep 
August 24, noon-1p

City of Bellevue for Wellspring EAP
Available for employees

About 35% of people have sleep complaints at any one time. Are you one of the ones who is awake in the night when you’d rather be sleeping? Or do you lay in bed “trying” to sleep? In this class learn behavioral and lifestyle strategies to make your sleep more robust and reliable.
1. Learn some little-known factors that can contribute to insomnia.
2. Review cognitive, behavioral and circadian strategies to improve sleep.
3. Create your customized sleep plan.

 

Sleep and Mental Health: Non-Medication Interventions to Restore Sleep Quality and Improve Clinical Outcomes
September 22, 2023 – 8:00am to 4:00pm CDT

How many of your clients have sleep issues?

Or maybe the real question is how many of your client don’t?

Where we used to think mental health problems caused insomnia, we now know that the relationship is more circular than casual. Risky and addictive, drugs aren’t the answer. But without addressing sleep issues, and intervening in this vicious cycle, your treatment plans for mental health issues will likely be less effective and yield less successful outcomes.

You CAN help your clients improve their sleep and make your treatment of mental health issues more effective than ever before … and you don’t need to be a sleep expert to do it!

Whether you work with anxiety, depression, trauma, bipolar or any other disorders, this one-day training will give you the sleep assessment tools and treatment techniques you need to guide clients out of their sleep deprived world so you can improve clinical outcomes.

Attend this training and discover how you can:

• Naturally improve sleep in clients without the use of addictive medication
• Identify sleep disorders and differentiate them from mental health symptoms
• Improve sleep for clients of all ages – from kids to adults
• Snap clients out of sleep-depriving habits with behavior changing exercises

Sign up today, and add a new tool to your toolbox to bring greater healing to your clients through the power of sleep!

The Therapeutic Use of Light and Darkness

Sept 29, 4-5:30p ET

Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, fall conference

Registration link pending

The natural world is a world with rhythmic variability, variability in light and dark throughout the day, and seasonal changes in light too. Now in the electrified world we can control our light levels, keeping it artificially bright into the night. At the same time we are in dim light during the day in our built environment. The lack of daytime light along with the lack of dark at night has serious health consequences. We will first look at how light and dark impact physiology. Then we will discuss the health impacts of disordered light & dark exposure from vitamin D and bone health, to sleep and circadian rhythms, to Seasonal Affective Disorder and mental health, among more of the conditions common in primary care. We’ll conclude with specific guidance on healthful light and dark recommendations. 

Sleep and Mental Health: Non-Medication Interventions to Restore Sleep Quality and Improve Clinical Outcomes
October 9, 2023 – 8:00am to 4:00pm CDT

How many of your clients have sleep issues?

Or maybe the real question is how many of your client don’t?

Where we used to think mental health problems caused insomnia, we now know that the relationship is more circular than casual. Risky and addictive, drugs aren’t the answer. But without addressing sleep issues, and intervening in this vicious cycle, your treatment plans for mental health issues will likely be less effective and yield less successful outcomes.

You CAN help your clients improve their sleep and make your treatment of mental health issues more effective than ever before … and you don’t need to be a sleep expert to do it!

Whether you work with anxiety, depression, trauma, bipolar or any other disorders, this one-day training will give you the sleep assessment tools and treatment techniques you need to guide clients out of their sleep deprived world so you can improve clinical outcomes.

Attend this training and discover how you can:

• Naturally improve sleep in clients without the use of addictive medication
• Identify sleep disorders and differentiate them from mental health symptoms
• Improve sleep for clients of all ages – from kids to adults
• Snap clients out of sleep-depriving habits with behavior changing exercises

Sign up today, and add a new tool to your toolbox to bring greater healing to your clients through the power of sleep!

“Clinical Guidelines for Shift Work, Jet Lag, and Daylight Saving Time: Understanding Melatonin Supplementation”.
October 12, noon -1p PST

Doctor’s Data webinar
Register: link pending

With the post-pandemic uptick of travel, Daylight Saving Time, and further development of a 24/7/365 work culture, our circadian rhythms have become more disrupted. This is critically important not only for sleep, but for whole health. The circadian system is dependent upon the predictable nocturnal pulse of melatonin to promote drowsiness and drop our core body temperature. Beyond sleep, melatonin has multiple actions at the cellular level as a powerful anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, and for mitochondrial function among other actions.

Learn how to treat Shift Work Disorder, Jet Lag, and Daylight Saving Time with evidence-based protocols using precisely timed melatonin at specific doses. Adjunct therapies include light exposure and sleep scheduling. With these protocols patients will sleep better, and minimize the associated symptoms. These strategies are important for every clinician, as circadian melatonin disruption is associated with chronic disease.

Objectives:
1. Select the correct dose and timing of melatonin for Shift Work Disorder, Jet Lag, and Daylight Saving Time.
2. Design a comprehensive treatment plan for these conditions including melatonin, light, and sleep scheduling.
3. Explain the role melatonin plays in cellular health as an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and for mitochondrial function.

 

Sleep and Mental Health in Children and Teens
November 7

Behavioral Interventions to End Bedtime Problems and Help Kids Fall and Stay Asleep
Register: PESI.com

Sleep Skills for Travel
Wellspring EAP
November 9, 11:30am-12:30pm
Available for employees

Travel is coming back in a big way, so it’s time to refresh your travel sleep skills so you can have a fabulous trip. Shifting our body clock doesn’t happen automatically, and can cause symptoms including digestive upset, daytime fatigue along with night-time sleepiness, and irritability. Adding skills to help shift your body clock to the new time zone can make all the difference. Come learn how to prepare in advance of your trip, and what to do when you arrive. We’ll talk about strategies from light and dark exposure, timing of melatonin supplements, meal times and more.

Sleep and Mental Health: Non-Medication Interventions to Restore Sleep Quality and Improve Clinical Outcomes
November 17
December 13

Register: PESI.com

Sleep – Essential Anti-Aging Medicine
December 3-4

National University of Natural Medicine, fall CE conference

Registration link pending

As George Burns said “You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old.” Sleep health is an essential part of the strategy to stay vital, via many mechanisms.

It’s during normal Stage 3 or ‘deep sleep’ that the majority of growth hormone is secreted. Typically deep sleep declines in old age, however there are strategies to maintain both Stage 3 sleep and growth hormone levels.

Both sleep disorders and insufficient sleep degrade telomeres, even in children as young as 9 years old. This leads to damage of the DNA. Assessment, diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders throughout life will likely delay telomere degradation.

In the modern built environment light exposure patterns are different than those people have historically experienced. This results in a decrease in the duration of melatonin secretion. As melatonin has a role as a powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and in mitochondrial protection it is important for anti-aging. Chronic suppression of melatonin due to a darkness deficiency may have a role in the development of chronic disease.

Sleep as anti-aging medicine is essential for the high percentage of people who currently get insufficient sleep, and who have sleep disorders. Including sleep therapeutics will improve the health and longevity of your patients.