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FROM THE DOC
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"The Secret Sauce"
When I was a kid, growing up here in Scottsdale, one of my simple pleasures was a Jack-In-The-Box hamburger. Simple tastes (and perhaps not very good ones at that!) I would go to the one right across from Chaparral High School...on Shea.
What I especially loved about their burgers, compared to other fast-food restaurants, was their 'secret sauce.' I'm not sure why it seemed to taste so amazing. Perhaps it was amazing because it was a 'secret.' (Thousand island dressing + a little mustard....what a secret!)
Thinking back to those 'secret sauce' days made me think about many of the special things we do in our office, much of the information we've gained over the 37 years of practice, my dad and I, and our staff; information about medical personal and offices and support staff that make things happen, get things done, and generally do a super job here.
This information is a big part of 'our' secret sauce that my staff and I know about this area, and that we use in getting you the best health care we can here in the valley.
Over the next several months, we will be updating the DoctorDoug Website, to share some of that 'secret sauce' more efficiently, both for our patients and for the Community of Scottsdale. We're going to 'go public' with the 'secret sauce' recipe.....
But don't worry....my patients will still get something better than 'secret sauce' (S²)....
You will get S³....'SUPER secret sauce!'
What is that? Well....I'll tell you about it (what I'm allowed to tell you) next time in this column, for our next newsletter.
Until then, stay healthy my friends,
Doctor Lakin
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VOL 7 / Issue 1
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Winter/ 2012
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The AZ Experience. . . . .
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On February 14, 1912, after nearly 49 years as a U.S. territory and thousands of years as a sacred home to indigenous peoples, Arizona became the 48th and last of the contiguous states to enter the Union of the United States of America.
At the time of its statehood, Arizona epitomized the economic promise of the American West. Rich in natural resources, the state was earning its reputation as the home of the Five C's - copper, cattle, cotton, citrus, and climate. Its people reflected the rich history and heritage of the Southwest, from the influences of its Native American and Hispanic cultures to the adventurous spirit of its early prospectors, ranchers, and farmers. All embraced Arizona's rugged and rich environment to create a unique and prosperous lifestyle. Arizona continues to be recognized for its natural beauty, a high quality of life, and its ongoing innovation in all fields, from agriculture to technology. Arizona was founded on rugged individualism matched with hard work and vision. It was this indomitable spirit that shaped and molded our state into the place we now call home. From our school children to centenarians, from urban centers to rural communities-we all have the opportunity to come together and commemorate this indomitable spirit and the 100 years of growth, challenge and success it engendered. Of course, our centennial planning comes in the midst of extraordinary times. Not unlike 100 years ago, Arizona faces both enormous challenges and opportunities. Our state and nation are charting a vital course through serious economic times. And, although we may not have abundant funds to plan and celebrate our Centennial, we do have abundant pride, energy and resourcefulness to pay tribute to our Grand Canyon State. The Centennial is not only about events and history; it is most importantly about people. The people we are and the people we want to be. Some of us are multi-generational Arizona natives and some of us may have only arrived a week ago, but together we are Arizona!
For more information:http://www.az100years.org/
Happy Birthday AZ!
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Tips to help you cope with stress. . . .
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Take a break.
You can't avoid the stressor, but you can momentarily get away from that project at work, that crying baby or those mounting bills. Even stepping away for 20 minutes can give you a new perspective or a chance to practice some stress-relieving techniques to feel less overwhelmed.
Exercise.
The research is growing that exercise benefits your mind just as well as your body. Even a 20-minute walk, run or dance session amid a stressful time can give an immediate effect that can last for several hours.
Smile and laugh.
Our brains are interconnected with our emotions and facial expressions. Stressed people often hold a lot of the stress in their faces, so laughs or smiles can help relieve some of that tension.
Get social support.
Sharing your feelings with another person helps relieve stress, but don't share those concerns with someone who adds to the stress; the person to whom you talk should be someone you trust and who understands and can validate you.
Meditate.
Meditation and mindful prayer help the mind and body relax and focus. Mindfulness can help people see new perspectives and develop self-compassion and forgiveness. When practicing a form of mindfulness, people can release emotions that may have been causing the body physical stress. Much like exercise, research has shown that even meditating briefly can reap benefits.
- By Sharon Jayson
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Light therapy may help.t's that time of year, when twinkle lights make houses and trees sparkle, smiling snowmen stand proud on front lawns and everyone salesperson and random stranger wishes you a happy holiday - and yet, you feel anything but. For many, it's a funk that'll pass, and for many people it is; for others, the mood shift runs a little deeper: Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression most often linked to winter. About 5% of Americans suffer from it; an additional 10% to 20% experience a milder form. The fact it gets so dark outside so early plays a role. Here's what else you need to know: The symptoms. Symptoms include hopelessness, irritability and fatigue; hunger, especially for sweet or starchy foods, and subsequent weight gain; oversleeping; having a tough time concentrating; and/or wanting to avoid social situations. In most cases, symptoms appear in late fall or early winter, and fade in the spring. The treatments.Light therapy seems to work for most people. You might sit in front of a light box or wear a light visor, but either way the idea is to expose you to about 30 minutes of bright light every day, which appears to affect mood-related chemicals in your brain, eases symptoms. Some people with SAD need antidepressants, others benefit from talk therapy as well. What doesn't work: Tanning beds - the lights are high in ultraviolet rays, which harm both your eyes and your skin. Talk to your doctor if you think you have SAD.
Can I prevent it? No, there's no known way to stop seasonal depression from developing, but you can take steps to manage symptoms early on, and keep them from getting worse. Spend some time outside, even when it's cloudy; natural light helps, especially within two hours of getting up in the morning. Eat well - a healthy diet boosts energy; exercise regularly to help relieve stress and anxiety; and hang out with your friends often, which can provide tremendous support during winter months.
- USA Weekend Back To Top |
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FROM OUR BILLING SUPERVISOR. . .
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Important Information on Your Medicare Wellness Benefits:
Medicare Part B covers some preventive services to help maintain your health. When your Annual Wellness Visits are timed at least 12 months apart coverage is applied at no cost to you. During an Annual Wellness Visit you will undergo a comprehensive exam aimed at establishing a baseline for your medical care. It is important to know that Annual Wellness Visits must be performed at least 12 months apart in order to be eligible for payment. No Medicare coverage will be provided if your visit is not within the coverage guidelines. In addition, if during the course of your "Wellness" visit Dr. Lakin provides additional services or performs additional tests, coinsurance and / or the Part B deductible may apply to those services. The information provided is designed to help you decide how to schedule your next "Wellness" visit. If you are unsure on the date of your last "Wellness" visit please contact the office prior to your appointment. For questions regarding the Medicare coverage guidelines please contact Medicare directly at 800-633-4227. Welcome to Medicare During your first 12 months of Medicare Part B coverage you are eligible for a Welcome to Medicare preventive visit. The purpose of this first visit is for you to work with Dr. Lakin to establish your health status, prevent disease, improve your health and help you stay well. No copayment or deductible will be applied to this portion of your visit. Annual Wellness Visit If you have had Medicare Part B for longer than 12 months you have become eligible for a yearly "Wellness" visit. Your visit will focus on a health regimen aimed at keeping you well based on your current health status and risk factors. The purpose of this visit is to develop or update a personalized medical plan of action that is specific to your needs in order to prevent disease. No copayment or deductible will be applied to this portion of your visit. Lastly, as a patient, you can help Dr. Lakin by coming prepared with any pertinent medical information including immunization records, a family health history and a full list of medications and supplements including vitamins and how each is taken. When you contact the front desk for your appointment please state you would like to schedule your Annual Wellness Visit. **Please contact Veronica, our billing supervisor, if you have more questions regarding Medicare's Wellness care benefit. Back To Top |
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5 Tips To Reduce Your Risk of Arthritis
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It hurts when you walk or climb the stairs, slice meat or brush your teeth - that's the reality of arthritis. Family history plays a role in your risk, and so does age: The chance of developing many types of arthritis, including the most common, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, increases the older you get.
Those factors you can't control. But you can take steps to protect your joints and reduce your risk of arthritis:
Exercise. Regular exercise strengthens the muscles around joints, which helps keep them from rubbing against one another and wearing down cartilage; it also helps increase bone density, improve flexibility and ease pain. Don't push your body past its limits.
Putting too much stress on your joints can accelerate the wear and tear that causes osteoarthritis, and injured joints, perhaps while playing a sport, are more likely to eventually develop arthritis.Watch your weight.
Extra pounds put extra stress on your joints, especially your knees, hips and back.
According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control, people who are obese are 1.9 times more likely to report that they have arthritis symptoms. Stand up straight.
Mom said it would make you look taller and slimmer; experts say It also helps protect the joints in your neck, back, hips and knees.
Ask about D.
We know the vitamin is essential for bone health because it helps your body absorb calcium. Studies also suggest vitamin D may play a role in joint health, and that too-low levels may increase the risk of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
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Notice Something New on Your Patient Office Visit Form?
|  QR Code:
A QR Code (it stands for "Quick Response") is a mobile phone readable barcode that's been big in Japan forever, broke into Europe a while back, and is now getting traction in USA.
In its simplest sense think "print based hypertext link" - simply encode a URL into the QR Code and then point a mobile phone (or other camera-enabled mobile) at it. If the device has had QR Code decoding software installed on it, it will fire up its browser and go straight to that URL.
While there is still a lot of scope for improvement, the resolution of average present-day camera-enabled portable devices is such that the size of the data modules (dots) on a QR Code of Version 5 or above (37x37) presents a real risk of incorrect decoding of the symbol by the device. To make things a bit more robust, the QR Code also contains its own error correction data, internal orientation calibration and self-alignment markers. In this way it doesn't matter whether the QR code is upside down or wrapped around a curved surface, the message will still get through.
So, what does all this mean for you?
On Dr. Lakin's summary of your office visit, we have inserted a 'QR code' image. If you have a smart phone, iphone, android, or ipad, you can download a free app and scan the QRC image to connect directly to our website! Try it next time you see Dr. Lakin. It works! Back To Top |
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3 Keys To Being a Great Grandparent
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The minute you become a grandparent, you are bestowed with certain characteristics: the bragging rights of a PR guru, expert cheek-pinching and hair-tousling skills, and the intense impulse to be the favorite grandparent.
And it's no wonder, says Georgia Witkin, author of The Modern Grandparent's Handbook. "Grandparents fall in love with their grandchildren. You want them to know how special they are to you, and the way to measure that is by how special you seem to be to them." Here are some strategies:
Don't buy their love.
Promises of forbidden cookies and late bedtimes may have your grandkids looking forward to a visit, but that kind of adoration fades when the sugar rush is over. Building a relationship based on true affection will be more meaningful to you both.
Listen to them. Ask them questions, then sit back and let them know they're being heard. You don't have to correct them or give advice. "Just repeat back what they told you," Witkin says. "You won't sound like their parents or their friends. Instead, you'll become a special confidant." Find similarities.
Talk about what their favorite things are - colors, foods, activities - and see if they match your own. Sharing interests strengthens your bond. "When they think of their favorite things," Witkin says, "they'll associate it with you."
- Molly Lyons
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Fibromyalgia: Do You Suffer From This Chronic Condition?
| 10 million Americans, most of them women, have
symptoms!
There's no known cause, no blood test or X-ray to diagnose it, no magic pill to cure it -- so maybe it's no surprise that fibromyalgia is a disorder that's often misunderstood and sometimes unrecognized. Yet it's one of the most common chronic conditions, characterized by widespread pain and extreme fatigue, and it afflicts up to 10 million people in the USA, most of them women. Here's what else you need to know about fibromyalgia:
What does it feel like?
The pain can vary from a constant, dull ache to a stabbing shooting pain, typically arising from muscles. You'll feel it everywhere and even more so when you touch or press down on specific areas of your body, called tender points. These spots are found on the back of your head, the top of shoulders and between the blades, the front of the neck, the top of the chest, the outsides of elbows, the tops and sides of hips and the inner knees. Other symptoms: numbing, tingling and burning sensations, headaches, rashes, irritable bowel and bladder, and sleep, memory and mood problems.
How do I know if I have it?
If the pain is widespread - meaning it's on both sides of your body and above and below your waist; if it lasts more than three months; and if there are no other conditions that may be causing the pain, you may be diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Your doctor will evaluate and consider all your symptoms, and he may run tests to rule out other conditions that could be causing such symptoms. Other criteria used to diagnose the disorder: The pain occurs in 11 tender points out of a possible 18.
How do I manage it?
A combination of regular and alternative medications can help manage the pain, experts say. Drugs used to treat epilepsy may help; pregabalin (Lyrica), for example, is FDA-approved to treat fibromyalgia. Certain prescription antidepressants also are prescribed to ease symptoms; over-the-counter acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) might work in some cases, too. Complementary therapies, such as acupuncture and therapeutic massages, make a difference - recent research also suggests yoga, short bursts of exercise and even music therapy may help.
- USA Weekend
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At the Movies With Barb A.......
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A MUST SEE! + + + + +
GREAT + + + +
ENTERTAINING + + +
RENT THE MOVIE + +
FORGET IT! +
 + + + + + 50/50 This was a terrific movie. It was sad and funny. How can this be? This is a true story drawn from a personal experience that the screen writer had. Adam (Joseph Levitt) discovers that he had a potentially fatal malignant tumor. Films abut sickness can be depressing, but this is not the case. How his family and friends react is a real lesson in life. His best friend Kyle is there for him through the whole experience. (Seth Rogan). The story is sincere and a comedy that at times brings tears. This is a real life experience, and those of us who have lived it can truly understand the moments of grief, fear and encouragement. + + + THE TWILIGIHT SAGA - BREAKING DAWN My movie buddy Joan and I take turns picking the Sunday afternoon flicks. This was entirely her choice. I promised to stay awake during the film. The place was packed. What is wrong with people?? Since she had seen the prior movies, she knew who everyone was in the film. She tried to fill me in on the actors during lunch at Paradise Bakery, but I was totally lost. Well, it's all vampires and werewolves and blood. I just can't go on. Yuck. + + + + + THE GUARD I bet you missed this one. What a pity!!IO would have missed it too except my doctor said he thought I would enjoy it. It was hilarious. It takes place in Ireland with an "off the wall" Irish cop Brendan Gleeson (Gerry Boyle) involved with murder, blackmail, drug trafficking and rural police. Along comes Don Cheadle (Wendell Everett) educated at Harvard and a member of the USA FBI. The contrast is so amusing. You have to get by the naughty language but there is so much of it that soon you don't even hear it. Do see it. + + + + THE DESCENDANTS I did enjoy this movie but I truly do not feel that it is Oscar quality. (I will probably eat those words) George Clooney certainly does age well and the Hawaiian music and scenery is so lovely. George does not compare with Brad Pitt who starred in Moneyball. Also Brad is probably my least favorite actor but excelled in Moneyball. The actress who plays George's daughter is magnificent (Shailene Woodley). George (Matt King) is rebuilding his life after he discovers the past his comatose wife had. Mediocre at best. + + + + THE IDES OF MARCH My feeling is that this film is better than The Descendants. George Clooney was marvelous as Mike Morris, the governor of Pennsylvania. Ryan Gosling as the press secretary to Mike is superb. Mike is a man running for office who has highs and lows in a political field that is full of deceit, compromise and shows the dark side of campaigns. Scary + MARTHA, MARCY, MAY, MARLENE This movie doesn't even deserve a review. It was disgusting.
+ MELANCHOLIA Do not bother to see this or rent the movie. This film was about the end of the world. Believe it or not a planet called Melancholia is heading towards earth. The only thing I liked was watching Kirsten Dunst perform. She truly is beautiful and I always wanted dimples like hers.
+ + + WAR HORSE
I think I am getting to picky. This was my Christmas Day treat. There was so much hype for this film. It was good and I liked it but was not overwhelmed by it. There was way too much killing and horses dying. I would really have liked more about the relationship between the horse and the Army Captain who buys him. Before you know it, the Captain is killed. Oh, and all those horses lying in the battlefield on the ground shaking and injured. The horse was the best actor in the movie and I understand that it is the same horse that played Secretariat in that movie.
+ + + + WE BOUGHT A ZOO.
What a delightful "feel good" movie. I love true stories and I learned that this actually took place in London. AND what could Matt Damon ever star in that wasn't great. This is a family film which touches on some tough issues in a thoughtful manner. Thomas Church who plays Matt's older brother steals the show. Great acting. Matt's children as super as well. The little girl is adorable and the angry son plays the part of a boy left suddenly without his mother who has just died. Scarlett Johansson is the zoo keeper and looks the part of an overworked employee with old clothes and messy hair. I heard that she loved doing this film because she didn't have to do makeup. A good movie of a recent widower coping with raising his family under new circumstances. Do see it.!!!~!!!
+ + + + + A SEPARATION This film is about Tehran. It was a very long movie and entirely in subtitles. You need to keep alert. Although it is in a foreign language and in a different culture and country, the problems are still the same as one has wherever they live. It boils down to people are people no matter where they are. The acting is super and it would be hard to say who was the most powerful. The ending is blunt - I really didn't know what to think. I had an interesting conversation with one of Dr. Lakin's patients (Mr. K.) and it was fun to discuss what we thought. A must see. See you at the movies! Barb A . Back To Top |
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Have You Registered Yet?
Now is the time......
"THE PATIENT PORTAL "
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Join "Dr. Lakin's Patient Portal" on our website, www.doctordoug.com
The new "PATIENT PORTAL" is an online direct, encrypted, and secure way to contact Dr. Lakin, request appointments, RX refills, get your lab results, share medical information with Dr. Lakin and the office, update your demographic information, and much more!
If you have any questions or need help, please contact Nan.
**CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!
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| **Introducing Dr Lakin's Podcasts on Our Website!
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Recipe:
Make a tasty treat: Defrosty the Snowman
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 This wistful snowman appears to be going the way of winter, and we have a feeling he'll soon disappear altogether. Defrosty is made from a puddle of white candy melts (one 14-ounce package makes 16 snowmen).
For each one, you'll also need:
* white candy melts
* 6 mini chocolate chips
* 1 light cocoa candy melt
* 1 Hershey's Rolo
* 1 candy corn
To assemble your snowman, melt the white candy in a bowl according to the package instructions, then scoop a rounded tablespoon onto a sheet of wax paper. With the back of a spoon, smear the candy into a puddle. Working quickly, press on the light cocoa candy melt, dab a dot of white melted candy, then place the Hershey's Rolo on top.
To make the nose, cut the orange section from a candy corn, then slice it in half lengthwise. Roll the piece between your fingers to form a carrot shape. Add the candy corn nose and mini chocolate chip eyes and mouth.
- By Disney FamilyFun
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Your Moment of Zen........ | |
"If you're not using your smile,
. . . . you're like a man with a million dollars in the bank and no checkbook."
~ Les Giblin
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Dr. Lakin & Staff
Paradise Valley Medical Clinic PC
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Click here and take a look!
