by Jen Owen, N.P. | Aug 30, 2022 | Food Medicine
Written by our Medical Assistant in the Flourish clinic, Martine:
Hi everyone! Jen has allowed me to write a blog this week to discuss something I’m really passionate about: breakfast!
Some of you know this but before I started working for Jen, I was her patient. Initially I came to see Jen because I was so exhausted all the time. Sometimes I would sleep from 7pm to 7am and still slug through my day as if I hadn’t slept a wink.
I had new and stubborn abdominal fat that I assumed was just the pandemic weight that most of us seemed to gain. And my mood was just…off. I consider myself a happy, positive person but I felt like there was a dark cloud hovering above me that I just couldn’t shake.
After some testing, Jen diagnosed me with insulin resistance. She told me that one of the most important things you can do to help this process is eating protein. You want to eat protein every few hours throughout the day, eat a high protein breakfast, and always have protein at your meals and with any carbs that you eat. By doing that, you’re going to stabilize your blood sugar level in your blood and you’re going to reduce the insulin resistance for those cells.
The other thing that really helps do this is healthy fats.The right fats increase metabolism, stimulate fat burning, cut hunger, optimize your cholesterol profile and can reverse type 2 diabetes and reduce your risk for heart disease. There’s a great book you can read to learn more by Dr Mark Hyman called “Eat Fat, Get Thin”.
Here are three easy breakfasts I make for my husband and myself. They’re all very customizable based on your dietary needs and preferences. All three do include avocado. If you’re not a fan and you need another way to get some good fat, try having some walnuts or Brazil nuts on the side. If you can have dairy, Greek or Nordic yogourt is also a great choice. A drizzle of flax or hemp oil would also be amazing.
Eating breakfasts like this have really been a game changer for me. I have more energy, I’m losing weight, and feeling so much better!
Air Fryer Classic Breakfast
Dairy-free, gluten-free, can be soy-free, can be vegan.
This is a good one for when you’re in a hurry—everything comes together in the air fryer with very minimal effort. You could do the same thing in a regular frying pan as well!
What you’ll need:
Frozen sweet potato fries/tots/cubes
Breakfast sausage (made of whatever you like! Pork, turkey, or meatless)
1-2 eggs depending on how hungry you are
1/2 of an avocado or guacamole
Put the sweet potato and the breakfast sausage in the air fryer at 390 degrees for 5 minutes. You don’t need to add any oil. After that, crack two eggs into the air fryer and season everything with salt and pepper. Feel free to add other spices like paprika, garlic, turmeric, chilli powder, etc.
5 minutes later the egg whites should be set but the yolks should still be soft. Scoop everything out of the air fryer and top with avocado/guacamole.
Lentil Oatmeal Bowl
Dairy-free, glute- free, soy-free, vegan.
This is another easy one and leftovers store pretty well in the fridge. Adapted from the beautiful: https://ohsheglows.com
What you’ll need:
⅓ of a cup red lentils
¼ of a cup oatmeal
1 ½ cup of broth
Combine lentils, oats, and broth in a pot. Bring to a low boil and then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until thickened. Add any herbs and spices you like. You could add tempeh bacon or turkey bacon crumbles as well.
Top with whatever you like! I personally mix in some nutritional yeast, some arugula, and then top with avocado.
White Bean + Avocado Toast
Dairy-free, soy-free, vegan, can be gluten-free.
Avocado toast is so good on it’s own but blending in some white beans gives it a big extra boost of protein.
What you’ll need:
Cooked and cooled white beans
An avocado (you can use just half if you’d prefer)
Greens of your choice
Bread of your choice
Mash up white beans and avocado. Spread it on your toast and top with greens and a drizzle of oil and spices of your choice. You could also add other veggies like a slice of tomato, or a fried egg. I like to make a little tofu scramble and eat it on the side (that would obviously negate the soy free part).
I hope this helps you see that breakfast can be fun and delicious while supporting your health and wellness goals!
~Martine Fleming, M.A.
by Jen Owen, N.P. | Aug 19, 2022 | Mind-Body Medicine
In the summer of 2021, I had been contemplating a way to bring together all of my knowledge and gifts in a way that I could help more people. I love being a healthcare provider, and what I love the most are the times when I get to help someone overcome whatever is holding them back. This might be a belief about themselves, an old thought pattern, judgement they’re putting on themselves, or a myriad of other blocks to feeling and living their best. Usually, the solution isn’t that complicated and when these blocks shift, life changes for good.
I set an intention to be shown how I could package deep transformations in a way that was accessible, affordable, and maybe even fun! I wanted to be able to present new ways of thinking and being in a way that was easy to learn and implement, while being able to offer personal support along the way. One day, after a long meditation, I understood exactly how to do this and my online program for women, The Flourish Way™ Experience was born.
This program has blown my mind. The members have shown up fully to do the work and support one another, and the transformations have been profound! One member realized her life purpose and is now starting her own business, while another got a promotion at her job. Several members report better communication in their relationships and more satisfying sex lives. Two members have overcome long-term anxiety and feel more secure knowing they have tools to handle it if it returns. Others report feeling more connected to themselves. They take more time for rest and self-care without feeling guilty. I could go on and on.
During these past few years with the pandemic, political unrest, and a general uncertainty for what the future holds, I’ve seen stress levels higher than ever before. Now more than ever, we need regular support. We need stress reduction techniques beyond yoga and chamomile tea. We need to understand ourselves, our reactions to all the noise, and how we can effectively live our best lives despite the chaos. This is what the program is all about.
If you’re not feeling happy and you feel like you “should” be happy, if you know your relationship and the intimacy with your partner could be more optimal, if you feel like you’re being constantly affected by the events of the world or the people in your life, if you feel like you just know there’s more for you….then The Flourish Way™ Experience program is for you.
This is a 12-week program where you’ll learn how to unwind and unlearn from all the stress and the patterns you’ve adapted to over the years. You’ll restore and replenish your energy, your vitality, and your connection with yourself. And finally, you’ll expand and emerge into a more full, satisfied, and aligned version of yourself. I knew these things would happen when we started and now after coaching the women in the group for a full year, I’ve seen it all come to fruition.
Registration is now open for the fall cohort of new members. The program will open for you on September 4 with our first online Zoom session on September 11. I will be limiting the number of participants, so if you know you’re ready to do things a new way in your life, please register soon. A substantial “early bird” discount is available until August 22.
Please reach out if we can answer any questions for you, otherwise, I look forward to being your guide.
Learn more and reserve your spot here.
~Jen Owen, N.P.
P.S Because we use my pelvic bowl healing techniques as one of the foundations of our work in the program, The Flourish Way™ Experience is open only to those born with female anatomy.
by Jen Owen, N.P. | Aug 5, 2022 | Uncategorized
Each year, every major insurance plan allows you one Annual Physical Exam included in your plan with no co-pay to you. Are you taking advantage of this helpful benefit?
In the past, I haven’t been great about requiring this of my patients. I’ve tried to pack in their wellness checks with other visits, or I’ve tried to handle multiple problems at the annual physical visit. Neither way is optimal.
When we try to handle screenings at “problem” visits (what they are called in the billing world), screenings get missed. When we try to pack in “problems” at the annual visit, both the patient and I end up feeling rushed and again, the screenings get missed.
One of my favorite parts of conventional healthcare is screening exams. We have solid systems for finding issues early so that multiple treatment options are available. For example, if polyps are found during a colonoscopy, we can take a deep dive into gut health, possible “leaky gut”, make dietary changes that support the gut, etc. If you don’t’ get your screening and find out later that there is cancer in the bowel, the options are more limited for treatment.
The same goes for pap smears, mammograms, and routine labs. When we find issues early, we can use natural medicine or conventional medicine or a combination to treat them. You have more choices when you find out early.
At an annual physical exam, we focus on prevention and do many things to support your health:
- Update your personal history and family history.
- Update your medication and supplement lists.
- Take vital signs (blood pressure, pulse, temperature, and respirations)
- Do a complete physical exam, including a pap smear for females as needed.
- Order routine lab testing.
- Order routine screening exams, such as colonoscopy, mammogram, bone density screening.
- Renew prescription medications., if needed.
- Talk about your health and well-being and lifestyle choices.
Once screenings are completed, if anything is abnormal with your results, I will ask to see you again to discuss.
You can certainly bring any problems you’re having to your annual physical to be sure that we add any labs or other testing to our plan. We will then follow-up at another visit once those additional tests are completed to discuss results and design a treatment plan.
One area of confusion for females is when they go to a gyn for their breast exam and pap smear. In the billing world, this is called a “well-woman visit”. If you choose to do your well-woman visit with a gyn, you are still allowed an annual physical with your primary care provider (PCP). Some PCPs don’t do well-woman visits. At Flourish we can do your well-woman visit at your annual physical, or you can choose to do that part elsewhere.
Basically, females can have both a well-woman visit and an annual physical or just an annual physical that combines the well-woman visit.
It’s helpful to think of your annual physical exam like one of your dental cleaning visits. They do preventative care (cleaning) on your teeth, update your chart, and give you the tips and tools for better dental health. If they find a problem, you return on another day to treat the problem.
I hope this makes sense and helps you see why your annual physical exam with your provider is so important to your health and wellness. I love focusing on prevention so that problems are less likely to occur, and so that we have every possible option for supporting you through any abnormal findings.
Are you a patient at Flourish? Schedule your Annual Physical Exam here.
If not, take a moment now to schedule your Annual Physical Exam with your provider now.
by Jen Owen, N.P. | Jun 2, 2022 | Integrative Medicine
In integrative medicine, we consider the gut to be the root of all health. When there’s imbalance in the gut, a myriad of symptoms can occur.
Most people think of the gut for obvious gut-related symptoms such as diarrhea, constipation, bloating, heartburn, etc.
Most don’t think of the gut for more systemic issues such as rashes and other skin disorders, joint pain, headaches, trouble concentrating, depression, fatigue, and more.
Often, the gut IS the root cause of all of the above symptoms and even more chronic diseases such as diabetes, fatty liver disease, and autoimmune disorders.
If you have any symptoms that typical western treatments haven’t been able to erradicate, then you might just have a leaky gut.
What is leaky gut?
A more technical term for leaky gut is intestinal permeability.
In a normal functioning small intestine, there are tight junctions between all of the cells along the lining. These junctions hold the cells together and keep everything in the gut that is supposed to stay in the gut.
When this lining gets damaged, it thins causing microscopic substances to cross the intestinal lining into the blood stream. This causes a response from the immune system and a cascade of events that cause many different symptoms.
What causes leaky gut?
Leaky gut is caused by anything that can cause an insult to the gut lining. The most common things that do this include:
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen and naproxen (NSAIDs)
- Poor diet
- Poor digestion
- Alcohol intake
- Infections
- Imbalance of good/bad bacteria
- Antibiotics and other drugs
- Toxins
How is leaky gut diagnosed?
If you have gut issues or any other chronic symptoms, it’s safe to assume you have a leaky gut.
In my clinic, I like to use the GI Effects Comprehensive Stool Analysis to diagnosis leaky gut and other underlying gastrointestinal concerns.
This testing uses biomarkers to determine the overall health of the gut, including digestion/absorption, inflammation/immunology, and the health of the gut microbiome (aka do you have the right balance of good/bad bacteria).
When there is a leaky gut, we can use these biomarkers to understand whether or not you have a leaky gut.
How is leaky gut treated?
The main goal of treating leaky gut is to tighten the cell junctions along the gut.
In order to do that, we follow these steps:
- Remove the invading causes.
- Treat any infections, such as bacteria, yeast, and parasites (will be revealed on the stool testing).
- Use herbs and other supplements to heal the gut lining.
- Replenish the good bacteria.
Healing leaky gut isn’t complicated and often doesn’t take more than 6-12 months to diminish many symptoms.
It does take dedicated effort and often expert support.
To learn more, come on in to The Flourish Center this coming Tuesday, June 7 from 6:15-7pm for a free community presentation.
And, if you know you want testing and support, schedule an appointment with me, Jen Owen, N.P. now.
Please share this post widely because likely your friends and family are dealing with this, too.
by Jen Owen, N.P. | May 5, 2022 | Food Medicine, Integrative Medicine
Insulin resistance is what I call the “pre pre-diabetes” because it’s actually happening in the body before your blood glucose is ever abnormal and you get the diagnosis of pre-diabetes.
Watch the video now or read on….
#1: What are the symptoms?
Some people don’t have any symptoms at all when they have insulin resistance, but most people feel really tired. They feel like they are dragging around, so they go in to see their medical provider. Blood tests otfen show that “nothing is wrong with them”.
Some people have weight gain, especially around the abdomen. Many “crash” after they eat certain foods and they don’t understand why.
For some people insulin resistance affects their mood. It can cause a low level of depression or that feeling of feeling very “hangry”.
#2: What actually is Insulin Resistance?
I could go into a deep physiology lesson about this. The basic thing I want you to know is that insulin is what lets your blood sugar (your glucose) into your cells to give them the energy to do what they need to do. When you have insulin resistance the blood sugar is not getting in, and so your cells don’t have that fuel that they need.
#3: How do you fix it?
I recommend getting your insulin levels checked—it’s part of the routine labs I do here at my clinic in Portland. If you do get it checked, you want to make sure your insulin level is under 5. Slightly over 5 is going to be mild insulin resistance, and the higher it goes, the more insulin resistance you have—meaning the less glucose is getting into your cells
The most important thing you can do to help this process is eating protein. You want to eat protein every few hours throughout the day, eat a high protein breakfast, and always have protein at your meals and with any carbs that you eat.
By doing that, you’re going to stabilize your blood sugar level in your blood and you’re going to reduce that insulin resistance for those cells.
That’s it! It’s actually simple.
Why we’re not checking it in the regular, conventional blood testing, I’m not sure, since insulin resistance is happening in your body well before your blood glucose levels are ever elevagted. We would be heading off a lot of pre-diabetes if people knew about this ahead of time. It would also be saving you hours and hours of being tired and not feeling like yourself because this is happening in your body.
If you’re in Portland, I’d love to see you at my clinic—we can work through this. And if not I hope you’ll see your own provider and have this checked! Or just make sure you’re eating protein throughout the day and with meals to keep that blood sugar stabilized and reduce your risk of insulin resistance, reducing your risk of pre-diabetes and diabetes down the road.
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