Can't sleep? Here's 7 Uncommon Reasons Why

Insomnia is a common struggle among many over 40. While traditional culprits like stress and caffeine are well-known, there are several unconventional factors that might be the reason for your sleepless nights. Let’s examine the surprising causes of insomnia and explore solutions that can help you TONIGHT!

1. Pain: The Silent Sleep Thief

Chronic pain from conditions like arthritis, back issues, or even tension headaches can make it difficult to find a comfortable sleeping position. Pain interrupts your body’s ability to relax, keeping you stuck in shallow sleep cycles.

Immediate Solutions:

• Supportive pillows: Use body pillows, lumbar support, or wedge pillows to reduce strain.

• Magnesium: This mineral can relax muscles and reduce nighttime cramping. Liquid and powder may work better for chronic pain.

2. Anxiety: The Mind That Won’t Turn Off

Anxiety doesn’t clock out at bedtime. Racing thoughts and worries keep the brain overactive, making it challenging to drift off.

Immediate Solutions:

• Mindfulness practices: ASRM or box breathing, can help instantly to calm the mind.

• Set a “worry time”: Dedicate 10 minutes earlier in the day to write down worries or unfinished tasks. This practice helps signal the brain that it’s time to rest later.

3. Imbalanced Circadian Rhythm

Our internal clocks, or circadian rhythms, dictate when we feel sleepy or alert. Irregular sleep schedules, late work shifts, or too much blue light exposure can throw this system off balance.

Immediate Solutions:

• Consistent wake times: Try to wake up/ go to bed at the same time every day, even on weekends.

• Avoid clock watching at night: Focus instead on an easy/ calm thoughts (no problem solving) and depend on your alarm in the am to wake you.

4. Low Serotonin and Melatonin Levels

Serotonin and melatonin are critical for regulating sleep. If these levels are too low due to poor diet, stress, or other factors, it can leave you wide-eyed at night.

Immediate Solutions:

• Foods that boost serotonin: Incorporate more lentils/ beans and complex carbs into your evening meal.

• Sunlight exposure: Spend at least 15–20 minutes in natural sunlight daily without sunglasses to support serotonin production.

5. The Wrong Pillow for Your Sleeping Position

Sleeping on an unsupportive or ill-fitting pillow can strain your neck and shoulders, leading to discomfort and disrupted sleep. What works for a back sleeper may not suit a side or stomach sleeper.

Immediate Solutions:

• Side sleepers: Choose a firmer pillow to fill the gap between the head and shoulder.

• Back sleepers: Opt for medium support to keep the head aligned with the spine.

• Stomach sleepers: Go for a thinner pillow to prevent neck strain.

• Regular replacement: Replace pillows every 1–2 years for optimal support.

6. Unawareness of Dominant Sleeping Position

Many people don’t realize they gravitate toward a dominant sleeping position, which may be causing discomfort. For instance, sleeping on one side without proper alignment can lead to pressure points or pain.

Immediate Solutions:

• Track your position: Use a sleep tracker or ask a partner to observe how you sleep.

• Adjust accordingly: Incorporate pillows to support your natural posture in your dominant sleeping position.

7. The Impact of EMFs on Sleep Quality

Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) emitted by devices like smartphones, Wi-Fi routers, smartwatches, and TVs in the bedroom can disrupt sleep by interfering with your body’s natural melatonin production and REM cycles. EMFs are thought to overstimulate the nervous system, keeping your body in a state of subtle alertness.

Immediate Solutions:

• Remove devices: Keep smartphones and other electronics out of the bedroom, or at least switch them to airplane mode.

• Unplug Wi-Fi routers: Turn off routers at night to reduce EMF exposure.

• Use EMF-blocking tools: Consider EMF-blocking curtains or mats to shield against radiation.

• How long to recalibrate?: It typically takes about one to two weeks for your body to adjust and for sleep quality to noticeably improve after removing EMF-emitting devices.

XO

Dr. Vera

Cryo-Compress Therapy for Sinuses, Ear infections and sore throats- All Ages

If you’re looking for a treatment that can jumpstart your immune system overnight, you’ve come to the right place. It involves putting on ice-cold socks and… sleeping in them!

This natural method of stimulating the immune system zaps bacterial or viral infections is called the “Cryo-compress treatment.”

Yes, you heard me. Ice cold compress, and it works for all ages!

It may sound strange, but it works because it rallies the body’s defenses at a deep physiologic level.

And the best part about it is that it uses the healing power of nature and doesn’t cost anything.

Who’s this great for:

The treatment stimulates the body to heat the cold, wet socks. The body reacts to the cold socks by increasing blood circulation, which also stimulates the immune system. This treatment acts to reflexively increase circulation and decrease congestion in the upper respiratory passages, head and throat.

The cold sock treatment can be used in conjunction with other immune-stimulating modalities to treat inflammation, ear infections, sore throat, headaches, migraines, nasal congestion, upper respiratory infections, coughs, bronchitis and sinus infections.

It’s best to start the wet sock treatment on the first day of an illness, ideally repeating it for three nights in a row. This treatment is great for all ages!

Here’s how to do the cyro-compress.

Supplies: 
1 pair of very thin cotton socks- ankle socks work best
1 pair of thick wool socks or thick cotton socks. (Must cover the thin socks fully!)
2 sets of sweats or cotton pajamas (covering the arms/legs)
1 bowl of ice water

Directions: 

1. Take a hot bath for 5-10 minutes. This is essential for the effectiveness of the treatment. In fact, it could be harmful if your feet are not warmed first.

2. Soak the pair of thin socks in the bowl of ice water. Then wring the socks out thoroughly so they do not drip.

3. Dry off your feet.

4. Place ice-cold wet socks on feet. Then cover with thick wool socks. Go directly to bed. The key is for you to be warm and your feet cold. Avoid getting chilled. Add a second comforter if needed.

5. Wear the socks overnight. Avoid the urge to take them off during the night. If you wake up with your whole body wet from sweat, change into another set of dry pajamas, but leave on the socks!

**You will find that the “wet socks” will be dry in the morning, like magic!

 Pro-Tip: Taking any kind of immune support whether tincture, capsule or tea prior to the Cyro-Compress treatment will 10X the effectiveness of the treatment!

Tinctures are my favorite as they are fasting acting and won’t have you urinating in the bathroom all night.

This is my favorite immune blend. It’s got a lesser-known, but powerful lesser herb called Osha (Ligusticum porteri) which has been used by the indigenous cultures for colds and flus for centuries. Absolutely amazing! Purchase it here at Fullscript

XOXO

Dr. Vera

Get Grounded: Nurture your body with this easy technique

As we close out Mindfulness May, I challenged myself to meditate every day, for even 5 mins. Well, it wasn’t a perfect 100% but I realized something in the journey…

I’d been feeling blah, dead, less lively, less like my bubbly self. With all that’s taken place since the beginning of the pandemic, I’ve just been on autopilot with survival as my energy source. Sound familiar?

As things have loosened up and masks have come off, I’ve noticed feeling disconnected STILL and haven’t been able to connect back fully with myself and with my environment even as things are opening up.

As I know in the world of available medication, there is no pill to make you feel more alive, more connected to the soul- to your true self. But, I know in practicing medicine that healing happens thorough energy exchange.

And because I’ve been feeling like dead wood, that flow of energy wasn’t moving as I needed.

I love the saying, “Ask and Ye shall receive” because that’s exactly what happened.

In walked a Chakra Meditation that saved my life! It changed the game.

Chakras are set energy milestones along the center of your body, from where your butt touches the ground to the top of your head. There are 7 of them and each just happens to overlap with key endocrine organs.

1- Reproductive organs

2.-Digestive system

3- Adrenal

4- Heart

5-Thyroid

6-Pituitary

7- Brain

Most chakra meditations focus on using imaging, color or sounds to recharge each center.

I started with the root chakra, #1 as this is the chakra to help with stoking creativity, fire, connection, and bringing forth life to surge oxytocin (one of the key hormones of love & attraction)

This has been a game changer in breathing life into the “dead wood”!

So I decided to create a sacral-root chakra meditation ( and share it with you for free) based upon imagery, sound and engaging the senses. Perhaps if you are feeling the same, I invite you to try this new prescription:

Explore using root chakra mediation to recharge. Take the time to nourish yourself, and if you like, continue with other chakra meditations.

There’s still some time left in May to check it out!

Hope you enjoy this meditation!!

XOXO

Dr. Vera

Still not feeling great after recovering from a COVID diagnosis?

Lingering post COVID symptoms is something you don’t hear about in the headlines.

We hear about the extreme cases of intubation and coma, but as we all know many of you who did test positive or thought you may have contracted it, may still have residual mild symptoms for which traditional medicine has no answer for.

Let's get clear on something- YOU ARE NOT CRAZY or LAZY! While we don’t have clear data about length of time one can experience COVID side effects, as with any fallout from viral infection, there may be susceptibility to develop symptoms- both short and long term.

I've got the support you need... keep reading!

I attended a lecture by a doc who specializes in post infectious fibromyalgia and it of course it makes perfect sense that a deep viral infection like COVID will leave the body in a state of nutritional and energy deficiency.

You must support the deep energy centers within your cells to jumpstart systems back online.

I’d like to share with you this protocol and lecture by my colleague Dr. Teitelbaum who specializes in Fibromyalgia and post viral & infectious disease. While some of the content may be hypermedical because its directed towards physicians, I think you’ll get incredible value by having this email on hand for you, or anyone you know who may be affected as an incredible resource.

Here's the cliff notes version...

Classic symptoms post COVID infection (or post vaccination):

• Fatigue with sleeplessness

• Chest heaviness

• Low stamina/ endurance

• Blood pressure instability

• Brain Fog

• Body Pain

• Muscle Cramping

• Experiencing increased perception of stressors

Where to start?

You need to do labs:
CBC, CMP, CRP, ESR, Full panel for Thyroid including reverse T3, B12, Folate, Iron, Ferritin with TIBC, random iodine, AM cortisol, and of course and a full sex hormone evaluation.

I am happy to run these for you if you are cash pay (I have discounted rates) or have a PPO and we can bill insurance. Otherwise good luck with getting your HMO or Kaiser doc to run these!

Begin the SHINE protocol

Check out the Post COVID Recovery Protocol I created for you in Fullscript. It's got all the essential supplements needed to recover your body. Take advantage of this resource! If you have question about which nutrient(s) would work best, reach out to me!

It’s important to activate the SHINE protocol if these symptoms sound familiar to you! It’s a comprehensive way to restore the body once again. Often times treating only one area will improve symptoms, but will regress over time.

• Sleep- get sleeping again. Restore hypothalamic signaling aka adrenals!

• Hormonal imbalance- restore cortisol and thyroid function to optimal

• Infection- Test & eliminate low grade yeast/candida, bacteria, HHV, EBV, CMV, persistent viral symptoms

• Nutritional- Restore the base nutrients levels consumed in viral infections, feed mitochondrial systems, polypeptides

• Exercise- Strike a balance. Not HIIT! Walking, improve stamina and muscle conditioning is key. 5-10K steps/day

Perhaps one or all of these areas haven't quite recovered. Ask yourself if you are 100% feeling better and if not...now is the time to begin that recovery process.

Although you may not feel yourself immediately after an infection like this, know that you always have me in your corner if you need a more thorough workup then your primary will provide.

Reach out to me if your have questions about your symptoms or if you need support

Book your 30 min free consult here…

Sending healing energy to you!

Dr. Vera

Ramadan: What Iftar can teach you about your digestion.

The most important lesson you should know besides what to eat, is…"How to listen to your body and eat according to its needs."

Fasting is a great time to learn about what your body likes and doesn't like.

 The most common problem many of my patients notice is with their digestion and energy with Iftar and even after Ramadan is over.

• If you feel tired and drained after eating alot of carbs and breads or fall asleep after eating, then you likely have issues with blood sugar management.

• If you feel bloated, full and find that your stomach doesn't get flat, you probably have a bacterial/yeast balance problem in your gut

• If your energy is low, even after you eat again, then you are not balancing enough macronutrients ( protein/carbs/fats)

 Here’s an case study of a patient I treated last year…

M. K. was a woman in her late 40's.  She was always tired, had trouble with her memory and her energy was low before Ramadan began. The fasting period helped, however, as the months went on she began to feel worse.

She had extreme pain in her stomach, heartburn, gas and to even touch her belly- it was very hard and painful. She went from constipation to diarrhea within one week. It was just too much to handle. It was affecting her life at home and she felt sick all the time.

Before we met, she asked her Gastroenterologist to run tests for her. But, all the tests came back negative and she still didn’t feel better even after they gave her an acid blocker.

When I met her, I ran this test for her immediately. All of the bacteria in the red section was causing her problems + she has Candida.

This is a classic test result of someone that experiences her symptoms.

If your digestive system is functioning optimally, you should notice:

• Stomach & belly should be pain-free, and free from gas and bloating,

• Nutrients should be well-absorbed

• Bowel movements should be regular and easy to pass everyday

• Skin should be clear and free from acne and pimples

• Your tongue is slightly pink, thin and doesn't have a yellow, or thick white coating on it

After working together for 8 months in my Digestion & Gut program, her test results looked like this:

A huge difference! We were able to get rid of the bad bacteria & yeast and now focus on restoring her good flora back to normal.

She was able to change her diet significantly and I treated her infections naturally, with herbs! No prescription medication was needed.

I checked in with her earlier this month and she is doing much better overall and even with Iftar, she doesn’t notice the pain and bloating anymore even though she is having bread, or dates/honey.

What you can do next?

If you are having digestion trouble and this story sounds familiar to you, please don’t suffer. I can help you get back to feeling normal again.

Reach out to me and let’s talk about what can be done. The Quick Start or the more comprehensive Digestion & Gut Program can help you too.

CoVID-19: Protect yourself using natural medicine

COVID-19: Is it hype or an emerging pandemic?

The news headlines has us on the edge of our seats.
Creating Worry or Nervousness...
Maybe creating false urgency?

Let's cut through the hype!

Here are some facts that might help ease your mind...

How would you know if you have it?

It looks like a classic flu or respiratory illnesses for this season — fever, aches, a dry cough and shortness of breath. Honestly you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a regular cold/flu  and a COVID infection.

Check in with your PCP or advice nurse if you have symptoms and are concerned.

There are 2 significant phases  to this respiratory illness- the first is the "influenza like phase" and the second is the pneumonia phase.  COVID sets off a fast inflammatory reaction in the lungs that leads to a fluid buildup and our immune system damaging us unintentionally in the effort to kill the virus.

Note that people ARE recovering from the infection. Just because you've been exposed doesn't mean you are going to die.  There are layers of treatment options given to lower the immune reaction and return the body to health.


Is this going to keep spreading?
We're right at the tail end of cold/flu season in California so naturally the viruses and bacteria are more likely to die in transit through airborne transmission. This is because of lower humidity, increased temps and us being outside instead of indoors. But the key is to stay warm!

There more you get outside in nature and avoid being in close proximity to others for long periods of time, the better. Balance your time indoor and outdoors.

Do what makes sense! Cover your mouth, wash hands, open windows at home and allow airflow. Clean surfaces of your home and office with bleach/ alcohol.  This includes cell phones, door handles, phones at work and  items that are touched by multiple people.


Who is susceptible?

The vast majority of the epidemiology who have been most affected are either elderly and/or have underlying pre-existing conditions with weakened immunity.  The communities affected in Italy are older, unlike the 1918 Influenza pandemic which was much more virulent and impacted folks younger than 18. It's important to know the clinical characteristics from a recent study just released.  


If you are a smoker/vaping (even cannabis), your lung immunity is more highly compromised.  Consider cutting back on the number of cigarettes you smoke per day.

Lower your susceptibility! Just because you are exposed  to someone who is coughing doesn't mean you've been infected.

In my next post , I'll cover what specifically you can do naturally to lower your susceptibility... stay tuned!

What to do when depression meds stop working?

Are you depressed, stressed, peri-menopausal or all of the above?

If you’ve noticed an increase in depression symptoms while taking an anti-depressant, chances are something else is causing your mood slump. Here’s what you might be missing…

#1) Exhausted and burned out adrenals: THE MOST COMMON mistake people make is assuming they are depressed and it’s often low levels of cortisol/epinephrine/norepinephrine. Ignoring this part of the problem is leaving a huge component of your healing on the table.

#2) Depending on Serotonin reuptake meds is also assuming you are producing enough serotonin to begin with.

You may not be producing enough serotonin if you have:

• Gut/ stomach issues, think you have IBS or leaky gut

• Issues with methylation or conversion

• Carrying too much fat around your belly

Sound familiar? All these issues, including getting your body to produce more happy hormones can be done through natural methods and requires an integrated approach.

I use a combination of methods in my hormone program for folks that desire to get off anti-depressants which includes improving your body’s own ability to produce ALL of the happy hormones.

The functional tests I use measures these hormones (which most doctors typically don’t order), the health of your digestion and uncovering what key vitamins are missing that are essential for hormone production.

Your body receives comprehensive support and…

you get to feel like yourself again.

Set up a free consult with me to talk about how to get started.

XO

Dr. Vera

Waking up at 3 am in the winter months? Here's how to fix it

The cold winter months is a great time to catch up on sleep, but if finding quality sleep is troublesome for you, check-in with these sneaky disruptive habits

• Build your sleep hormones naturally. If you are taking an SSRI or anti-depressant, it may actually deplete your levels of melatonin- a main hormone that initiates sleep. The fact is many people have no idea how to build sleep hormones. Not to worry, I’ll share with you in my next blog post on how to do just that.

• Avoid exciting or stimulating activities before bed especially those involving bright screens or electronics. Too much exposure to light at night can disrupt the timing of the sleep cycle. Also eliminating reading and responding to emails close to bedtime lowers the possibility of reading something urgent, which might make it harder to fall asleep.

• Don’t have caffeine after lunch and avoid alcohol near bedtime as both can disrupt sleep and wreck havoc on your blood sugar levels throughout the night. No bueno!

• Practice rituals that help you relax before bed such as taking a warm bath with Epsom salts, drinking nervine teas or journaling about your day

In the meantime, if you’ve tried everything but still having trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep, you likely need to build up sleep hormones. A huge ( but pesky) problem impacting good sleep quality. Curious about what this means? Book a free consult, let’s talk about it.

XO,

Dr. Vera

If you're over 40, you need functional medicine. Here's why

A large majority of my patients over 40 are happy with their docs.  Well sort of...

Insurance dictates medical care. We know that.  So according to this model there’s no need for looking beyond the surface. But what about what lies underneath? Standard labs and check-ins every two to three years should keep you from the major emergencies- RIGHT?

But what if you don’t feel fine right now? 

After 40, your body is not the same.  You feel it, but your doc is telling you “ to get over it, it’s just part of getting older or it’s just stress.”  

I don’t know about you, but SCREW ACCEPTING THAT as normal. 

You are pushing your body like never before, juggling more, taking on more responsibilities, rising to your peak and holding it all together for you and your family.  Thank goodness your body is rising to the occasion, but it also means you are burning through your reserves.

The Functional medicine I practice is about finding health nuggets that have fallen through the cracks allowing your body to shift into high gear and nourish & support you in this time of your life.

Countless times I have seen walking definitions of hypothyroid, peri-menopause, IBS or burnout symptoms being ignored, because...well, it’s complex and not so straightforward.

More complicated/complex issues means you need a game plan to iron out the layers of symptoms piling on top of each other.  On average most of my clients have been living with feeling crappy for 2-3 years. TOO LONG!

As a functional doc, my goal is to help your body not just as a collection of symptoms that needs another pill, but examining the common threads that link symptoms together and create a global solution.

Your body is screaming for support, for the right nutrients, the right diet for living in our stressed environment,  the right fatty acids, and for balancing the key stress hormones.

Traditional medicine isn’t very good at supporting this.

My health programs are designed to help the the working moms, the multi-tasking dads and the high achievers.  I work to nourish your cells and help eliminate the problems that arise in a 40+ yo old body. You’re in this life to win!

So, if your body is showing increasing signs of stress or burnout, my burnout program is top-notch for regenerating you. If your fatigue is getting out of control, check out the hormone program and if your brain fog is affecting your clarity and creativity, my digestion program will easily re-balance your system.

If you are over 40 and your NYs resolution is to get healthy, then set up a free consult with me to talk about your game plan to get there!

XO 

Dr. Vera