Be Well Blog

Brian Whyte, Doctor of Physical Therapy

Why I Do What I Do:

The sound of a swimmers voice called from across the pool deck, "Hey Brain, can you stretch me out before my race?"  This was a common occurrence back in High School when I was on the Greenwich High swim team.  I was in high demand at each meet.   I just instinctively knew how the body moved and what it needed to be more efficient.  You could say I had a special touch, a heightened understanding.  
 
Being an athlete and being active drives me.  It was my participation in sports that afforded an appreciation for how the body moves and how I can control or improve that movement.

I devoted more and more time to developing a better understanding of the body, which led me to a love of medicine.  I wanted to help those who were injured and ill to regain normalcy in their lives.   Becoming a Doctor of Physical Therapy allowed me to embrace my strong suites of caring, motivating, and one-one personalized attention.     

My work as a Physical Therapist is driven by my desire to give the highest level of individualized care.   In many fast paced rehabilitative settings a patient is lost in the daily shuffle, left to wonder, "Am I doing this correctly?"  My intention is to guide and teach each patient how he or she can best meet the demands of their desired lifestyle.  Practices include postural correction, strength training, normalizing restricted mobility, and obtaining proper flexibility and balance.  For some this may result in living pain free, able to work and spend quality time with their families. For others it may provide the ability to participate on local sport teams or in races.  For some it could simply mean being able to get out of bed on their own each morning.  

My work leaves me with a great sense of accomplishment knowing that I have had a true an impact on my patients’ lives and can improve their quality of life.

Gail Yurman, Licensed massage Therapist

Why I Do What I Do

After working in the corporate world for over 20 years, in 2003 I made the decision to follow my passion to help others experience the benefits of massage and enrolled in massage school, at the ripe young age of 40!

When I was a child I was diagnosed with a mild case of scoliosis, curvature of the spine. Nonetheless, I was active and participated in many sports.  I had my first professional massage when I was 18 years old. I was home on a college break suffering from pinched nerves in my neck and terrible low back pain.  A friend suggested I see his chiropractor, who recommended that, in conjunction with his therapy, I get a professional massage from the therapist in his group. That massage greatly increased the mobility in my neck and I felt tremendously energized when the session was over.  

From that time forward, I have used massage to manage stress, reduce anxiety and fatigue.  Regular massage therapy has also given me improved concentration, greater flexibility, a calmer heart, and increased energy, not to mention so many fewer aches and pains!  I love being a massage therapist and am so delighted that my work brings these same benefits to my clients. 

I incorporate a lifetime of knowledge into my massage practice, utilizing my intuition and personal experiences, as well as formal training.  An initial intake interview with each new client helps determine your level of wellness and therapy goals, and together we create a plan to reach those goals. Your session with me should be as unique as you are.

To make an appointment with Gail call The Center at 203.708.9299

Integrative Medicine Explained

By Dr. C. Evers Whyte

What is “Integrated Medicine?”  Ask ten different doctors this question and you might get 10 different answers.  It’s an exciting topic in that new findings are being published every day about how the success of medical outcomes are  improving through integrating different therapies, protocols and even medical paradigms.

My answer is this: Integrated Medicine is a model through which a physician or therapist first looks at a person who is coming for help, asks themselves, “What does this person need to become whole again?” and then uses any and every tool and resource available to facilitate that healing process.  It is more than the combined use of various “conventional” and “alternative” therapies, but aims to access deeper levels of our consciousness.  For example, a hug could be clinically described as, “two persons wrapping their arms around each other and squeezing,” but we all know this explanation lacks the true essence of what a hug is all about!

To begin to understand and appreciate the “process” of Integrated Medicine we first have to appreciate that while our bodies are made of interconnected physical systems–cardiovascular, skeletal, endocrine, nervous, etc, we are more than the sum of these parts.  We are in actual fact, beings composed of integrated and interpenetrating Intelligences: body, mind, soul, and spirit.

To be healthy, we need all these aspects of our beings to be “aligned” and working harmoniously.  If there is dis-harmony, there is dis-ease.  As an Integrated Medical physician, I seek to align and integrate all effective medicinal modalities to heal all the integrated elements, or Intelligences, of your being.

The patient that comes into our office with fatigue and brain-fog may be suffering from iron-deficiency, anemia, or adrenal exhaustion, perhaps hypoglycemia, decreased melatonin production, or the reluctance to go through the natural process of grief at a loved-one’s death after a long illness.  As I work with the patient to find the root of her ailments, we may discover that a number of these diagnoses are correct, perhaps even all of them.  This patient doesn’t have a Prozac deficiency.  She may need a change in

Heart Disease in Women

A Preventable Killer 

Heart disease is the leading killer of women over the age of 25.  It kills nearly twice as many women in the US than all types of cancer combined, including breast cancer.  If you’re surprised by these numbers you’re not alone.  Only 13% of women believe heart disease is a threat to them.  Worse, a recent survey showed that less than half the doctors thought of heart disease as a major threat to women, and less than half the women receiving regular medical care say that their doctors have ever talked to them about reducing their risk of heart disease.

This underestimation, by women and their doctors, of the very real and severe danger of heart disease is a primary contributor to the high death toll because in most cases, with adequate awareness, heart disease is preventable.  This is worth repeating:  the disease that kills more women in the US than all cancers combined is in most cases preventable.

Preventing heart disease depends completely upon first acknowledging its threat and then educating one’s self to the various risk factors which can include high cholesterol, blood pressure, estrogen levels, heredity, diet, and lifestyle.   Does this list seem like too much to manage?  It’s not at all.  Most of the risk factors can be monitored through blood tests and all of the factors can be controlled by better, easy to follow, heart-healthy lifestyle habits. 

It is also important to know that the symptoms of heart disease displayed by women are significantly different than those presented by men.  Because they don’t display the “classic” symptoms of heart disease or a heart attack, women often go undiagnosed, or wait too long to seek medical help while having a heart attack.  Knowing the warning signs is as important as knowing how to prevent the disease to begin with.

At The Center For Health Renewal we strongly believe in empowered patients and advise women to take charge for their health through awareness, early diagnosis, and lifestyle management. 

Heart Disease In Women: Prevention Is The Best Medicine

Workshop Announcement

Heart disease kills nearly twice as many women in the US than all types of cancer combined, including breast cancer.  This statistic is stunning, especially because in most cases heart disease is completely preventable.  Join us and learn about risk factors, warning signs and easy to live with prevention methods.

WHAT:  An interactive discussion led by Brooke Davidson, D.O. (OB/GYN), with a special interest in preventative medicine.

WHEN:  Thursday, September 24th, 7:30 PM

WHERE:  The Center For Health Renewal, 30 Myano Lane, Suite, 26, Stamford, CT

HOW:  Please call to reserve a seat as space is limited:  (203) 708-9299 or email askdoctorwhyte@gmail.com

A $10 donation is suggested and will be given to The Women’s Heart Health Initiative at the Cardiovascular Research Foundation in New York City. Dress comfortably and bring a friend or two because awareness is lifesaving.  To learn more, visit www.TheCenterForHealthRenewal.com

Valerie Giglio, LMFT Holistic Psychotherapist

Why I Do What I Do

“As a teenager I had the opportunity to work with children suffering with neuro-atypical disorder (autism).  I was struck by the isolation and profound "inner-aloneness" that these neuro-atypical children seemed to experience.  I learned that I may not be able to radically change their symptoms, but I hoped to positively affect their separateness from our world by being willing to meet them within their world.  Through this work I discovered my love for the art of healing.

My work as a therapist is driven in essence by that same desire to alleviate the emotional wounds of separateness and aloneness that are simply part of the human experience.  My intention is to guide clients toward self-empowerment and emotional freedom by helping them identify limiting, fear-based beliefs that keep them from becoming more fully acquainted with their eternal, authentic self.

In my practice we use personal history to shed light on current misconceptions of one’s self and current struggles, but the main focus is on the NOW where all life and healing take place.  Loving and self-care begin only when we change our habits and thoughts in each moment.  My goal is for clients to leave each session with practical tools they can put to work immediately, rather than simply lingering on personal history.

C. Evers Whyte, MS, DC, DACBN

Non-Surgical Spine Specialist
Clinical Nutritionist

Why I Do What I Do

In college, I took up martial arts and while I was training, I stepped in some gymnasts’ chalk as I was throwing a kick.  I slipped and flew about 5 ft up in the air before landing flat on my sacrum on the wooden gym floor.  The pain in my low back was intense and continued to worsen until I was taking 25 Advil just to get through the day.  The stronger pain drugs made me sick.  I stopped exercising because of the pain and gained 20 lbs. After visiting 3 chiropractors, an orthopedist, a neurologist, a rheumatologist, and a neurosurgeon I always ended up with the same result:  “We can’t find anything Physically wrong with you.”  Obviously, my pain itself was not enough to convince these physicians that something was indeed seriously wrong.