According to a 2015 article published in the annals of gastroenterology, the gut-brain axis consists of “bidirectional communication between the central and the enteric nervous system, linking emotional and cognitive centers of the brain with peripheral intestinal functions.” The central nervous system being the brain and spinal cord, whereas the enteric nervous system includes nerves within the esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, pancreas, gallbladder and biliary tree…

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Here is a quick list of things that may indicate that your hormones are out of whack: We will start off with the most well-known issue… mood swings. Mood swings can happen because our hormones are out of balance. This can be either directly due to the hormones or from the ripple effect from the hormones causing insomnia or poor sleep quality — most people are irritable if they are utterly exhausted. Imbalanced hormones can also cause a desire to eat foods that aren’t necessarily beneficial for us to eat

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First if you are a woman or if you are someone who loves a woman in whatever capacity, I want you to feel empowered to speak up for your right to appropriate health care. Your body is yours, you are well within your right to refuse care that infringes upon your bodily autonomy. You are not at the behest of your healthcare professional. You are well within your right to question, ask, and fully understand what is happening and why before you give consent.

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What is your liver? Let’s get to know this friendly fella that lives on the right upper quadrant of your abdomen. Your liver is your friend and is incredibly vital to your overall health. You may have heard that the liver can regenerate itself, but it is not magical. Years of abuse to your liver can impair its ability to heal itself. Damage to your liver can happen through over the counter medications, prescription medications, a poor diet or obesity, hepatitis infections, uncontrolled diabetes, and of course alcohol misuse.

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When I was in nursing school, 2008, I had an instructor who dedicated a lot of her nursing career to palliative care. Something she said really resonated with me–often cries of “I just want to die” and begging to be “put out of their misery” were the result of unimaginable pain and suffering. She went on to explain that these pleas are fleeting and in-the-moment. My bedside experience solidified her teachings that once we get our patient more comfortable, those desires to die will lessen.

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The world health organization defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” This is a very short and succinct description of health, itself. There are dozens upon dozens of papers trying to define the concept of health across many healthcare realms —nursing, medicine, pharmacology, physical therapy to name a few.

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