Can’t (cough) Stop (cough) COUGHING?

COUGHS often seem to hang around FOREVER, and this year’s flu season has been a prime culprit.

Allergies certainly can cause coughs as well, but typically allergy coughs are more the dry, annoying, clear-your-throat variety, rather than the wet sounding coughing fits (that worsen every evening and prevent sleep) which come from viral respiratory infections. Typically there are a few days of headaches, fever, body aches, sore throats and stuffy nose, but then the cough itself may persist for up to SIX WEEKS after the initial illness.

Is there anything that can be done for a cough that wont go … Read more

Best Valentines for your Sweetheart

Valentine’s Day evokes images of flowers, chocolates, and sumptuous dinners oozing with decadence…and I’m all about such celebrations! But February is often when the new-car-smell fades from our NYE resolutions, and boxes of zillion calorie chocolates enticing us from the kitchen counter are ultimately not such a loving gift-at least for the vast majority of us who’s health would benefit from weight loss. Does “just one” fancy dinner or box of candy ruin everything? Of course not! But why not make the EMPHASIS of your V-Day gift show that you support your loved one on a deeper basis? If so, … Read more

Why get a Flu test?

Rapid flu tests can tell you in about ten minutes if you have the flu; why don’t doctors use these all the time, instead of wasting your time with more questions or examining you?

POSITIVE flu tests are GREAT, and yes, they speed up our assessment. We STILL need to examine you to see, for example, if your cough is aggravated with wheezing in an asthma-like response (because that involves an additional, different treatment) or if it sounds like you have developed a pneumonia (either directly from the influenza virus or as a secondary bacterial infection)-again, different treatment.

A … Read more

Tidy Up: Medicine Cabinet Edition

Tidying up in 2019? Truly, reducing clutter does indeed REDUCE STRESS, so it sparks joy in me, whether or not you follow Marie Kondo’s method. In addition to precision-folded t-shirts, I’d like to encourage you to tackle your MEDICINE CABINET.

First of all, I’m betting you will find WAY-EXPIRED drugs that are at best merely adding clutter, and at worst, INEFFECTIVE when you need them. Take diphenhydramine (popular trade name Benadryl)- if you are grabbing this because you’re having an allergic reaction, you want it to WORK! Obviously the same would be true reaching for migraine, stomach acid, or fever-reduction … Read more

2019 Resolutions Road Block

2019 is my year of STRENGTH, or so I proudly proclaimed on December 31, 2018. Our nest is empty, work schedules are modified, and FINALLY, it’s time to add RESISTANCE TRAINING back into my healthy habits.

January 2, 2019: I blast into the gym, super pumped to sign up for some personal training sessions to re-introduce myself to weight machines after a decade-long hiatus. (Side note, friends, if we can treat ourselves to hair highlights or Starbucks, we can prioritize money to meet with dietitians or personal trainers- don’t be cheap on your health!) I try to … Read more

SUPERDOC Master Cleanse Diet

Welcome to 2019!

As we face the new year, many of us are looking to jumpstart our health. Like many, I happily over-indulged in treats, sweets and celebratory liquid calories during the holidays, and now it’s time to face the scale (or the jeans), own the numbers and get to work. So back by popular demand, here is my annual new year’s WORLD FAMOUS Dr. Grimes’ SUPERDOC Cleansing 3-Day Detox Diet* (or insert whatever over-the-top superlative and overstated title you prefer) 

TWITTER VERSION:

Eat #VEGGIES, #FRUIT & a #PROTEIN source + drink #WATER.

Yep, that’s it. Processed foods are … Read more

Top Five Best Gifts for College Students

In the final stretch of holiday season, what can you purchase for the college student who has “everything”? From the perspective of a COLLEGE CAMPUS DOC and mom of two college students, here are my top five gift choices:   (Disclaimer: NO financial ties to any products mentioned)

  1. Weighted blanket: Expensive ($100+)? Yes, relatively, but for anyone dealing with anxiety or insomnia, these are worth their weight (pun intended) in gold. These blankets feel like a massively prolonged hug, and have been shown to reduce anxiety and improve sleep. Any brand works, but if your student is particular about
… Read more

7 Simple Strategies to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

With Thanksgiving  in the rearview mirror, we are officially in the #EatDrinkAndGainWeight season, aka. the HOLIDAYS. Not to be a buzz-kill, because believe me, I LOVE December. Baking and eating our family’s traditional cookies, pies, and candied nuts invoke  a warm hug from my mom in heaven, bringing back comforting smells, sights, and tastes. For me, the extra “calories in” are worth the additional time and effort I will have to carve out to walk the dogs or climb on the elliptical machine to to balance the equation. And yes, I’ll admit that it does seem harder each year!

We … Read more

Nicotine/Nico-TEEN? Here’s Why NOT

TEENS want to know: WHY are adults freaking out and taking away their “harmless” JUULs (the most popular e-cigarette) when teens have REAL problems (like active shooters, social media stress, and impossible college admissions?)

DON’T ROLL YOUR EYES, this is a legit question from our teens. Let’s talk nicoTEEN!

Last week, Austin high school SENIOR GIRLS shared with me that well over HALF of their peers are JUULing regularly at school. (Rapidly outdated/underestimated studies from 2016 show that over 9% of 8th graders and 16% of high school students Juul.) These are the very kids who grew … Read more

Why MDs Avoid Supplements

When your physician asks what medications you are taking, and then follows up with “anything else? Vitamins? Supplements?” PLEASE share everything that you are taking. We don’t ask this to judge your personal choices, nor because we know every ingredient- on the contrary. Natural ingredients like herbs can and often do interact with prescription medications. At a minimum, we should have a complete list and look for obvious potential negative interactions (such as taking St. Johns wort with certain cholesterol medications, antidepressants or hormones), and also to promote further discussion.  For example, not only do WE not know … Read more