Women’s Health in Lincoln – May 2021

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 13.4% of women ages 18 and older are in fair or poor health. National Women’s Health Week begins each Mother’s Day, with the 21st annual event this year running May 9-15. The week is focused on encouraging women to consider all of the factors that affect their physical, emotional, and mental health, understand the importance of each and every one, and remind them to make their health a priority in their lives. Some of the crucial pieces of women’s healthcare include staying active, eating healthy, paying attention to mental health, getting enough sleep, managing stress, avoiding unhealthy behaviors, getting regular mammograms, physicals, and vision and dental care. The list goes on, and it is a long list of things to fit into women’s already-busy schedules. But the consequences of NOT fitting them in can be pernicious to their long-term comfort and very life expectancy.

Women have unique health needs, for sure, and Women’s Clinic of Lincoln (womensclinicoflincoln.com) is a great place to meet them. With a focus on the overall goal of improving healthcare for women, Women’s Clinic of Lincoln has been serving the community of Lincoln since 1973. They are a leader in quality, personalized healthcare to generation after generation. Their large, diverse staff allows them to offer comprehensive women’s healthcare all at one location.

“Routine gynecological exams are a key part of a woman’s total healthcare, and at Women’s Clinic, we also offer gynecological in-office procedures, GYN surgery including robotic-assisted, as well as infertility care, clinical research, comprehensive breast-care procedures, mammography, digital 3D ultrasound, bone density testing (DEXA), and in-office laboratory services,” said Dr. James Maly.

These services help to manage the full spectrum of gynecological conditions, including everything from uterine fibroids to abnormal bleeding, endometriosis, painful intercourse, chronic pelvic pain, incontinence, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and more. They also provide the full range of services for maturing women in the years after they stop having periods, and they work to make your life better during those last 30 years or so. They guide you through safe treatments with estrogen, as women’s hormones are critical to how their bodies function. Proper hormone balance can help preserve your bone strength and help you avoid osteoporosis, help avoid urinary leakage, and so much more. Women’s Clinic of Lincoln can help you through all of your unique women’s health need.

Your Sight is Foresight

Sometimes vision doesn’t make the top of women’s lists of things that protect their overall health—but it should. Caring for your sight amounts to foresight in protecting your overall health. Your eyes are, in a sense, the lens to potential health issues, and caring for them amounts to caring for yourself.

 

“You and I know the beautiful graces of compassion and dedication women offer to others,” said Dr. Carla Ericksen of Beyond Vision LNK (beyondvisionlnk.com). “As a woman, you also need to know how important optimal health care is for you to maintain your highly active commitment to your family and the community around yourself. Vision problems for women can be gradual and often are quietly tolerated, but your eyes make up 90% of your day and can cause headaches, light sensitivity, anxiety, and disrupted sleep if you do not take care of them.”

Dr. Ericksen says women are more likely than men to have thyroid eye disease, eye infections due to makeup use, blur due to hormone shifts (ex. pregnancy, menopause, polycystic ovary syndrome), vision-related problems from concussion, dry eye, and even vision loss. Dr. Ericksen provides active care by giving women knowledge of their eye health and assessing their risk BEFORE they develop chronic inflammation, discomfort, or sight-threatening problems.

For example, it might be easy to consider dry eye as just an annoyance, but it is actually a disorder that can cause extreme damage if left unchecked. Women are twice as likely to have dry eye than men. Dry Eye is a chronic disorder and can cause ocular surface damage, corneal nerve damage, decreased vision, and extreme pain. Beyond Vision LNK’s “Works Plan” allows Dr. Ericksen to work with you individually to test your tears, evaluate meibomian gland function and structure, and create an individual plan for you.
“My advice for your eyes and whole-body health as a woman is to take care of you!” Dr. Ericksen said.

“Regular outdoor exercise 30 minutes a day, 64 ounces of water a day, and shutting down digital devices two hours before bed so you can get restful sleep is greatly needed for overall cell health in your eyes and all other parts of your body. Beyond Vision LNK is here to help you see well into the future!”

Run for Your Life!

If you’re looking to improve your overall health, consider taking up running. According to Women’s Running, research has shown that it can provide you with a longer life, better sleep, improved cognitive function, weight loss, reduced risk of many cancers, reduced depressed, lowered risk of diabetes, pre-diabetes, and blood pressure, improved immunity, mood, and self-esteem, and more. In Lincoln, we are blessed to have access to the expertise and products that make running work for you, thanks to Lincoln Running Co. (lincrunningcompany.com) They know what they’re talking about when it comes to running, and they walk the walk—or run the run, if you will! They’ll help you get geared up and pumped up to help you enjoy running and all of the positive health effects it delivers. Start with what you wear.

“Being comfortable is part of this equation—comfortable with your apparel and your footwear,” said Lincoln Running Co. Owner Ann Ringlein. “When you walk and run, you land with anywhere from two to four times your body weight, and you take about 1,500 steps a minute. That is a lot of pounding—even for tiny people. At Lincoln Running Company, we pride ourselves on getting you in footwear that you will love to wear and apparel that will perform how you need it to in all weather.”

Absorbing it All In!

A crucial part of women’s health—or anyone’s, for that matter, is their mental state of mind. A healthy state of mind can lead to improved focus, better sleep, more energy, and improved brain clarity—in addition to comfort and physical health. If you want to come about that kind of health naturally, CBD American Shaman (cbdamericanshaman.com) has what you need! In fact, they have CBD products that may help with relief, wellness, beauty, and more. What’s more, CBD American Shaman products are far superior to those of any other competitor because their proprietary, patent-pending nanotechnology, which means that 90% to 100% of the CBD actually is absorbed by your body to do its thing!

 

“We have achieved nanotechnology to perfection,” said Lincoln CBD American Shaman Owner Lance Schroeder. “For the body’s absorption rate, perfection is between 50 and 60 nanometers, and we are there. The thing a lot of people don’t understand is you can’t compare our products to others on the shelves for maybe less money, and that’s not because our products are more expensive for what they accomplish—in fact, it’s quite the opposite. Our proprietary nanotechnology features faster absorption, lasts longer in your body.”

When it comes to meeting your health goals with CBD products, it’s clear that CBD American Shaman is the way to go. Among some of their leading products now are CBGo, CBNight, and CBD Nanotechnology Gummies.

“CBGo has been shown to give you a lot of clarity, focus, and energy,” Lance said. “Take it in the morning and it will give you a big boost for those long days, without all the negative effects of caffeine. It’s water-soluble with nanotechnology so your body absorbs it, and it has CBD and CBG in it. The CBG gummies have apple-cider vinegar in them. CBNight is a fabulous natural sleep aid. As long as you don’t take CBD or drink alcohol for four hours before you take it, it will help you regenerate your sleep pattern. Take it about 30 minutes before bed, close your eyes, and drift away—and when you wake up, you’ll be refreshed and have zero sleep hangover!”

Medication Care

When we deal with injury or illness throughout our lives, we inevitably deal with the need for medications, which can become a huge hassle, and finding a pharmacy you can count on can be a challenge. That’s why we recommend Nebraska LTC Pharmacy (neltcpharmacy.com), which recently expanded into a new location, just off 40th and Normal Blvd. LTC Pharmacy was founded by Fairbury native Shannon Schultz-Hammerschmidt in 2011, when she recognized a need in the community for a pharmacy that did more than just count pills and slap on labels. With that in mind, the goal of Nebraska LTC Pharmacy is to continue to offer the “small-town” level of service while providing the highest level of care for their patients.

You’ll notice the high level of care from your first call to the pharmacy: No automated systems, no punching in prescription numbers, just great personal care. They want to help you with your or your loved one’s medications and preserve your independence, providing everything from free-adherence packaging, free delivery, in-home consultations, medication reconciliations with your physician, and more. They provide individualize patient care that increases safety and prolongs your independence at home.

Healing Hands

It might surprise you, but chiropractic care can help people of all ages with a variety of health concerns. Healing Hands Chiropractic (hoffachiropractic.com)’s Dr. Kimberly Hoffa is renowned for freeing people from their pain. She operates this family-oriented practice and takes pride in delivering outstanding chiropractic care in a warm and friendly environment. Dr. Kim is known and respected by patients, chiropractors, and other doctors throughout the Lincoln area, so if you are looking to reduce pain or improve your quality of life, you need look no further.

Dr. Kim uses chiropractic care to improve health and wellness in all areas of patients’ lives, whether they are having problems with back or neck pain, or just want to start feeling better when they wake up in the morning. She takes a ‘whole-person’ approach to care, which means looking for the underlying causes of disease, discomfort, and pain, as opposed to just treating symptoms.

Women have unique health needs, and it is important to stay in tune with your body’s needs and changes throughout your life. In addition to the importance of regular exercise and a healthy diet, we recommend contacting the specialists featured here to help you pave the way to a long and healthy life.