"Mental health is an integral part of health; indeed, there is no health without mental health."
- World Health Organization
Patient Resources Clinical Services Other Services About Dr. PolakDid you know that our cells are programmed to heal themselves? We've all whacked our shin on a coffee table or seen a child fall and scrape her knee, right? Within days, we see the bruise change colours and then disappear as if the whack never happened. And the same happens with the child's scraped knee. Amazing, right? The same thing can happen at the level of our organs and organ cells. Let's say you've been diagnosed with gestational diabetes or type 2 diabetes. Your body is still making plenty of insulin for you, but your insulin receptors are not working properly — the insulin “key” normally opens the door to let glucose go from your bloodstream into the cell. Instead, the glucose stays in your bloodstream and you end up with “high blood sugar”, "insulin resistance", and eventually a diabetes diagnosis.
Most doctors will tell you to eat less sugar, but that will only mask the problem! But… if you eat the right foods, you can very quickly reverse the insult so that the sugar can get into your cells normally again. A 1979 study found that almost half the participants with insulin-dependent diabetes were completely off insulin by the end of the study. How long did it take? Maybe 16 months? 16 weeks? Nope. The study was 16 DAYS. Off insulin completely in just 16 days. Dyslipidemia, or high cholesterol, likewise is most often completely reversible when you eat the right foods. Often in just weeks. Heart disease can often be reversed or never start in the first place. Even autoimmune diseases can often completely reverse (though it usually takes longer — months instead of days or weeks), and also helped are menopausal symptoms, pms, chronic fatigue, and many other health problems. Eating this way also prevents cancer from starting or progressing in many cases.
You'd think that a strategy to heal our most deadly and crippling diseases would be the #1 biggest and most important course in med school, right? No! Why on earth did they not teach us this in medical school and residency training? I explain this and more in my free class. Come join me and let's start your journey back to recovering your best health and feeling better than ever. Invite a friend or support person to join you on your journey back to health!
More info and registerIn early 2021, we started conducting a two-year Randomized Controlled Trial on the effectiveness of Group Interpersonal Psychotherapy delivered remotely using Zoom. It is open to Mums in northern and rural Ontario who have recently had a baby and are experiencing depression. Participants must be under 12 months postpartum, have a valid OHIP card, and be a resident of Ontario. Send us a message if you would like to receive further information.
Dr. Vivian Polak is the Principal Investigator of this two-year research study starting in Jan 2021. It is a Randomized Controlled Trial comparing virtually delivered Group Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) for Mums with postpartum depression to usual care. IPT is a first-line therapy for depression and works particularly well in the perinatal population. However, this mode of remote delivery of a group IPT protocol has never been tested. We want to determine if Group IPT when delivered to women in different locations (i.e., in their own homes) can help Mums recover from depression. Women will be randomised to two groups - immediate treatment or delayed treatment. We encourage all women to access any other care while participating in the study by providing them with a list of resources. A new group starts approximately every 6-8 weeks. Participants must be under 12 months postpartum, have a valid OHIP card, and be a resident of Ontario. Our primary focus is on mothers in Northern Ontario. Send us a message for more information or to join this study.
We hope to scale up this group therapy to serve all women (pregnant and postpartum) of Ontario. Current research shows that up to 85% of Mums do not get diagnosed or treated for perinatal depression. Let's be the change we want to see. To scale it up, we will need more IPT therapists! Hence, Dr. Polak is also offering Perinatal IPT Training Workshops for interested therapists. For more info and to register for the training click here. Please share widely!