Five Simple Resolutions for a Healthy = Happy New Year!

by Dr Parul Chopra Buttan

It's that time of the year when we will all bring out our buckets full of lists-to-do next year! The truth is that many of us know already that we won't be able to make them all. But have we paused to wonder why? It's not our resolve that is weak; in many cases it's our bodies.

A healthy body keeps a happy heart and a happening life. Commit to these easy-to-follow health tips and prepare yourself for a spectacular sixteenth year of the century...


1. Plan your day

The first 30 minutes of your day - spend with yourself. Meditate, concentrate, stretch. Use the time to plan your day. Could be a list of to-do tasks you'd like to accomplish or qualities you'd like to manifest. E.g. I'll be kind today. Visualise yourself living the day of your choice and strengthen your self to do the same. Have a similar ten minute 'me time' in the afternoon to check on progress and adjust; and then have another quick one before you go to bed to gather the learnings the day brought, savour the joys and offer thanks. Immensely helpful for reducing stress!

2. Drink plenty of water

Water is the elixir of life, yet we so often do not hydrate ourselves enough. Less water intake contributes to ineffective metabolism, low concentration, obesity, voice abuse, low concentration, urinary infections, tendency to stone formation. Women, because of their body structure are especially prone to urinary tract infections which can be recurrent and troublesome. It's helpful to have set times in the day when you replenish your body with a glass full of clean drinking water. E.g. on waking up, 11am snack time, reaching home from office etc.

3. Say no to smoking

With stress levels going through the roof, smoking in women is on the rise. The new year is a good time to 'kick the butt'. Smoking, besides causing lung cancer, throat cancer, mouth cancer, stomach cancer, bladder cancer amongst other damages is especially harmful to women.
Unbeknown to most youngsters, smoking is associated with ovarian decline and infertility. In pregnancy, it can cause miscarriage, premature birth, growth restriction and stillbirths.

4. Work out

Incorporate some fitness routine into your day. Be it walking, cycling, jogging, running, zumba, pilates, swimming, gymming. It's great to have a fitness buddy to keep up your motivation and add value to your workouts too. You could choose your neighbour, friend, your husband or even your smartphone! It's never too late to begin.  If you are not accustomed to exercise before, do consult your doctor before starting. Start with age and current fitness-level appropriate workout regime and build up gradually.

5. Sign up for health

We ever so often postpone our appointment with the doctor even for a discomfort. Somehow, suffering the tooth sensitivity or the nagging backache seems more tolerable than making the effort to fix it. The woman of the house can hardly afford to fall sick as she carries the whole family through the day, juggling a dozen things! A 'well woman check-up' according to your age and needs is highly recommended. Certain annual checks like the breast examination, pap smear are a small step that go a long way in preventing dreaded diseases like breast and cervical cancer.

Let's make 2016 a healthy one. Let's give our body and mind the care they deserve. Let's take charge of our happiness and start afresh!

Happy New Year!

Surviving miscarriage

Written by Dr Parul Chopra Buttan

I was reading a newspaper report on Paris recently when my inquisitive 2 year old comes by and seeing the picture of a woman crying, asks innocently, "Mumma, aunty kyun ro rahi hain?" Not wanting to thwart her curiosity, I answer despite my discomfort, "because her baby got hurt" [her child was killed]. "Why did the baby get hurt?" I noticed the 'Why' instead of 'How'. That's one deep question, Why? Why do innocent people get hurt? Why does it all happen? Why do we go through this pain of untimely loss?

I couldn't find words and I wasn't prepared for this conversation, so I kissed her and distracted her into a game, much lighter, more age-appropriate for her. But I could sense her disappointment at not getting her answer. I lived with it, mentally making a note to work on an answer and get back better prepared the next time around.

I was dwelling intermittently on this need for an answer to everything, when a conversation with a very intelligent patient of mine happened. She said, "Doctors are like the barrier between us and death, us and mishaps. And when they fail to give us answers, it's deeply disappointing."

Yes, it's 2015. Yes, we are sitting on a mountain of medical research of the past two and a half centuries. But no, we don't have all the answers yet. Our knowledge, even though, has come a long way, certainly has a long way to go. I talked about miscarriage in my last post. In almost 20% of the pregnancies lost early, despite extensive investigations the exact reason for miscarriage may remain unknown. We will not be able to pin the occurrence of a miscarriage on something you did or did not do. We will not be able to justify the guilt you may be feeling or the blame, because it really is nobody's fault.

I'm sorry for the answers we can't provide today. I'm sorry for the pain we can't take away. But here's what we can do. And it is my mission to do my best in this endeavour.

1.     Allow the woman space to feel her emotions

Often, the myriad of emotions a woman may go through, disappointment, guilt, anger, loss, bereavement, grief, get shoved under the carpet. "It's only a miscarriage! People go through much worse!” she is told. Though it is true, much worse horrors are possible and do happen in this miraculous world of making babies, the experience of 'pain' is very individual. Only the wearer knows where the shoe hurts.

2.     Accept her state of mind

Non-judgemental acceptance of the waves of emotions she's going through is paramount to healing. Just when we allow ourselves to feel an emotion rather than resist it, does it flow through us and pass. It resolves, leaving us cleansed. The gynaecologist's chamber should be the one place where the woman can bring up any issue and any doubts around it, any number of times. We will answer them calmly, repeatedly, with the best possible explanation of the current scenario.

3.     Reassurance

Often, the event of losing a pregnancy haunts the woman all through the next one. As gynaecologists, we are happy to repeatedly offer you very encouraging statistical and medical evidence and research, all through the next pregnancy to reassure you. We are in this journey together and our aim of delivering to you a healthy mother and a healthy baby is an oath. We will go the extra mile to ensure your peace of mind, that comes from a qualified professional's true reassurance.

4.     Precautions

Any precautions (physical or otherwise) and medication that may help in reducing the chance of a mishap the next time around – we will discuss in detail to help you make informed choices. Of course, needless medication and restrictions would certainly be discouraged.

5.     Hope

We hope that when the cries and laughter of your magical bundle of joy fills up your home, it drowns the silence of grief you felt for the pregnancy lost.

Life goes on and brings with it a multitude of experiences. Some we're able to make sense of, some just flow through us with a higher meaning, as yet unrevealed.