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PLNU | Integrative Wellness, M.S

@plnuiwell

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📚 Official page for PLNU’s iWell program
📍 NBHWC-approved program
🌱ACLM Full Academic Pathway
💚 Sharing about whole health and well-being

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Low testosterone? Look at the whole picture.

For men in fire, law enforcement, emergency medicine, and military service, demanding schedules, disrupted sleep, and chronic stress can make caring for ourselves difficult.

When testosterone is low, replacement therapy may be appropriate—but it isn’t always the first or only answer. Lifestyle medicine is a valuable place to begin, alongside a proper medical evaluation.

Ask yourself:

🥗 Nutrition: Am I eating enough and choosing mostly whole foods, with adequate protein and healthy fats?

💪 Movement: Am I strength training, staying active, and balancing training with recovery?

😴 Sleep: Am I protecting my sleep as much as my schedule allows? Could sleep apnea or another sleep disorder be contributing?

🧠 Stress: Do I have effective ways to decompress, or am I carrying the job home every day?

🤝 Connection: Do I feel supported at home and at work? Do I have someone I can talk to?

🍺 Substances: How are alcohol, cannabis, or other substances affecting my sleep, recovery, and daily functioning?

These habits support overall health. Addressing reversible contributors may also improve testosterone levels in some men, although results vary.

In my own experience, improving those foundations coincided with better energy, body composition, and testosterone levels. I’m still a work in progress.

TRT has a time and a place. The goal is to confirm low testosterone, understand why it’s low, and choose care that fits the person—not just the number.

You’ve spent years showing up for others. You deserve support, recovery, and the opportunity to thrive, too. 💪

References:
Endocrine Society—evaluation and treatment:
https://www.endocrine.org/clinical-practice-guidelines/testosterone-therapy

Sleep restriction and testosterone:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21632481/

Weight loss and testosterone:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27584019/

#OneLifeHealthFit #LifestyleMedicine #FirstResponderWellness #MensHealth

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Human performance begins with the six pillars of Lifestyle Medicine. So does your health.

Eat a whole-food, plant-forward diet. Move your body regularly. Protect opportunities for restorative sleep. Practice stress-management methods that work for you. Build meaningful relationships and a sense of purpose. Avoid or minimize alcohol, nicotine, and other harmful substances.

These principles sound simple, but simple does not mean easy. Modern life is filled with distractions, conveniences, unpredictable schedules, and competing demands that continually pull us away from the behaviors that support our well-being.

The six pillars of Lifestyle Medicine create the foundation for wellness. Wellness improves our capacity to withstand, adapt to, and recover from illness, injury, stress, and adversity. That resilience allows us to show up as healthier, stronger, and more capable versions of ourselves.

Performance is built from the foundation up:

Lifestyle Medicine
Wellness
Resilience
Human Performance

Which part of your foundation deserves more attention right now?

#LifestyleMedicine #Wellness #Resilience #HumanPerformance #FirstResponderWellness

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** PLEASE SHARE! 📣** Link in comments.
I’m recruiting participants for my master’s capstone research study on AUTOIMMUNE SYMPTOMS and WOMEN’S HEALTH.

If you or someone you know may be eligible, please consider participating or sharing this post. Every participant helps move this research forward.

📋 About 15 minutes

🔒 No names or contact information requested

🔗 Scan the QR code to learn more and see if you’re eligible.

Thank you for your support!

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Mental Health Month: Social Connections

HEALTHY Social Connections are important. This is how we gain broader perspectives and reduce our blind spots in life. We aren’t made to live in isolation, but in community with others.

There will be times in life to help others, and times to accept help…This can’t happen without Social Connections.

#mentalhealth #veteran #firstresponder #socialconnection

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Mental Health Month: Boundaries

Clearly communicated and consistent boundaries are things that I struggled with. My entire adult life has been service oriented.

In the military and fire service the mission comes first. As a leader, your troops needs take priority over your needs. Sacrifice and grit are badges of honor.

This can be a slippery slope to self neglect and loss of self worth. At some point, you have to advocate for yourself and stand firm. This WILL ruffle some feathers.

Be accountable to yourself and be firm with others. It’s tough AND necessary. Respect is a two way street 🤙🏼

#mentalhealth #veteran #firstresponder #boundaries

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Two very different classrooms this week. One shared mission.

At Point Loma Nazarene University @plnu, I had the privilege of working with Physician Assistant students through case-based learning focused on the renal system, applying nutrition and culinary medicine principles to patient care.

Meanwhile, my Integrative Wellness graduate students gathered virtually from their own kitchens for a hands-on Mexican feast. Many were experienced cooks. Others were complete novices.

One of the most meaningful conversations wasn’t about the recipes. It was about the frustration, planning, grocery shopping, timing, mistakes, cleanup, and feeling overwhelmed that can come with cooking.

That experience matters.

When we ask patients or clients to “eat healthier” or “cook more at home,” we’re asking far more than changing what’s on their plate. We’re asking them to navigate skills, time, confidence, resources, culture, and daily life.

Experiential learning builds more than culinary skills. It builds empathy. And that makes us better healthcare professionals.

Grateful to work with learners who are willing to step into both the science and the lived experience of food.

Thank you to Jessica Matthews, DBH, NBC-HWC, DipACLM, FACLM and Laurel Miller, DMSc, PA-C for inviting me into these learning spaces, for believing in the value of culinary medicine, and for trusting me to help students stretch and grow in ways that are often unexpected and entirely new.

#CulinaryMedicine #TeachingKitchens #LifestyleMedicine #ExperientialLearning @plnuiwell @plnu_pa

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Mental Health Month: Movement is Medicine

The simple act of physical activity has been shown to boost mood, metabolism, and muscle mass. It also reduces perceived stress levels, inflammation, and symptoms of mental health conditions.

Myokines (aka the Hope Molecules) are released during skeletal muscle contraction causing profound positive effects on many aspects of human health and wellbeing.

There are countless studies showing that exercise can be more effective than antidepressants in humans. Imagine that 🤔

My message is this: Get out and get active, however feels right for you. Maybe it’s hiking or biking, maybe it’s gardening or going to the gym. Just do something!

#mentalhealth #lifestylemedicine #veteran #firstresponder #myokines

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While studying Integrative Wellness at Point Loma Nazarene University, I learned so much about Lifestyle Medicine and how effective it can be for treating many of life’s challenges.

Exercise was found to be more effective than pharmaceuticals for many cases of anxiety and/or depression. Also, Eastern Medicine has shown us the calming effects of connecting with nature.

I won’t bore you with all the details, unless you guys want that 😉

For now I will just encourage you to get out and be physically active in nature. Hiking, biking, swimming, surfing, scuba diving, etc. Pick your treatment of choice and let me know how it goes 🤙🏼

#mentalhealth #anxiety #depression #lifestylemedicine

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If we want to reduce chronic disease, we have to train clinicians to look upstream.

At Point Loma Nazarene University, students trained in lifestyle medicine are taught to identify where health problems begin, not just how to manage them once symptoms develop.

By integrating the six pillars of lifestyle medicine across graduate education, future healthcare professionals learn how nutrition, movement, stress, sleep, connection, and substance use patterns influence long-term outcomes.

This training doesn’t apply to just one condition, it strengthens prevention and treatment strategies across many chronic diseases.

Part of Project Remission, a digital series from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine produced in partnership with @Content_With_Purpose

Watch the full films and explore the series here via the link in our bio!

Featuring: Alex Lugay | Sabrina A. Falquier | Jennifer King | Jessica Matthews

🎥: Content With Purpose

#ProjectRemission #LifestyleMedicine #ACLM #WholePersonHealth #EvidenceBasedMedicine #ChronicDiseaseCare #Type2Diabetes #DiabetesRemission

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🚨 New Publication Alert 🚨

“The future of masters level education in lifestyle medicine is bright and rapidly evolving. As the global burden of chronic, non-communicable diseases continues to rise, there is growing recognition across healthcare systems that traditional, treatment-focused approaches are insufficient on their own. This has led to increased demand for professionals who are trained in evidence-based, patient-empowering care models; precisely the kind of training a master’s degree in lifestyle medicine provides.”

Paper co-authored with Kenny Kusnadi and Dr. @bethfrates.md published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine.

#lifestylemedicine #healthprofessions #gradschool #healthcaretransformation #wholehealth

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At Point Loma Nazarene University, lifestyle medicine is woven throughout the Master of Science in Integrative Wellness program. The six pillars—nutrition, physical activity, stress management, restorative sleep, connectedness, and avoidance of risky substances—are embedded across coursework, empowering students to apply them in diverse real-world settings.

Learn more about the Integrative Wellness, M.S. program here: https://www.pointloma.edu/iWell

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At Point Loma Nazarene University, lifestyle medicine is woven throughout the Master of Science in Integrative Wellness program. The six pillars—nutrition, physical activity, stress management, restorative sleep, connectedness, and avoidance of risky substances—are embedded across coursework, empowering students to apply them in diverse real-world settings.

Learn more at @plnuiwell and @aclifemed!

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