Straight Talk MD

Latest Episodes:

Why We Snap: Understanding the Rage Circuits in Your Brain with R. Doug Fields Sep 16, 2019

Show notes

Every day we hear about otherwise law-abiding citizens with no history of mental illness or violence that snap and commit savage, senseless, and brutal acts of violence for seemingly trivial provocation. What caused them to snap? It turns out there are a limited number of triggers in our environment that cause the rage circuits in our brains to fire. The violent behavior is the result of the clash between our evolutionary hardwiring and these triggers in the contemporary world.

Today I have neuroscientist, R. Douglas Fields, in the virtual studio to explain the biological roots of why we snap and to reveal the nine triggers that set off the hardwired circuits in our unconscious brain that move us to rage and aggression without us even understanding the reason for it.

Helping Teens with Chronic Pain with Dr. Rachel Zoffness Aug 19, 2019

Show notes

Making sure today's teens and adolescents receive appropriate treatment for chronic pain may help them avoid becoming another statistic in the opioid addiction epidemic in the future. Today, I interview pain psychologist Dr. Rachel Zoffness, author of "The Chronic Pain and Illness Workbook for Teens." We discuss strategies that teens with chronic pain can use to turn down the volume on their pain, break the pain cycle, and get their lives back.

Dr. Zoffness has a number of strategies and techniques that are likely to change the way you look at chronic pain, and studies have shown that these same strategies and techniques Dr. Zoffness discusses are more effective in treating chronic pain than opioid medication. If you are a teen with chronic pain, or know a teen with chronic pain, or are the parent of a teen with chronic pain, tune in and please share the episode!

Indispensable Remedy: The Impeachment of Donald Trump Aug 12, 2019

Show notes

Gene Healy, Vice President of the CATO Institute and author of "Indispensable Remedy: The Broad Scope of the Constitution's Impeachment Power" and "The Cult of the Presidency", is in the virtual studio to provide the analysis on the merits of the potential articles of impeachment against Donald Trump. Gene makes one thing clear: he's not on the red team or the blue team and calls it exactly the way he sees it— no spin. Take a listen.

It's Mueller Time Jul 24, 2019

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More than 1000 current or former federal prosecutors have signed a letter stating that: "The conduct of President Trump described in the Mueller Report would, in the case of any other person not covered by the Office of Legal Counsel policy against indicting a sitting President, result in multiple felony charges for obstruction of justice."

Today, I have former federal prosecutor and CNN Legal Analyst, Jennifer Rogers, in the virtual studio to explore the multiple acts by Donald John Trump described in the Mueller Report (Volume II) that would qualify as crimes and misdemeanors.

Clear and Presidential Danger Jul 01, 2019

Show notes

On this July 4th week, there are more than 80 members of the U.S. Congress calling for an impeachment inquiry into the crimes and misdemeanors of Donald Trump. So far, the two ranking members of Congress who could make that happen today, Nancy Pelosi and Jerrold Nadler, are resisting that pathway. Today, I interview Dr. John Gartner, contributing author to the 2017 bestseller "The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump" to find out why he believes that these members of Congress are correct and why the impeachment inquiry is necessary now.

Fragile: Handle With Care Jun 17, 2019

Show notes

The most cynical surgeons like to say that anesthesiology is 99% boredom and 1% sheer terror. Strange Daze is about the one-percent. This episode is about a routine anesthetic for a baby having a hernia repair that devolved into one of the most terrifying cases of my early career. For a pediatric anesthesiologist, a hernia repair in a healthy baby is about as straightforward a case as you'll ever get. Until it becomes part of the one-percent. How can a routine anesthetic go so wrong? Truth be told, in about a million and a half different ways.

Medicare for All and the Man on the Moon May 23, 2019

Show notes

Obamacare 1.0 is terminal, but what will take its place? 2020 Democratic hopefuls are running on a platform that includes some version of universal health insurance, but only one bill, the Medicare for All Act of 2019, has more than 100 sponsors in Congress. This bill may be the most ambitious healthcare reform ever proposed in this country. If the Dems win back the Senate and the White House, Medicare for All is positioned to replace Obamacare. Today Ron Howrigon joins me to dissect the Medicare for All bill and how it is likely to affect providers, insurance companies, and the people it serves.

Healthcare 2020 & the Bridge to Honolulu May 05, 2019

Show notes

On the ninth anniversary of the signing of Obamacare into law, Donald Trump is trying to overturn it in the courts.

Republicans in Congress have been trying to repeal and replace Obamacare unsuccessfully for more than seven years. Many Democrats acknowledge Obamacare is a rolling disaster and are divided between trying to "fix" it (whatever that means) and replacing it with some version of a Medicare for All plan.

Obamacare 1.0 is the status quo and neither party appears satisfied with the status quo. Today we examine where we are, how we got here, and where we're headed in 2020.

Anti-Doping Rising Feb 24, 2019

Show notes

The use of substances to enhance performance in sport--what we call "doping" today--is as old as sport itself. In Episode I, we introduced the current anti-doping crisis in sport. Today, we search for the origins of the anti-doping movement to understand how we got here. This is Episode II in our six-part series: "The Anti-Doping Crisis in Sport."

The Anti-Doping Crisis in Sport: Part I: The Current Crisis Nov 12, 2018

Show notes

On September 20th, The World Anti-Doping Agency [WADA] made a "U-turn" and lifted the suspension on the Russian Anti-Doping Agency [RUSADA] even though they had not fulfilled the terms for their reinstatement and despite worldwide protests from its member anti-doping agencies and athletes. This has created what some insiders are calling the greatest anti-doping crisis in WADA's history. But this is only the latest in a series of crises and scandals in the world anti-doping system that threaten their very existence. Today we begin our six-part series "The Anti-Doping Crisis in Sport" with the events leading up to the September 20th WADA decision to reinstate Russia and the background for those new to this important subject.

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