Integrative Medicine Service

What are you taking? Eating? Doing? Will it reduce your cancer risk? Improve your breast health? Prepare you for surgery? Help you through treatment?

Have many of your questions answered by an expert in the field, available to you the first Tuesday of the month. This is a complimentary service only at Montclair Breast Center.

What is Holistic/Integrative Medicine? It is a combination of the best of all appropriate mainstream and complementary therapies to support your body, mind and spiritual healing. In addition to treatment of diseases, it includes health-promoting and illness-preventing therapies.

How Montclair Breast Center can help: Along with our patient-centered approach, our excellent physicians and staff, and our state-of-the-art equipment, Montclair Breast Center is now bringing in an expert in the field of Holistic/Integrative Medicine. Dale Bellisfield, RN, RH (AHG) is an herbalist-nurse who is well-informed to answer many of your questions about food, supplements, herbs and lifestyle issues. Given the conflicting and confusing information in the media, Dale will be on hand once a month to provide clear guidance, specific to your situation. This service is free to patients of Montclair Breast Center.

Therapeutic Foods: What you eat is crucial in the protection from cancer, and in the intervention and outcome of cancer. It also impacts how well you tolerate cancer treatment. Many foods are cancer-protective, and also have an important role in survival. A good food plan is also helpful in preparing for and recovering from surgery. Learn how your everyday meals can be delicious medicines for you.

Nutritional Supplements: There are many questions patients have about supplements. Understanding the role they can play in supporting your treatments or in preparing for/healing from surgery will help you avoid the dangers of taking too many or too few in your program. Learn how to include superior supplements safely and effectively in your daily routine.

Custom Herbal Blends: Herbal medicines are the most useful when they are blended specifically for you. If herbs are indicated, Dale considers your current situation, your past medical history, your medications, your allergies, your lifestyle and your goals in formulating a blend of teas and/or extracts for you. Herbal medicine can be helpful in many situations. Learn how herbs can support your treatments, strengthen your immune system and protect you against the damage of chronic stress.

Lifestyle: Exercise, acupuncture, meditation, laughter and minimizing environmental carcinogens can have a profound impact on your health and healing. Learn how to bring more healthful lifestyle choices into your busy life.

Adding Integrative/Holistic Medicine therapies into your life can offer many benefits to your health journey, whenever you start:

Cancer Prevention: If you live in a high-risk area, have a family history, or are positive for the BRCA gene, adding these modalities can protect your DNA and your genes, strengthen your body’s ability to grow normal cells, and defend against rogue ones.

Newly Diagnosed: If you are newly diagnosed, you can incorporate these approaches to help you deal with the overwhelming stress of the choices you confront, and help you compose a life plan to maximize your outcome, regardless if you need surgery, chemo, radiation or all three.

Preparing for Surgery: Guided imagery and a surgery-specific diet is especially beneficial to keep you relaxed pre and post-op, and to supply optimum nutrients for your body to use in tissue repair and overall recovery. These techniques promote faster healing and reduced need for pain medication.

During Treatment: You have many choices of custom-selected herbs and supplements to use during chemo and radiation to reduce the side-effects and strengthen your vitality, without interfering with the treatment benefits. These herbs and supplements can also help minimize chemo- and radiation-resistance, and improve long-term outcome.

Maintenance: Developing a healthful life plan of delicious and therapeutic foods and beverages, custom herbs and supplements, and enjoyable lifestyle choices targeted for your abilities and desires. This can optimize your survival, enhance your recovery, improve your vitality, and help you fully enjoy your life.

Overall Health: Many conditions can benefit from deep nourishment and positive lifestyle changes. Let Montclair Breast Center guide you there.

Dale is available the first Tuesday of the month. Please call the office for exact time and date. Please call Montclair Breast Center at (973) 509-1818 and ask for Nicole or Claire to set up a complimentary appointment.

You can also contact Dale directly at (201) 797-2583 for a comprehensive personal session. Price is available upon request. Find out more at www.herbaldale.com