Thomas Wolfe says, “You can never go home again.” However, to go forward, I have to go backward from time to time. I return to the places where the dreams began: my hometown and the small college where I did my undergraduate work. That’s where I’m sitting right now, writing these pages. Through the windows I see the amphitheater...Continue reading
Category: Family
Behind Every Egg is A Sperm
It’s a tenet of American culture that if you try hard, you’ll succeed. Hard work pays off. The early bird gets the worm. No goal met without sweat. But, try telling this to sperm. It’s always been thought that the best looking, fastest moving sperm wins the egg. It’s why Woody Allen in Hannah and...Continue reading
Six Steps to Intimacy with Your Menopausal Partner
As a menopause care provider, I usually have these discussions with women. But you’d be surprised how many men also want to talk about how intimacy is changing–or has disappeared- -as their wives navigate menopause. First, some definitions of terms: Perimenopause precedes menopause. The systems that have kept periods regular and supported pregnancy and childbirth...Continue reading
A Special March Madness Bro Weekend
Here’s a notion from the natural world: there’s safety in numbers. Birds do it. Bees do it. Even educated fleas do it. But why is mass behavior safer? Apparently because having many eyes allows for earlier threat recognition and herds offer dilution of danger to individuals within it. Even in humans, research has shown that...Continue reading
African-American men at higher risk for prostate cancer
African-American men have the highest risk of developing prostate cancer, compared all other races. A study from the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Pennsylvania suggests that there are specific genes that may indicate aggressive prostate cancer in African-American men. The researchers believe that their results may partially explain the reason for ethnic disparities in prostate...Continue reading
Mental and Physical Health: You Can Have It All For a Song
Just about everyone loves a good song. Whether you’re watching The X-Factor, The Voice, or Glee, or singing in a choir, a karaoke bar, the shower, your car, or on stage, there’s something almost magical about the combination of words and music. Actually, it’s more than magical. There’s a growing body of research suggesting that...Continue reading
My “Normal” Lifestyle Almost Killed Me
I was living what I thought was a “normal” lifestyle when all of a sudden I was facing death. One day I was visiting family, the next I was in the hospital experiencing dizziness and shortness of breath. I soon learned I had three blocked arteries, and would quickly need triple coronary bypass surgery to...Continue reading
When Noise Makes You Crazy
Most of us have negative reactions to certain sounds, the most famous of which is probably chalk or fingernails on a blackboard. (Interestingly, as chalk and blackboards go the way of the floppy disk, many people are just as bothered by the sound of dry erase markers squeaking on whiteboards.) But there’s a big difference...Continue reading
How to Impress Her on Valentine’s Day
You asked her for a date on Valentine’s Day. Now what? You really want to impress her. Dinner and a movie? A dinner show? Just dinner? A ball game? Hot tubbing or a spa? Karaoke? Salsa dancing? Split some chocolate lava cake? The pressure is on. It must be perfect. What’s a guy to do?...Continue reading
When Being Number One Is Bad News
It’s no secret that guilt plays havoc with our health. People who feel guilty for extended periods of time are, on average, more depressed, more anxious, more stressed, and have a weaker immune system than those who go through life without the guilt. They’re also more likely to engage in risky, destructive behavior, including self-medicating...Continue reading