Dr. Mandy Swinden, ND

07/08/2023

Does this resonate with you? 🤨
It's kind of crazy that there is SO MUCH free health information available, yet we (everyone, but especially women) are not doing well in the health department.
Perhaps not all of what we see online is applicable to you and your circumstances? 🤔
Wouldn't it be great if you had a guide...someone to tell you exactly what YOU needed to do based on your goals?
Hit me with your thoughts!

18/07/2023

Rest. The thing my patients and the athletes I work with seem to be the most confused about. 😬
Rest can and should happen outside of the hours we are sleeping. 😉
I know this is a struggle for most. There is always so much to do and so little time. Plus we're expected to work 60+ hours/week...
If you're tired all the time, if you've stopped recovering well from workouts, if you're not able to perform like you used to - what are you doing for rest? 🤔

17/07/2023

Women and men are different for many reasons, but did you know sleep requirement is one of them? 🤨
About 1 hour more per night! 😴
I will definitely be letting my husband know this information so that he can allow me to sleep in more than once/month 😛

12/07/2023

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but...alcohol isn't great for you. Once upon a time, it looked like there might be a 'sweet spot' when it came to amount of alcohol consumed. Now we know this isn't the case.
Sometimes we take these risks in order to have some solid social interaction. So, is there anything you can do to mitigate the negative health effects? 🤔
Stay tuned to find out!

12/07/2023

06/07/2023

Blood work. It's the most accessible testing we have. When we put it together with symptoms and relevant physical exams, we get answers.

27/06/2023

We can't control where a competition or event falls in your cycle, but we can control our prep, our fuelling, our mindset, our training.
I have a lot to say about this 🙂

21/06/2023

This question rolled into my DMs, so I thought I'd share for everyone!
Note: this is just an overview of what I did to regulate ovulation and extend my luteal phase. YOU are not me. Your plan may look different, which is why I recommend booking an appointment if you're struggling with ovulation/luteal phase/hormone issues 😉

03/07/2022

31 weeks pregnant with baby boy number two 💙
Getting in some nature time while it’s not too close to my due date. Although, I’m not opposed to having a free birth in the wild 🤷🏻‍♀️😄

14/06/2022

I attended the conference last weekend, and one of the talks that really stood out from the rest for me was given by . She went over some stats and facts about postpartum and the lack of support women get during this very overwhelming period of their lives.
It sticks out to me because this was NOT my experience postpartum. In fact, I had an amazing birth and postpartum experience in which I felt very supported by my (professional) care team which consisted of a midwife team, doula, lactation consultant, pelvic floor physiotherapist and pre/postnatal chiropractor.
What most other birthing mothers experience in the postpartum period is fragmented care among various health care providers, which ENDS when the new baby is six weeks old
🤯
Although I don’t do a ton of pre/postnatal care in my practice, I’m really feeling the guilt of not making sure the few patients I do see during this time period, haven’t been checked for adequate support by me. This time period is CRITICAL for the future health of the mom (and of course the baby), and as a clinician, I can’t be underemphasizing the importance of support.
So, my tip for any expecting mamas out there is this: make a postpartum plan BEFORE baby comes. Plan for more support than you think you’ll need. Arrange for friends and family to provide nourishing food for you, assist with other children so you can rest, and do not be afraid to ask for even more help if you need it! 😉

01/04/2022

This is not an April fools joke. Apollo is being evicted from his Olympus crib in a few months and he’s pretty upset about it 😬
Hopefully he feels differently about being a big brother! 😃

08/03/2022

Back office selfie for International Women’s Day!
I’m so grateful for all the work women have done over the decades, to get us to this point. We’re able to get an education of our choice, a career of our choice, play sports, and also become moms and wives if we’d like.
There’s still a lot of work to be done - I see it the most working in healthcare and reading research articles.
Women, you deserve to be studied. You deserve for your symptoms to be validated. You deserve to be heard.
Let’s keep fighting 💪🏻

24/02/2022

Some things just can’t be delegated, and caring for a sick baby is one of them!
There’s a lot I want to share on here, but it just hasn’t been possible lately. I just want you all to know I’m still here, still learning, still growing, and I’ll get back on the female hormones and performance education soon! 😉

30/01/2022

“May it never be said of me, that I was silent in the face of fear, and in doing so, passed the battle onto my children.”
- unknown

27/01/2022

Pure joy. Something many of my patients haven’t experienced much of the past two years. 😞
It’s showing in many ways, one of which is the sheer number of them that have been put on an antidepressant or anxiolytic medication. 💊
There’s nothing wrong with going on a medication when it’s needed, but I think we need to start really talking about what lock downs, social isolation, not going outside, staring at screens all day, and closing gyms has done to people’s health - physical and mental.
I’m so grateful for Apollo and the joy he has brought my family and I during the past year and a half! I’ve never personally struggled with mental health, but I often wonder what lock downs would have done to me if I didn’t have this happy boy or my husband in my life. 🤔
I feel so deeply for my patients whose mental health really took a hit this past couple years. Hopefully soon we will stop hyper-focusing on one problem while forgetting about hundreds of other issues, and start to consider ALL the factors that influence our health and happiness! 🤞🏻
In the mean time, a ten-minute walk outside at least once/day is an easy and simple way to boost your mood. 😊
Bonus points if it’s after a meal 🥘

25/01/2022

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Something drastic needed to happen and Canadian truck drivers have stepped up. 🚛
This isn't an anti-v post, but an anti-mandate post.
How can we as doctors practice informed consent when a medical procedure is being MANDATED? 🤨
I haven't posted on here in a while because I've been finding it very difficult to pretend like I'm okay with everything that's going on in my country.
I do not support masking our children or taking away their rights to be kids (playing sports, socially interacting, etc.) during the most critical developmental years. 🙅🏻‍♀️
I do not support the government tying doctors' hands behind their backs. No government official should have the authority to tell a doctor what to do with the individual patient in front of them. That is up to the doctor and the patient via informed consent.
Stay strong truck drivers of Canada, this country needs you! 🇨🇦

26/12/2021

I don’t know how you all take such nice family photos…this is the best we could do 😏
Merry Christmas everyone ❤️🎄😀

30/11/2021

I’m not a big fan of ovulation predictor kits, but I love teaching women how to track their cycles, pay attention to their cervical fluid, and know whether or not they are ovulating each month. Ovulation is how we make progesterone - and we like progesterone 🙂💆🏻‍♀️