Mind Body Medicine Program

Introduction

Thank you for exploring our website and class offerings. We couldn’t be more excited to be here as a resource for the patients and staff at this command. 
As a program, we offer three types of care. Continue reading below for class descriptions and registration information:

• Education Classes
• Skill-Building Classes
• Meditation and Mindfulness
• Special Events

Additionally, we participate in health events and are collaborative members of the military health community.
We are happy to provide personalized presentations and events based on the needs of your sailors, patients, staff, and participants. Please let us know how we can best support you and your work!

Registration Information
​​For Patients:
To register for any of our classes, please call the Health and Wellness Department front desk at (619) 532-7764. This is considered a self-referral.
​For Providers:
You can submit an official referral via MHS Genesis under "Preventive Medicine." When making your referral, ensure it is routed as “Health and Wellness: (and the reason for the referral i.e. MBM, Nutrition, DSMT, etc.). This is considered a provider-referral, but your patients can also self-refer by calling our front desk at (619) 532-7764.
Eligibility:
All TriCare beneficiaries (18 years of age and older) are eligible to attend.

​What To Expect: First Steps               
Regardless of referral method, incoming patients will have a medical appointment with one of our RN Health Coaches. Together with the patient, our providers will assess the patient’s needs and collaboratively develop a plan for next steps. This plan may include education classes, skill-building classes, or a mix of the two, and also includes other classes in the Health and Wellness Department.
We recognize that medical providers are busy and in a constantly changing occupation. Due to this, we don’t expect patients or providers to continually stay up-to-date on our offerings. Instead, this initial meeting with our RN Health Coaches will provide the most updated information about our classes and events.
All you have to do is call the Health and Wellness Department’s front desk (or refer your patients to use) to learn more: (619) 532-7764.
 

What is Mind Body Medicine?

“Mind Body Medicine” is an umbrella term that includes a wide range of activities, therapies, classes, and events aimed at supporting the holistic and biomedical wellness of patients.
Similar terms to “Mind Body Medicine” that may be familiar are: integrative medicine, holistic health, whole health, and complementary medicine.     

About Mind Body Medicine

Across the globe, many ancient cultures and civilizations believed in the healing power of the mind and the inherent connection between ourselves and our environments. With time and scientific advances, popular medicine shifted focus toward a treatment model that emphasized bodily health and under-emphasized mental health, emotional well-being, and the personal values of patients.
Over the past 50 years, however, an ever-growing body of research has unveiled the immense power of the mind to impact our health. In fact, Mind Body Medicine is regularly used in evidence-based clinical guidelines for medical providers and these approaches are best used in tandem with biomedical services. 

​Prevalence of Mind Body Medicine  

Mind Body approaches tend to be low-cost and easily personalized, which make them an attractive option for many people. Additionally, as time goes on, we learn more and more about the many ways that Mind Body Medicine can support health and wellbeing. 
Research done between 2013 and 2014 indicate that about 1 in 5 US adults (approximately 20%) report actively using at least 1 Mind Body technique within the previous 12 months of being asked. Furthermore, researchers found that meditation (a common Mind Body technique) has greatly increased in popularity. Between 2012 and 2017, the amount of US adults who meditated more-than tripled (prevalence data from Wolsko, Eisenberg, Davis, & Phillips [2004]).

Mind Body Medical Approaches Support Healing

Mind Body Medicine techniques have shown to be effective in supporting health outcomes related to the following conditions (this list is not exhaustive). Some conditions have a wide body of research supporting Mind Body approaches as effective, and other conditions have some research supporting their use, but not enough for clinical guidance. As always, check with your medical provider prior to starting any new health-related practice or routine. The below conditions are listed in alphabetical order.

• Allergies
• Anxiety
• Arthritis
• Asthma
• Cancer
• Chronic Pain
• COPD
• Coronary Artery Disease
• Dermatological Conditions
• Diabetes
• Headaches
• Hypertension
• Incontinence
• Infertility
• Insomnia and Other Sleep Challenges
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• Lower Back Pain
• Recent or Upcoming Surgery
• Stroke
• Tinnitus
• Ulcers