All posts tagged "Ask the Expert"

  • Genki: part 2

    Last month I gave you three tips for physical energy to help you get and stay genki. This month focuses on some less tangible strategies for ramping up your energy and enthusiasm in life and work. Ever...

    • Posted July 31, 2012
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  • O Genki Desu Ka? My top tips to increase energy for life and work

    “Genki” is one of my favorite Japanese words. Despite being used as the functional equivalent of “How are you?” and “I am fine”, “(O) genki desu ka” and “Genki desu” have a much more inspiring undertone.  Because...

    • Posted July 1, 2012
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  • Is two years old too early for English lessons?

    Question: I’m planning to have my two year old child learn English. Is that too early? I’m sort of confused because some people tell me that it’s way too early to do so while others say the...

    • Posted July 1, 2012
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  • Being jouzu: leveraging your talents for success

    Any foreigner living in Japan quickly discovers the word “jouzu”, a Japanese word that means skillful or talented. When uttering any relatively coherent Japanese phrase, kind Japanese listeners eager to encourage your linguistic brilliance often exclaim “Anata...

    • Posted May 31, 2012
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  • What kind of reactions can a parent have if they are left by their spouse?

    Dr. Douglas Berger says: It is normal for everyone to be in some level of distress if “left behind” after a divorce. In cases where the relationship itself was distressing, a separation or divorce may lead to...

    • Posted May 31, 2012
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  • Pre-natal swimming in Tokyo

    Among the things a medical practitioner will tell you once pregnancy is confirmed is to take good care of your health.  This means abstaining completely from alcohol, eating a good balanced diet and doing a lot of...

    • Posted April 2, 2012
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  • The one thing

    The first quarter of the year has already come and gone and hopefully you are feeling great about your progress so far. Unfortunately, you are far more likely in the 90% of people who feel like they...

    • Posted April 2, 2012
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  • Spring cleaning for peak performance

    Spring cleaning your house is a great way to renew your energy and lift your spirits in the short term, but spring cleaning your time will enhance your energy, productivity, and results for years to come. So...

    • Posted March 1, 2012
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  • Love and other drugs

    As Valentine’s Day looms and people around the world turn their minds to love and chocolate, the movie title, Love and Other Drugs, got me thinking about the various types of love and the different kinds of...

    • Posted January 31, 2012
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  • Criticize by creating

    Life is filled with opportunities to complain and criticize. We witness it in both organized forms, such as documentaries and protests, and organic forms like customers complaining about poor service, employees criticizing their company’s policies, and bosses...

    • Posted December 1, 2011
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  • Do Japanese-Western relationships work?

    The majority of Japanese-Western couples do well, or as well as any Western-Western, or Japanese-Japanese couple may do. The needs of Japanese-Western couples in trouble are generally the same as for same-culture couples with a few having...

    • Posted November 2, 2011
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  • Febrile convulsions

      Febrile convulsions are fits or seizures which occur during a fever (raised temperature) in a child aged between 6 months and 5 years.  They affect about one child in 30.  The words convulsion, fit, and seizure...

    • Posted November 2, 2011
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  • Are birth control pills making me stressed and depressed?

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   QuestionI am a 34 year old married woman and took birth control pills for the previous three years because I wished to defer pregnancy. After stopping the pill I became depressed and...

    • Posted September 30, 2011
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  • Single vs Family: the right to choose

    A recent article in The Japan Times suggested that Japanese people in their 20s and 30s are delaying marriage and family due to income concerns. I got married when I was 39 and had my first child...

    • Posted September 29, 2011
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  • What is ‘frozen shoulder’?

    The Japanese have a good name for it: go-juu kata, 50 shoulder. This is a common and distressing condition which comes on for no known reason, typically in people in their 50s. One shoulder gradually...

    • Posted September 1, 2011
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  • To eat or not to eat? That is the question

    In my efforts to eliminate the last ten pounds I gained while pregnant with our son, I have spent the last few years trying every diet imaginable. Despite modest success, none of these plans seemed to stick...

    • Posted September 1, 2011
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  • How to get the best out of your doctor

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   From time to time I get e-mails or phone calls from members of the public along these lines: ‘I need a so-and-so test – how much does it cost?’  Are they expecting...

    • Posted July 29, 2011
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  • Creative living in Japan

    Many people long for a more fulfilling life, yet few take advantage of the multitude of opportunities around them to create it. When I was living in Tokyo, this topic came up one day over coffee with...

    • Posted July 29, 2011
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  • Itchy rashes

    One sometimes hears of people suffering from ‘hives’.  This is a colloquial word for urticaria, an itchy rash in the form of blotches or wheals which can appear on any  part of the body and disappear after...

    • Posted June 8, 2011
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  • Right-sizing your vision

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   In this final installment of the Stressed in the City series I want to address an often misunderstood topic that is at the root of stress for many successful people – vision...

    • Posted June 8, 2011
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  • The power of purpose

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   If you are in Japan, there are many pressing survive level concerns competing for your attention right now, so why should you bother investing any energy to think about cultivating a sense...

    • Posted May 15, 2011
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  • Is it safe to prescribe psychotropic drugs to preschoolers?

    “30% of specialists prescribe psychotropic medication to preschoolers” the alarming headline reads (Japan Today, 10 March 2011). What’s your view, Dr. Symonds? The implication, of course, is that these drugs are over-prescribed. The article seems to have...

    • Posted April 1, 2011
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  • Closing your integrity gaps

    Stress has become such a common part of life, that people are often not even aware how high their level of stress might be. No matter where you live, answering the following questions will provide you with...

    • Posted April 1, 2011
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  • The prescriber’s dilemma

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   Before prescribing any medicine, a doctor ought to be prepared to answer the following questions to the patient’s satisfaction:   What good will it do? What harm might it do? What harm...

    • Posted April 1, 2011
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  • Stressed in the city: part 2

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   Last month I revealed the secret of leveraging your strengths to enhance your energy and immunize yourself against stress. This month, I am introducing another key stress reduction strategy: closing your Integrity...

    • Posted February 28, 2011
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  • Generalist or specialist: which is better?

    If you need to see a doctor, is it better in the first instance to consult a general practitioner (GP) or a specialist?   After all, a specialist knows more than a GP, right?    Although in...

    • Posted February 28, 2011
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  • Stressed in the city

    Living in Japan can be both exhilarating and exhausting. No matter how long you have been here, living in a foreign country adds a layer of stress that you wouldn’t experience back in your home country. Case...

    • Posted February 1, 2011
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  • Illness or personality issue?

    QUESTION My spouse has been told she has a depression but she is reluctant to engage in therapy or take medication. Can you help me understand the reasons for this and what to do about it?   ...

    • Posted December 27, 2010
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  • Resolutions

    How many times have you started off the new year with high hopes and a long list of lofty resolutions only to end up frustrated by the end of the first quarter (if not sooner!) to see...

    • Posted December 27, 2010
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  • How to know when it’s time to go

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova Should I stay or should I go? Not only was this a question I was asked by friends, colleagues and clients on a regular basis throughout my sojourn in Japan, it was ultimately...

    • Posted November 29, 2010
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