“I have parents who want to reduce the amount of medication their child is taking or who ask how they can minimize the side effects,” Dr. Singla says. “They ask whether an anti-inflammatory diet could help with their child’s inflammation and pain, or whether adding nutritional supplements may help their child’s condition.”
While she didn’t have all the answers, Dr. Singla was curious to learn other ways she could help her young patients live well with a rheumatic condition. She decided to enroll in the Integrative Medicine Fellowship offered through the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson. The 1,000-hour, two-year online learning program with a clinical mentorship program trains more than 160 fellows annually.
“I’ve learned that many families attempt integrative treatments on their own, without knowing the risks vs. benefits,” Dr. Singla says. “The fellowship offered me a broader perspective on caring for patients, and the ability to advise them on evidence-based integrative medicine options that can complement their traditional rheumatology care.”
When meeting with her patients today, Dr. Singla takes a holistic approach to their care, looking at how sleep, nutrition, exercise and other mind-body approaches, such as breathwork, journaling or meditation, may benefit her patients, in addition to medication.
“Sleep is a critical factor for managing my own RA,” Dr. Singla says. “If I don’t get eight or nine hours of sleep, my joints feel achy and stiff.”
She also encourages her RA patients to track pain, fatigue and other symptoms and to identify any flare triggers, such as movement, specific foods, weather and stress.
“I’ve found my own flare triggers are drinking red wine and eating certain meats,” Dr. Singla says. “I started eating a primarily plant- based diet and can feel the difference.”
By combining integrative medi- cine with her medical school and fellowship training, Dr. Singla says she’s able to offer her patients a wider array of therapies and enable them to become active partners in their healthcare through shared decision making.
Street Cred
“Having RA has made me more empathetic to the challenges my patients face on a daily basis,” Dr. Singla says. “Having a chronic illness is like riding a mental/emotional rollercoaster and pediatric patients have to learn how to manage a life-long illness.”
She also says her condition has given her street cred with her patients, who know she can relate to their challenges personally and offer solutions that have helped her own condition. It also provides some relief when families hear that she takes similar medications with similar side effects.
