This is one of the most common medications people get stuck on.

Today I'm talking about proton pump inhibitors, or PPIs, the most commonly used medications for acid reflux.

They work very well. That's part of the problem. Because once you've been on them for a couple of weeks, it becomes very difficult to come off.

In this episode, I walk through why that happens and how to safely taper off. I also explain what to expect during the process, because there will be some rebound symptoms.

We also talk about practical ways to manage symptoms during that transition. Things like using short-term alternatives, adjusting how and when you eat, and making realistic changes that you can actually stick to.

Because most of the standard advice out there is not sustainable. The goal here is not just to stop a medication. The goal is to feel better without needing it long term.

--------------------------
Download my free 6 Healthy-Aging Habits ebook:
https://www.healthyaging.drashori.com/

Book a health coaching session:
https://drashori.com/health-coaching/

Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Subscribe on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Mohammad Ashori MD

Zone 2 vs Zone 5 sounds scientific, but for most people, it doesn't matter.

Everyone is talking about Zone 2 and Zone 5 training right now. And if you listen to enough podcasts, you might think your entire health depends on staying in the "right zone."

But for most people, that's not how health works. In this episode, I break down when heart rate zones actually matter, and when they don't. If you're training for a specific performance goal, then yes, zones can be useful.

But if your goal is long-term health, energy, and staying active as you age, focusing too much on zones can actually distract you from what matters most. The healthiest people aren't calculating their heart rate every day.

They're just moving. They walk, they lift, they carry things, they stay active in diferent ways.

--------------------------
Download my free 6 Healthy-Aging Habits ebook:
https://www.healthyaging.drashori.com/

Book a health coaching session:
https://drashori.com/health-coaching/

Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Subscribe on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Mohammad Ashori MD

Dizziness is incredibly uncomfortable, and it can also be confusing.
But not all dizziness is the same, and the cause often tells us how to deal with it.

In this episode, I talk about a symptom that many people experience at some point in their lives: dizziness.

But dizziness can mean many different things.

Some people feel lightheaded.
Some people feel unsteady.
And others experience the sensation that the room is spinning around them.

That spinning sensation is called vertigo, and it often points to a problem with the body's balance system in the inner ear.

In this episode, I explain how I think about dizziness when patients come to see me.

I talk about:

• the difference between vertigo and other types of dizziness
• the most common causes of vertigo
• conditions like benign positional vertigo, Ménière's disease, vestibular migraine, and PPPD
• how doctors start evaluating dizziness
• and what people can do to cope with dizziness when it happens

Understanding what type of dizziness you're experiencing is often the first step toward solving the problem.

--------------------------
Download my free 6 Healthy-Aging Habits ebook:
https://drashori.com/ebook/longevity-habits/

Book a health coaching session:
https://drashori.com/health-coaching/

Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Dr. Ashori MD

Health insurance isn't meant to keep you healthy. If you understand this, you'll use this product much more effectively.

Many people assume that having health insurance means their health is protected. But those are two very different things.

Health insurance is a financial product. It exists to protect you from catastrophic medical expenses. It does not automatically mean you are healthy.

Over the years, I have seen many patients struggle not only with their health but also with the financial burden that comes with medical care.

Medical bills are one of the most common reasons people fall into serious debt or even bankruptcy.

In this episode I explain:

• why health insurance exists
• why healthcare costs continue to rise
• why health and health insurance should never be confused
• how I think about protecting yourself financially against medical risk

Understanding this distinction can completely change the way you think about your health, your finances, and the decisions you make about medical care.

--------------------------
Download my free 6 Healthy-Aging Habits ebook:
https://drashori.com/ebook/longevity-habits/

Book a health coaching session:
https://drashori.com/health-coaching/

Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Dr. Ashori MD

People constantly ask how to find motivation.
But motivation is usually the result of something else entirely.

In this episode, motivation is explained in a different way. Not as something you find, but as something that develops after consistent action.

Motivation is often the side effect of doing something long enough to see results.

When daily habits start producing real changes, better energy, better health markers, better physical fitness, motivation begins to grow naturally.

The episode also explores:

• why excitement is often mistaken for motivation
• how journaling and reflection help uncover what truly matters
• why consistency is more important than inspiration
• how positive feedback loops create long-term motivation

--------------------------
Download my free 6 Healthy-Aging Habits ebook:
https://drashori.com/ebook/longevity-habits/

Book a health coaching session:
https://drashori.com/health-coaching/

Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Dr. Ashori MD

Five practical ways to make a relationship a health asset.

A lot of health conversations get stuck on labs, meds, and biometrics. Health also lives inside relationships.

In the TREND method, R stands for relationships. This episode is a conversation with my wife, Niloo, a rheumatologist, about how romantic relationships shape sleep, stress, anxiety, energy, and day-to-day health.

A big myth gets challenged here. Sleeping in separate beds or rooms does not automatically mean something is wrong. Sometimes it is a smart, temporary move to protect sleep while a couple works through snoring, light sleep, illness, stress, or burnout. Better sleep often makes the relationship stronger, not weaker.

The episode closes with 5 ways a romantic relationship can improve health:

1. know personal needs outside the relationship

2. protect time for those needs

3. communicate with curiosity and vulnerability

4. support a partner's priorities while checking expectations

5. reconnect intentionally through shared time and rituals

• TREND Method, "R" for Relationships

• Attachment styles (anxious, avoidant, secure) as a relationship stress lens

• Couples therapy, individual therapy, journaling

• Sleep strategies for couples: separate rooms, sofa, extra bedroom, window cracked, fan on, two mattresses side-by-side

--------------------------
Download my free 6 Healthy-Aging Habits ebook:
https://drashori.com/ebook/longevity-habits/

Book a health coaching session:
https://drashori.com/health-coaching/

Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Dr. Ashori MD

Same pollen, different day, totally different reaction. There's a good reason for it!

Seasonal allergies feel unpredictable. One day things are fine, the next day symptoms are on fire. This episode breaks allergies down as a threshold problem.

Symptoms show up when allergen load + immune reactivity + baseline inflammation exceed tolerance.

A practical roadmap follows that same framework:

• Lower allergen load (air, bedding, dust, outdoor exposure)

• Tune immune reactivity (hormones and the gut microbiome)

• Treat inflammation with a stepwise approach, starting local, then systemic only if needed

Specific tools covered include sinus rinses, filtration, bedding protocols, high-histamine foods to test, and a clear medication ladder (nasal steroids, nasal antihistamines, eye drops, oral antihistamines, plus when allergists and immunotherapy make sense). The goal is fewer flares, better control, and fewer "guessing" days.

• NeilMed sinus rinse (saline squeeze bottle kits)

• HEPA air purifiers (room units)

• HVAC air filters (whole-home filters)

• Intranasal corticosteroids: fluticasone (Flonase), mometasone (Nasonex), budesonide (Rhinocort)

• Intranasal antihistamines: azelastine, olopatadine

• Allergy eye drops: olopatadine, ketotifen (Zaditor), azelastine ophthalmic (varies)

• Ipratropium nasal spray (Atrovent) for runny nose

• Oral antihistamines: fexofenadine (Allegra), cetirizine (Zyrtec), loratadine (Claritin)

• Diphenhydramine (Benadryl)

• Montelukast (Singulair), usually with allergist involvement

• Immunotherapy: allergy shots (subcutaneous), sublingual immunotherapy for select allergens

--------------------------
Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------
Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Dr. Ashori MD

Some people ignore early signals from their body and tell themselves they will deal with it later.
Other people panic and assume the worst.

Both paths lead to bad outcomes.

In this episode, I explain a method used in my health coaching called the Buffer Method.
It is a practical way to respond to those early "I feel off" signals without overreacting, and without ignoring them.

You will learn the step-by-step process:

• notice the signal and write it down clearly

• write down the story, fears, and assumptions that show up

• identify which "buffer" might be running thin, sleep, nutrition, stress, or recovery

• run a tiny one-week experiment with one small change

• let your body give feedback, better, worse, or different, and adjust from there

This is not about perfection.
It is about catching small problems early, making small changes, and staying in the driver's seat.

This is how healthy aging starts. Not with fear. Not with denial. With awareness and simple action.

--------------------------
Subscribe to my free Healthy Aging newsletter:
https://newsletter.drashori.com/

Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/DrAshoriMD

Join me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/DrAshoriMD

---------------------------

If you are looking for a customized health plan to help you navigate your health, book a 1-hour paid session with me.

Not ready to book any sessions?
Get your healthy aging score or find out your healthy aging type by taking these fun, free quizes on my website.

Free eBook to help you live long and live well!
Download your 6 Healthy Aging Habits Ebook and start putting the steps into action.

Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Doctor Turned Health Coach by Mohammad Ashori MD. I would love your support by subscribing to this podcast, sharing it with someone you love, and leaving me a review on your favorite podcast app.

Disclaimer: I care about each listener and want you to receive care that fits your life and medical needs. Always speak with your own licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any health plan, medication, or routine. The information in this podcast is for general education. It is not medical advice. Listening does not create a patient–doctor relationship with me.

-Dr. Ashori MD