Welcome to Are You Okay? I am thrilled you are here!
Let’s get YOU back in the driver’s seat of your health.
Are You Okay? is a newsletter focused on giving you evidence-based, straight talk about health. We know that the American medical system is failing people—15-minute doctors’ appointments, not digging into the underlying causes of what makes our whole health ecosystem tick—and I want to help you reclaim agency over your health.
If you’re like most of my patients, you want to live better, not just longer. You want to be well, inside and out. You do your best to eat healthy, exercise, sleep and take care of your body. You have a wearable device or two, a handful of health-related subscriptions, and a few doctors.
Yet, when you are under stress, you default to factory settings. You put your health last, become anxious or overwhelmed, and/or self-soothe with screens, sugar, shopping, or alcohol. And when you don’t feel well, your doctor may not have an immediate opening to see you. The internet provides cold comfort when you’re sick.
You don’t know who to trust: The guru on social media? Your doctor? Your intuition?
I want to help you feel unstuck—not by telling you what to do but by helping quiet the noise so you can listen to yourself and figure out what you truly need.
Let’s start by reconceptualizing health as more than an external checklist. Let’s see it as a lifelong process. Specifically, health is about awareness of your medical facts, acceptance of the things you cannot control, and agency over what you can change.
It turns out that thinking about why you’re alive in the first place makes figuring out what you want and need from medicine a heck of a lot easier. I’m here to help you reframe some of the conversations you have with your doctor or with yourself—and to help you think more broadly about your own health. In short, I’m here to help you be more okay tomorrow than you are today.
I write about things my patients ask me about every day: aging, Ozempic pros and cons; cancer; alcohol use; weight loss; exercise; aging; sex; talk therapy; hormone replacement therapy; digestive problems; osteoporosis; skeletal health; caregiver burnout; end of life decision-making; the health benefits of belonging; giving ourselves permission not to be okay, and the health benefits of Taylor Swift.
Whether you join me as a free or a paid subscriber, I hope you’ll find answers and advice that allows you to ask good questions and make smart decisions about your own health.
Free subscribers have access to:
My weekly newsletters covering health advice, news, and actionable tips
My podcast, Beyond the Prescription
Paid subscribers receive all the free content, plus:
Full access to my weekly Friday Q&As where you get to ask me your health questions
Private Zoom hangouts with me
Access to our private chat
My story
I grew up in DC. I studied art history and pre-med at Princeton University where I met my husband. (Here we are in college.)
He and I moved to England where I earned a Master’s in Pharmacology as a Fulbright fellow from the University of Cambridge. I went on to attend Harvard Medical School and my medical training at Johns Hopkins Hospital. You can learn more about me here.
I’m also a mom
My kids are my everything. This is our vibe as a family. (Photo ca. 2011.)
What subscribers are saying
"It’s concise and informative. No judgment." - Karen N.
“I love how open and honest you are - and I especially liked all your informative emails during the Covid epidemic. Being alone and older with only two dogs, I had to be very careful, which I was. Thankfully, I was one of those who never got Covid." - Helen M.
"I find your work valuable in lots of ways. You cover great topics and respond to feedback!" - Lisa S.
"I support your work because you give excellent advice that's understandable and practical." - Nadine M.
"I support your work because you talk about topics that are important to me and in a way that is easy to understand." Pat S.
"You care, you write about current topics and you are nuanced in your approach to healthy living. Thank you!" - Cindy
A final thought
As a doctor and patient myself, I’ve been fortunate to learn a few things about what it means to be alive and vulnerable. I’m excited to share some of these lessons with you.
Thank you for supporting this work. I’m glad you are here!
Lucy
