Integrative Psychiatry
Bruce A Fischer MD
Board Certified Psychiatrist & Lifestyle Physician
Individualized treatment of anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress and attention deficit disorders with the option of integrating lifestyle medicine and complementary approaches.
Lifestyle Medicine
Healthy habits such as regular exercise, balanced nutrition, and adequate sleep contribute to physical and mental/emotional health and conscious decisions to improve our daily routines enhance quality of life and promote long-term wellness.
Integration of lifestyle adjustments can increase the benefit of traditional psychiatric treatments such as psychotherapy and medication management.
Certain forms of physical exercise have the potential to decrease neuroinflammation, enhance activity of neurotransmitters, increase neuroplasticity, decrease symptoms of anxiety and depression and help to improve focus.
The quality of our food and nature of our diet has a powerful influence on health and disease and our gut microbiome influences the brain by a network of nerves connecting our gastrointestinal system and brain.
The nature of our social connection to others has powerful effects on our physical and mental health and longevity.
Meditation induces changes in the structure and function of parts of the brain associated with improved concentration and working memory, improved emotional regulation and decreased reactivity to stress and can provide many other important benefits for well-being and quality of life.
Complementary Approaches
Dr Fischer offers medication management, psychotherapy, training in meditation and mindfulness, mind-body therapies, and lifestyle optimization according to each person's needs and preferences.
Yoga
The benefits of yogic practices for mental and physical health have been experienced by many people for thousands of years while applications of various aspects of yoga such as meditation (Dhyana), mindfulness (Smrti) and other derivations of yogic practices such as 'breathwork' (Pranayama), 'progressive relaxation' (Yoga Nidra), and cognitive therapies (Raja Yoga) began to be integrated into western culture and mental health therapies over the past couple of decades.
An understanding of the principles and benefits of yogic lifestyle also provided the groundwork for the development of the field of Lifestyle Medicine.
Integrative Psychiatry reflects the understanding that the benefits from traditional psychiatric treatment are increased by attention to other influences and approaches.
'My life has changed ever since I started practicing mindfulness and following Dr. Fischer’s advice. His wholistic approach and commitment to introduce mindfulness to his patients is the best therapy I could ever ask for. He’s an open book I always look forward to listen to, learn from, and put into practice in my daily life.'
'Doc Fischer helped me though a really difficult time in my life. He's easy to talk to, listened to what I had going on and set me on a path self help with meditation and yoga.'
'Bruce has helped me tremendously. He has a deep knowledge of medications and stays current with research but one of the biggest benefits of seeing him is that he has a lot of knowledge about mental health tools beyond just meds. Like meditation, diet, exercise and even less typical treatment if you choose to go there. I highly recommend him.'
'As a patient of Dr Fischer, I highly recommend him. He listens, he advises and considers everything while treating you. Not only is my mental health better but I've learned how what I eat can affect my physical and mental health. The wholistic approach has been an amazing benefit alongside the other treatments. He is an excellent doctor.'
'Dr. Fischer is a wonderfully empathetic doctor, with a thorough knowledge of the history and workings of psychiatry and psychiatric medicine. He not only listens and really hears what I have to say, but he also teaches me and offers viewpoints I’ve not found with any of my previous doctors. He’s a great believer in the mind/body connection, which often gets ignored by ‘western’ medicine. I’ve realized good progress under his care and am grateful.'