Happy

 One of the the many privileges of being a surgeon is inheriting the title of  the "Operating room DJ".  Being that I love music and pretty much all kinds of music with a good beat: pop, dance, R & B, hip hop, bollywood, country, rock, alternative, soul, rap, jazz, instrumental, and more; I was more than excited about it when I  graduated and started my job.

Music can have a very powerful effect, it can bring out emotions, it can bring out talent, it can stir up memories, it can wipe out memories, it can soothe wounds and it can dig out excellence. So this was a big deal for me. And just like any other show the first act has to be phenomenal.  It sets the stage, the mood and makes an impression. I had always wondered what song I would choose to begin my day.

Also Music without dance is like peanut butter without jelly.

It was not always easy for me to dance in front of people because I was very insecure about it. But encouragement from Dr Style really helped me build my confidence. And watching Ellen DeGeneres really helped me understand the power of dance. Back in the day when I was going through a very tough time waiting to get into a surgical residency, the only way I could get out of bed to make phone calls for job interviews was by watching Ellen, her audience and her DJ Tony dance together. I would be able to momentarily forget all the worries in the world and manage to get a lot of work done. I am also thankful to Ellen for giving me an opportunity to be a part of her audience in 2005 and experience it first hand.

So when I heard Pharell’s “Happy” I had love at first sound. This was it.. It was the song I was looking for. The song with the right beat and tempo that I think is capable of making anybody move their body to it and feel "happiness". It helps me to channelize and bring positivity in my operating room as I prepare to remove somebody’s cancer. It also helps me to share the positivity with my team. Despite of any worries or situations that might have happened outside the operating room for any of us, the song is a reminder to be happy and to focus on giving our best to the patient. As the song plays, I do a quick dance step with my staff, do my short prayer, I feel invigorated and I am ready to do my part as the surgeon.

Please feel free to leave a comment on what would be the song to start your day..?

Lipstick tricks

The blog :

A trick for some minor lip discolorations and imperfections.. Layering with a color blocking lipstick..I prefer the maybeline super stay lipstick.. It dries to a transfer resistant finish and still maintains a flexibility .. Use only the color base for a matte finish  and top with a lip gloss when dry for glossy finish .. Combine two colors for unique shades..

All this so I don't have to worry about lipstick on my teeth and still look good..

P.S.:

For the above shade I have combined  shades So-Sienna and Endless ruby

Got Vitamin D..?

As Dr Comfort chatted up with her comrades at work, a colleague came forward and stated he had a Vitamin D deficiency and had to take Vitamin D supplements for it.  There was a moment were others came forward with their own Vitamin D deficiency diagnoses and others wanting to know more about it through their questions:  What causes a Vitamin D Deficiency?  Is it life threatening?  What are the symptoms? Etc.

As the Comfort’s conversation flow changed into a clinical discussion on Vitamin D deficiency, it also made her pause and think of her father’s own ordeal with having the signs and symptoms for a long while without a diagnosis to treat. 

A while back, Comfort’s Dad started to feel regularly tired with unexplained muscle aches.  Multiple physicians were seen and tests were done with no definite cause discovered.  Comfort, the brilliant breast oncology surgeon in the US could not decipher what to make of the work up being done for her father in India.  

On her trip to visit her parents in India, Comfort could visibly see her father struggle to enjoy his day to day activities because of the pain and fatigue.  Randomly one day, Comfort thought to get her Dad’s Vitamin D level drawn….JACKPOT.   Dad had a CRITICALLY LOW LEVEL OF VITAMIN D (8.8 ng/ml, whereas most recommendations are to have it above 20 ng/ml at least).  

Diagnosis. Found. 

Treatment. Started.

Symptoms. GREATLY IMPROVED!

However, the question had to be asked: How did Comfort’s Dad have a Vitamin D deficiency? Isn’t it associated with NOT being in a sunny area?

He lives in one of the sunniest parts of India where the summer temperatures reach a high of 41 degrees Celsius (106 F) and winters can be as cold as 11 degrees Celsius (52 F)!  Technically, he should be swimming in all that sunshine right?

WRONG.  

You can have all the sunshine in the world around you, but it will not make a difference if you              don’t actually participate in it. 

Comfort’s Dad lived in a sunny area, but he spent most of his time OUT OF the sunlight, i.e. indoors, shaded areas, cars, office, etc. 

Ergo…the potential for a Vitamin D deficiency.

According to the National Institute of Health, the following group are at risk for a Vitamin D deficiency?

1. Groups who are given prolonged, exclusive nutrients via breast milk without recommended supplementation

2. Older adults

3. People with LIMITED sun exposure

4. People with dark skin 

5. People with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and other diseases causing fat malabsorption

As a follow up to Comfort’s workplace chat and reminiscing about her father’s condition, Dr Comfort and Dr Style both had their Vitamin D levels checked.  

Guess what?  Style’s level was LOW.  

Guess what else?  Style had been complaining about feeling tired all the time, dragging at work and having a low energy level.   

Turns out it was not just work stress- which we all have plenty of by the way.  

It was a true nutritional deficiency that improved symptoms upon restoration. 

Please note: we are not endorsing everyone needs to take Vitamin D supplements. 

The Federal Government’s 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans stated, “Nutrients should come from food.  Foods in nutrient-dense, mostly intact forms contain not only the essential vitamins and minerals that are often contained in nutrient supplements, but also dietary fiber and other naturally occurring substances that have positive health effects…Dietary supplements…may be advantageous in specific situations to increase intake of a specific vitamin or mineral.”

We ARE saying that you should have a Primary Care Provider who you trust and inform them of what is going on with you so they can help decide if a Vitamin D lab level is warranted and can recommend treatment if needed.  Chronic fatigue and muscle aches are serious concerns and we should not chalk them as consequences of our busy lives, limited sleep, work schedules, etc.   It’s worth a discussion with your doctor.  

Remember, everyone is prone to a Vitamin D deficiency: from the people of Midwest America and their brief glimpses of sunlight to the family members in West Central India where the sun does not miss a beat!

So pay attention to your bodies and get things checked out promptly!  

-Comfort and Style

Quality Service

Quality Service

This blog is a shoutout to Visa Concierge.

We would like to give an update on our ticket situation that happened on our first day at New York Fashion Week.

"In the Product Purchaser System the people are represented by two separate, but equally but important groups. The eager, helpless purchaser and the mighty controlling suppliers. These are their stories:" ( said to the voice of Law and Order SVU intro)

My bestie and I has both just landed at LaGuardia airport, Dr Style around 6:30 and Dr Comfort at 7:00 pm. Usually one of us would have waited for the other to share the cab to the hotel which we could say was for being green and saving fuel but in reality to save money. But on that day we had decided to splurge and take separate cabs because a) we were pampering ourselves with our lifelong dream to attend fashion week  and b) we were on a time crunch. Our first event was supposed to be at 9 pm. So according to the plan the first person  was to reach the hotel would collect tickets and check in by 8 pm. And that would leave us at least an hour of valuable time to invest in getting ourselves red carpet ready for the actual event.

Dr Style reached the hotel by 7:30 pm and everything was going per plan. I wish life would have read the memo on how things should have progressed from there.

So she checked in around 7:30 pm and asked if we had our tickets for the show delivered to  either one of us who were both registered on the room. She was told no. No worries we still had a while to go (hour and half) before we had to be there. She got our room and ordered our room service and waited. I called visa concierge and waited. I reached the hotel room and waited. We ate our dinner and waited. Visa said they had delivered the tickets and to check with hotel. Hotel said they don’t have the tickets. Visa said they had delivered the tickets but could not get hold of delivery person to confirm when and to whom. The hotel said they don’t have our tickets.

So we waited. All this time with all the anxiety and being on the phone, obviously we are not painting our faces for the event. Finally around 8:35 pm a manager on duty intervenes at the hotel, actually takes time to look through the mail (unlike the front desk lady who kept assuring us that she had looked at the mail, but totally had not) and miraculously finds our tickets in the box. Cool. No worries.

So finally we get ready in about 30-40 min and make our way to The Lincoln Center. We felt like a little kid walking to Willie Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. It takes some time to figure exactly where to be in the Lincoln center. Being the Midwestern simpletons we expected signs pointing us to where we needed to be and people escorting us to it. In reality, in true new york ways, everyone already knew where to be except us. No worries, we made it to the front doors of The Mecca of fashion.

But lo and behold it is about 10 pm and we get turned away because the show is almost finished.

We make our way back almost fighting back our tears and hoping that it is not a preview of the next few days. Not to mention those tickets are expensive. We thought we could talk about it to the hotel manager and we were sure they would figure out a way to make up for the fact that they did not give us our tickets on time and just crushed our dreams.

Turns out we were again Midwestern simpletons. We were told that we had not read their policy on the right way to gather a delivery for us, which was to have gone to the concierge at the hotel before 8 pm and asked them about it. Obviously in their fancy hotel service the front desk person who had been contacted at 7:30 pm had no obligation to inform us of the process and we should just know about it. And so in conclusion according to them it was our fault and so they did not owe us anything.

We moved on decided not to let it bother us but did mention to visa concierge about it and asked if there was anything they could do to help and tried to contact the hotel manager about it. It took us few days and few attempts to have somebody at the hotel to find time to talk to us. When we did have somebody from the hotel talk to us they offered us about a 10% of the actual price of the tickets. So obviously we declined.

The situation was then placed away in our minds to the special place that it reserved for all similar situations that need to be forgotten (you know: the contest that you thought you will win and don’t or like an exam you thought were gonna ace but actually bombed). We continued on with our night and with our fabulous next few days. 

But thankfully visa concierge did not give up on our behalf. Katie from visa concierge who took a note of the whole details worked on contacting and trying to work with the hotel to try to rectify the situation. She would give me daily updates about any progress on it. She tried for about 2 weeks and the only success  from the hotel was a free one night stay for us( about 15% of the actual ticket price). And I am glad Katie took the liberty to decline that offer on our behalf.

And then Katie called and said that they will refund our full amount for the tickets and keep dealing with the hotel on their time and meanwhile blacklist them from their services.
And which they did. As I see the amount reimbursed to my account I feel owe visa a big grateful note of the account and expose The Empire hotel to my friends so that they do not ever have to face a situation like us.

New York Fashion Week

In the midst of showing everyone we care for them and needing our own reassurance from others, we sometimes forget our #1.....ourselves. 

If there's one thing we have learned over the past few years of living, experiencing, and practicing medicine, it is that no one can make you feel worthy, loved, or special if you cannot do that for yourself first.  

So on this recent Valentine's Day, we took a moment to acknowledge ourselves by putting ourselves first and treating ourselves with a lifelong dream- attending the NEW YORK FASHION WEEK (NYFW) in NYC!!!

It all started off with a checklist:

1. Decide to attend New York Fashion Week 

2. Wait for few years to find some time on your schedule to plan it.

3. The one year that both of us have the time and money to possibly plan the event, just happens to fall on one of us’s wedding anniversary. But no big deal because: obviously spending time with your bestie on valentine’s day and ditching your hubbie is totally alright.

4. Find out WHEN NYFW is occurring 

5. Find out WHERE exactly in NY is NYFW held

6. Inform employers you have to bounce for a few days

7.  Get tickets to the shows. 

8.  Figure out how the hell you are supposed to get said tickets.

9.  Call everyone you know, dated, heard of, and networked with over the past decade to see if they have connections to any shows. And we mean EVERYONE. 

10.  None of that worked.  So we decided to call the Concierge service of every Credit Card. 

11.  Hello Visa Signature Concierge service, our new best friend. 

12.  Wait 3 weeks for the list of shows to be released and send in requests to the top shows we want to attend....Monique Lhullier, BCBG, Carolina Herrera, etc. 

13.  At some point, we need a place to stay....so we researched and booked the closest hotel to the Lincoln Center....The Empire Hotel. 

14.  Cue in the Jay Z/Alicia Key Song "Empire State of Mind."  

15.  As time gets closer to the NYFW dates, start putting together a wardrobe for the week. 

16.  Nothing like a shopping trip at "A la Mi Closet"  (my closet), other people's closets, and running around like a madwoman at every other store to put together memorable ensembles. 

17.  Let the excitement build, but be cool.  As a grown woman, control yourself! Cool as a cucumber on the outside, shrieking like a 6 yr old girl on the inside. 

18.  FLY OUT TO NYC!!

We arrived in style at LaGuardia and took our respective rides to the Hotel Empire.  Check in and find out that our confirmed tickets for the events are not present-only to find out later the tickets were dropped off earlier in the day.  The result?  We missed out on our first event- the Water Charity Gala displaying the works of International Designers. 

Despite the initial hiccup, we were able to get back on track the next day.  With our obligatory work out (the only one done during the whole trip) done, 

we moved on to attend our first fashion show ever by designer ASAF GANOT (courtesy of a family member being close friends with the designer),

followed by our second attendance at the Monique Lhullier show. 

The vibrant jewel tones of the Monique Lhullier collection can only be upstaged by the sparkling bedazzled stockings we fell in love with. 

Seriously. Sparkling Stockings. The eyes are naturally drawn to the legs' winking lights walk by. 

However, nothing could compare to the magical hours known as the Herve Leger show and beyond!

As the two of us sat side by side a few rows back from the runway, we took a moment to savor every aspect of the room: the lights, the runway, the journalists, celebrities, the who's who of the fashion industry, us. 

We worked hard. Worked long.  Worked resiliently to get here- in life, in our careers and to a point to achieve a personal dream. 

With anticipation, we held our breaths as the lights turned low, the music came on and the show began.  As the models glided across the runway, we let our imaginations kick in. 

As the show ended, music simmered down and lights lifted, the collective awe of the audience got us out of our seats and heading towards the "Herve Leger" sign.

After we both captured the moment for each of us with the “Herve Leger” sign, we see the backstage area.

So we did the next obvious same thing to do.

We tried to get backstage.  

The left side security said No.  We were not important enough. 

So we decided to try out our luck on the right side. 

We just strolled in and illusioned ourselves into thinking that this side was friendlier. 

Actually, they were more "Real Housewives of Atlanta" friendly.

We realized we had just walked in them and their entourage and thus were allowed in.

With nothing to lose, we went around backstage meeting various entities from the world of BCBG, fashion, and their loved ones asked to be present. 

The vibe was positive.  We got to meet Katie Ellis brand ambassador of Diane Von Frustenberg and Crystal Batson, a cool NASA scientist. They introduce us to Max and his wife Lubov Azria, who had her assistant put our names down for the BCBG Afterparty RSVP list.  

There's nothing like hearing a fashion mogul say, "You are invited to join us at the Boom Boom Room at The Standard Hotel tonight."  

Then there's nothing like being escorted to the Private area reserved for the Azria's at The Boom Boom Room. 

After that, we can say it was a night to remember.  The skyline, the views, the people, the music, the dance off with Madonna's back up dancer.....wait. A Dance Off?  Yes. The Dance Off. With one of Madonna's back up dancers.  Obviously, we know who won (in our minds only). 

As we left the party in the early morning hours and had the cold harsh winds of NYC wake us up from our reality, we had to pinch ourselves.  

We did this.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is a week away and as I plan for a gift for my husband ,I would like to dedicate this post and introduce you all to my husband Dr Ras Malai (nickname based on one of my favorite Indian desserts)

Valentine's Day has a very special place in my life. Being a  hopeless bollywood romantic there is the usual importance associated with it that I share with the rest of the world. The other reasons are that my husband and I met for the first time on that day, we had our first date on the same day and a year late we got married on Valentine's Day too.

I thought it was a good planned coincidence that would guarantee that neither of us would ever forget the date in future for any of those compatibility competitions. My sister did try to convince me to choose a different wedding date. Her reasoning: I am going to have one gift for Valentine's Day and not three seperate gifts for each individual occasion.

But my sweet husband has had no trouble in keeping up with the anticipated hype of the gift. And thus, making my quest and task of finding his gift that much more difficult.

I feel my situation is like an episode of Big Bang Theory where sheldon has to buy a gift for penny and based on his reasoning confidently buys multiple gift baskets with the idea that one of them would be able to match hers. But when gifted a napkin autographed by leonard nimoy from penny he is left speechless.I think my situation is pretty much like Sheldon..

To better describe it let me give you a brief background on some gifts from my sweet husband and how I happen to have my collection of purses that come in a purse.

There was the coach purse for my first mothers day.

Then there was the time, when with the help of Dr All About Style he surprised me with my first prada. I was a stay at home mom at that time and I was away on my first conference. He was taking care of our nine month old son alone for two full days. At end of day two, he said he just fully realised and comprehended all that I did for our son and wanted me to know how he felt.

And then Louis joined the bunch last year. After looking in four malls I had found my perfect Little Black Purse but could not get myself to spend the money. Two months later I see it on my shelf on valentine’s day.

And that brings me to this year’s gift. I come home from work after a long day and I have this sexy bottega waiting for me. Something I had looked at and wanted but could not justify to myself to buy it. And the reason for getting my gift early..: I am going to be away in new york for a girls weekend with Dr Style and he wanted to make sure I have it with me.

This in no way means that I only appreciate expensive gifts.. It's the thought that counts.. What I see in my husband is the ability to recognize and discover my wish list and then make it happen for me. His intention to show with his actions, that even though I might hesitate and think that I do not need to splurge and spoil myself , he disagrees and wants to shower me with all that and more.

So ladies now you understand the pressure on me for the next few days to plan and purchase something equally special.

And on that note there is one week left and I wish you all good luck in figuring out ways to make this valentine special for your significant other.

Morning routine

Sometimes your day begins like this 

and you are barely able to get together these for breakfast

And some other day you day starts of like this

And you can accommodate all of these in the morning

But either way we do try to pack some lunch

What is your morning routine like..?