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May 9, 2024 - Dr. Oz Podcast
42:46
Clear Your Mind: The Guide to Eliminating Brain Fog! | Dr. Oz | S7 | Ep 38 | Full Episode
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Time Text
Today.
Tired?
Moody?
Forgetful?
My mind is all over the place.
I can't even think straight.
We have your brain fog fix.
Simple ways to clear your head so you can focus on what really matters.
Plus...
You want to have the freedom that you can do almost anything.
Donna Karan built a billion dollar brand.
See the new empire she's building now.
I have so much that I want to do.
Coming up next.
We'll save lives today.
We'll save lives today.
We are ready to get healthy!
Thank you all very much.
Hi, everybody!
Today, today, distractions are everywhere.
Things are everywhere.
We're bombarded in every aspect of our lives, from constant connectedness on social media and cell phones to our obsession with multitasking.
We've fired up the pressure to perform on all cylinders all the time.
But do you sometimes feel like if you just could clear your brain of all the fog, you could actually be more focused and get more done?
Well today we're going to show you exactly how to clear your head so you can focus on what really matters in life.
It's the brain fog fix that you have been waiting for.
Now also coming up today, three signs social media may be killing your self-esteem.
Then how my friend Donna Karan, she's here and she's telling us the real reason she walked away from her billion dollar brand.
And she's going to show you a unique way you can de-stress.
So, you ready to get started?
Dr. Mike Dow, who I've made part of my core team of experts, is here.
He spent his career researching things like addiction, compulsions, and overeating.
Why are you taking on brain fog now?
Why is that so important to you?
Well, Dr. Oz, I think it's an epidemic.
I've had brain fog.
Whenever people hear the term brain fog, they say, I have that.
Now, it's not a clinical diagnosis, but we all know what it is.
A lot of research has been done in this area, but what I wanted to do was pull in all of the latest and greatest research and pull it all together and give people a plan so they can really banish their brain fog once and for all.
Alright, so let's start off.
We've got a very nice little story to tell you about what brain fog really is.
And what's it trying to tell us, Mike?
Brain fog is actually a catch-all phrase.
You're going to feel a lot of different ways.
You're going to feel tired, moody, forgetful, confused, overworked, slow, distracted.
But this all really boils down to the fact that your brain has three core ways that it needs to get healthy.
And they are...
Your mood, your energy, and your spirit.
When you address these three simple facets of brain health, you really can banish that fog.
Mood, energy, and spirit.
Mood, energy, and spirit.
Walk us through this cycle, and I think it's important for us to appreciate, because we think we're doing the right things, but we're tripping up.
How do our lifestyle choices and the cycle of repair we try to build actually cause more problems?
Yeah, so if your doctor's ruled out any major medical problems, it's really all about the lifestyle choices that cause brain fog.
Let's look at the way most of us are living.
We're eating the wrong foods.
We're spending most of our time indoors, sitting.
At work, we're feeling frazzled and stressed out when we get home.
What does that lead to?
Band-Aids.
We look for those quick fixes in the form of too much caffeine.
Our mood is a little shaky, so we go right to antidepressants.
We're just feeling too stressed out at the end of the day, so we go for that extra glass of wine.
What does that cause in the long term, even though we're trying to use quick fixes?
Brain fog!
We feel so foggy.
We feel forgetful.
We feel tired.
We feel alone.
Now, this all starts to spin in the cycle.
The things we use to try to treat our brain fog, we go back to the poorest lifestyle.
We go back to eating the bad foods because we feel bad.
We go...
Back to those quick fixes.
We start to have brain fog that's even worse, and so on and so forth, and it becomes this downward spiral, and we've got to get off that carousel of brain fog.
Made all of America dizzy with that little animation.
Alright, so how do we actually fight back against brain fog?
I have a plan that addresses your mood, your energy, and spirit so people can reclaim their focus, their memory, and their joy, and feel better, and feel like themselves again.
Alright, so here's the question.
Could it possibly work?
The only way to find out?
To ask you.
So we got three viewers to put Dr. Dow's brain fog fix to the test for the past three weeks.
Massive experiment.
Take a look.
I gave three Oz viewers who say brain fog is getting in the way of their everyday lives a three-week fix.
I'm Sarah.
I'm a single working mom of three, always on the go.
Jayla, Duran, I need you to come brush your teeth.
I have a full-time job.
I am always taking care of my children and other things that are part of my life, so I try to keep everything organized with sticky notes.
At the time, it's like, okay, write this down real quick, but then when I go back to it, it's like, why did I write that down?
It's not working.
My mind is all over the place.
It's exhausting.
There is no question I have full-blown mommy brain.
My name is Maria, and I'm only in my 50s, but sometimes I feel like I have the mind of a 90-year-old woman.
Throughout the day, I have many what I call brain freezes.
I'll be doing something and I'll go, what am I doing?
A couple of months ago, I was going crazy looking for a particular bra, and I couldn't find it.
And the next morning, my husband goes to the freezer for ice cubes and finds my bra in the freezer.
Having these senior moments once in a while is absolutely fine, but I don't want to have them all the time.
I need to have this fixed.
I have a senior moment sprain.
My name is Lori and I take on a million tasks at one time.
I can't even think straight.
Which is why I can't focus.
I'm all over the place.
My mind moves a million miles a minute.
I'll start one task and before I realize it, I'm on to the next task.
And then I realize I didn't finish the first task.
And then I move on to the third task.
And before you know it, nothing gets completed.
The other day when doing laundry, I opened up my washing machine, threw all my clothes in, closed the door, opened up the dryer, and decided to throw all my bleach in there.
Needless to say, I need a new dryer.
Sometimes I get in the car, I'll drive 10-15 minutes and then say to myself, where am I going?
I don't even know how I got there or why I'm in the car.
I'm tired and frustrated of making all these mistakes.
I'm definitely guilty of having a scatterbrain.
Sarah, Maria, and Lori were all given instructions from me before starting on the three-week plan.
That sounds crazy.
Week one is a food overhaul plan, adding mood-boosting foods and eliminating fog-inducing processed foods.
So hopefully we can get you to always being in a good mood.
Week two of the Brain Fog Fix adds brain games to improve energy and function.
I like the mic.
And the final week centers on the spirit and increases focus by adding simple mindfulness exercises to eliminate the static in the brain.
Okay, Dr. Mike, I'm really trying to block out all the crazy noise in my head.
Three weeks later, Sarah, Maria, and Lori are ready to report whether their brain fog has lifted.
All right, fascinating tale.
So let's get to the specifics of the plan.
The first step is to eat a nut and fish combo once per day.
Why is it so important to boosting brain health?
Brand new research has shown that when you combine the omega-3 powerhouse of fish with the best nut source of omega-3s, which is walnuts.
Now everybody, this is easy to remember because look at walnuts.
They actually look like a brain.
You combine that with this powerhouse source of fish and instead of covering it with Breading that is going to spike your blood sugar and cause brain fog, I recommend try coating the fish with nuts.
It works very well either way, by the way.
Yeah.
Next, you want to replace processed foods and simple carbs with fruits and vegetables.
It seems so obvious, doesn't it?
Eat more fruits and vegetables.
But it's hard.
Processed food tastes good, hits your brain just through A1, and simple carbs are not good for us, but we love them.
So Lori, who's one of the three women in our experiment, had a lot of trouble with this.
I want to show you her challenge.
Hi, Dr. Mike.
I am so craving bread right now.
I don't want to cheat, so is there something I can have instead of normal bread?
Yeah, so we are cutting out all flour, which includes almost all bread, all chips, but there is one kind of bread that is part of the BrainFogPix program, and it's flourless bread.
So the one that I like is the Eel flourless sprouted bread.
Try toasting it.
Okay, great.
And did I hear you say no chips?
Okay, thank you.
I'm going to try the easy food bread that Dr. Mike recommended.
It's actually pretty good.
So Lori is in the studio.
You describe yourself as a scatterbrain.
Is that accurate?
Unfortunately, it was accurate.
But it's changed.
Yes.
All right, big time.
So you recommended sprouted bread.
So you tried it out.
Did it really help with the withdrawals you were complaining about?
Yes, thankfully.
Coming from an Italian family, and all we do is eat tons of bread, especially on Sunday.
I use it as a spoon I dip into my gravy.
It absolutely helped me get past all my withdrawals and actually satisfied me.
And now I even like it better because of the healthiness, too.
I like that.
Do all Italians call it gravy or just the ones in New York?
There is a big Facebook fight between sauce and gravy.
So, you know what?
What team are you on?
Sauce, gravy?
She's on both teams.
Here, I'm going to help you.
We're going to take this back.
Mikey, I'll give her a hand.
Yeah.
We're going to actually let the audience taste this out.
I am curious if they're going to be a little less forgetful tomorrow if they try this out.
As they're doing that, and watch the happy faces as they scoop into their gravy slash sauce, I'll tell you that when we come back, we'll get a simple and free solution to lift your brain fog.
Stay here.
Next, I'm putting some of our viewers on a three-week brain fog fix.
It can help to sharpen your brain.
Waking up their brains with memory gains and health tips.
Learn how you can clear your head and focus on what really matters.
Next.
All new Oz, Rachel Ray is here with an easy food hack.
Five fast meals using two incredible sauces.
Plus, tips to fight a cold or flu from our Nurse Search finalists.
All new Oz.
That's coming up tomorrow.
So we've been talking about brain fog.
How do you clear your head so you can focus on what really matters?
I put three of my viewers, Brave viewers, and Dr. Dow's three-week brain fog fix, and I want to hear from each of them.
But let's start with the next step.
It's wake up your brain with sleep and memory games.
Now, we know the role of sleep plays in brain fog.
Everyone gets that.
But Maria, who said she suffers from senior moments, quote-unquote, found something that really worked for her.
Take a look.
Okay, I'm going to block out all electronic light so I can create myself a very peaceful, no-light environment.
So I'm going to tape off the cable box.
Oops.
I'm going to...
Even this little light will make me crazy.
And I'm leaving the air conditioner on, but I'm taping off that little digital number.
And let's...
Okay, that's it.
I think I've created...
No electronic lights, and I think I'm going to have a peaceful rest.
Maria, I do the exact same thing.
We have a VCR. Mine always has some number on it that I don't want there.
And I actually throw clothing at it and cover it up at night, so I don't have to look at it.
So did it help you avoid things like putting your bra in the freezer?
It actually did.
Just blocking everything out helped me block out everything that's always going around in my brain.
Now, this step also includes waking up your brain with games.
Yes.
How do they help with brain fog?
The NBAC is amazing in that it really helps your working memory.
Now, your working memory is important because your working memory tends to decline as you get older, and this NBAC is what it's called, this little game that Maria played every day for 12 minutes.
It actually helps to increase your working memory, which helps your brain get sharper, and it's so effective that it's even helped 80-year-olds improve their memories.
Not that you're 80. No, exactly not.
So it's intimidating to play some of these games, and we're going to demonstrate this end back in a moment.
Did they get easier as you did them?
You know what?
I have always been terrible with pop quizzes.
I can tell you the theory of relativity with no problem, but I got a little bit intimidated, but I'll try.
Do you feel sharper?
No, I feel sharper not because of the test.
I feel sharper for the whole program.
Everything.
Everything.
What is the theory of relativity, by the way, since you're on the topic?
All right.
So, Dr. Dow brought the games.
The whole audience, you're all going to play.
Everyone at home, in the studio, please pay attention.
Explain it, and we're going to take people through a couple cycles.
Again, simple test, incredibly powerful, 12 minutes a day.
Take it away.
So, you're going to look at this grid, and I'm going to show you a shape in one of those nine grids, and I want you to remember the shape and the location for two seconds, and we're going to show that right now.
Ooh.
And now we're going to give you a second one.
There are two of them.
Oh my goodness.
And now, can you tell me those in reverse order?
Audience, what do you guys think?
People are shaking their heads.
You know, it's so simple on the surface, but it gets a bit...
How would you do with that one?
It's pressure here.
At home, in my bedroom, fantastic.
Here?
Not gonna happen.
We had the cross, right?
Everyone remembers the cross.
That was backwards, right?
The cross is in the middle of the right.
The cross is in the middle.
And the other hexagon was the top left.
The lower right.
Show them the right version.
Top left hexagon and then cross in the right in the middle.
And then the first one was?
How many of you in the audience actually remembered that?
All right, so the rest of you need the end back, and it can really help to improve your memory so that you don't have to get that brain fog later in life.
You can find your bra, all kinds of fun things happen.
And also serve cat food to my mother-in-law.
Yeah, cat food, another one.
All right, next step is Dr. Dow's, in his brain fix, is to incorporate a mindfulness meditation exercise into everyday life.
And Sarah, she says that her mommy brain has a lot of success with this one.
Okay, now I'm going to try and do some meditating while I am washing the dishes.
As I'm washing the dishes, I'm focusing on the temperature of the water.
How fast the water is running.
Just relaxing.
Enjoying hearing the water running.
Just enjoy the moment.
Easy breezy.
We saw how hectic her household is.
How challenging was it to make time for this plant?
It was challenging, but however, the plan has helped me to be selfish a little bit as far as mommy's concerned.
Mommy needs to take care of mommy.
Take care of yourself.
So mommy needs some time to think.
Mommy needs some time to, you know, clear her mind and clear her head.
You know, everything is about the little ones and work, but mommy needs her time.
You know, I was watching you do the dishes as you were multitasking.
I actually do it in the shower.
Okay.
I don't know how many of you, but we've got to shower anyway, I hope, right?
So while you're in there, I actually think about all things I'm going to do, and then I relax my brain, and you've got the water pounding down you, so it makes it sort of easy to meditate as well.
So there's many ways to do on this.
You don't have to just do it with the dishes, but fine.
Find your path.
That's the big point with Dr. Dow.
By the way, he's got tons of more information like this in his new book, The Brain Fog Fix, and they're playing those NBAC tests that we were having trouble with earlier as well.
Check it out.
For a lot of women, let me shift gears here, moms especially, they claim that multitasking is the only way they can really get through the day.
But is that true?
Next, we're going to find out if it really helps or is it keeping you from getting things done.
Stay with us.
Later, are all those friends and likes you have on Facebook really boosting your ego Don't let social media control how it makes you feel.
Three signs social media is killing your self-esteem.
Coming up.
We have been talking about how to clear your head so you can focus on what really matters in life, like your health.
In today's conversation, what we're asking is whether or not multitasking really keeps you from getting anything done.
Is it possible it's actually hurting you?
We all do it.
You know, we do laundry while we're got dinner on the stove.
Some of us have admitted to being intimate while watching television, you know, stuff like that.
But there's some brand new research out there that says multitasking isn't as effective as we all thought and hoped.
So who thinks multitasking is a big part of their life?
Let me see some hands.
Alright, I'm going to hear about your story.
So, how's your multitasking going?
Well, I'm a preschool teacher, so when I'm at work, I multitask all day long.
I could have a child who just likes to run around the classroom, which is not safe, so he's my buddy.
He'll hold my hand.
The art, you know, the easel could spill over.
Then I've got to get the garbage can with my other hand, the paper towels handed to the kid while the other kid's asking me a question.
You know, I've got to keep my eyes on everybody.
It's part of your life.
It's part of my life.
Does it make you more or less efficient?
I think I do it well, and I have to.
It's just part of the job.
Good.
So we got a pro for multitasking.
Now, let me explain this.
There's actually a scientific answer.
Who wants to help me with a little demonstration here?
Come on over here.
Oh, if y'all wanted to come on down here.
Come on down.
We'll start.
Don't go too far away.
We'll get you in here.
All right, what's your name?
Brittany.
Brittany, come over here.
Brittany, step right into my laboratory here.
All you've got to do is something pretty simple.
Are you a pretty good rapper?
I am.
You are.
So in my house, my wife says it's learned ineptitude.
Okay.
Because I'm so bad at wrapping, she has to wrap everything for me.
So I want you to just take this box and wrap it.
But I'm going to just give you a little metaphor first.
Your left hand represents one half of your brain.
Your right hand represents the other half of your brain.
Okay.
All right?
So if both halves of the brain are working together, as an example, using both hands to wrap this box, we'll see what happens.
Go ahead and do it.
Demonstrate for us how perfectly and elegantly you do this.
Here, I'll help with this.
This is my usual contribution.
One hand.
Thank you.
One finger, literally.
It's the least I could do.
The least you could do.
Literally.
All right.
So you notice that both hands are working together seamlessly.
You're able to make a pretty good package wrap in here.
Yes.
Life's going pretty well.
Both brain halves are integrated, so they're doing what they're supposed to do.
Now, that's fine.
You got the idea.
Now, here's the thing.
When you're multitasking, it's a little different.
Leave that perfect little example over there.
Come on over here.
Now you're going to wrap this bottle, this box rather, but your right hand represents half your brain.
The other half of your brain is going to write a to-do list.
Can I use my right hand?
No.
That's the whole point.
You gotta be multitasking here.
This is what your brain...
Guys, literally, this is what's going on.
This is the juggling act.
Go ahead, take it away.
Do you think she can do it?
I think I can.
All right, go give it a shot.
Come on.
But you gotta wrap.
Oh, at the same time.
Someone give her a hand, please, for the love of God.
Are you right-handed?
I am.
But use your other hand.
I'm cheating.
You're cheating.
That's what you do.
When you multitask, you cheat.
Now, you're done.
Think of this.
Look at this.
Scribble.
Please, what does that mean?
Woo!
What are those words?
It's to do.
To do.
It does, actually, in some ways.
It's an existentialist art.
Okay, so the thing is, the right and left side of our brains have to work together for them to work optimally to get that result.
You actually were better off wrapping this first and then making a to-do list.
You all agree with that, right?
Yes.
So our brain can't make it as clear to us sometimes, but I want to make it really clear.
And we know a lot about multitasking.
We know, for example, that it decreases your memory.
It increases stress that raises up your blood pressure because you don't think you can keep up.
And it actually reduces your ability to think logically about problems.
Wow.
Ever happened to you?
Yes.
All the time.
All the time.
Now we know.
My point is don't beat yourself up.
It's really in your fault.
You can't get it all done.
You've got to figure out how you're going to get things done in the right order.
Don't try to do them all at once.
Otherwise, you're hurting yourself.
Definitely.
Here, you can take this box home with you.
There's nothing in it anyway.
Oh, no!
All right, then before you go, I'm going to ask you a question.
How many of you, how many of you are on Facebook while you're watching this program or any television program, right?
How many of you at work are on Facebook?
That's actually multitasking.
It's a big one.
So when we come back, three signs social media may be killing your self-esteem.
It's all about clearing your head so you can stay focused on what really matters.
Later, legendary designer Donna Karan, her bold decision to walk away from her fashion empire.
I have so much that I want to do.
And how she's devoting her time to a new vision.
It's been an extraordinary journey.
Coming up.
All new Oz, Rachel Ray is here with an easy food hack.
Five fast meals using two incredible sauces.
Plus, tips to fight a cold or flu from our Nurse Search finalists.
All new Oz.
that's coming up tomorrow.
We've been talking about how to clear your head so you can focus on what really matters for Let's face it, social media has added a lot of noise in our heads.
Here to uncover the three signs social media may be killing your self-esteem is someone everybody's been talking about this summer.
She's a social researcher who has studied the effects of social pressure in her hot summer book, Primates of Park Avenue.
Wednesday, Martin is joining us.
Welcome to the show.
Thank you.
You know, my oldest daughter was in college the same year, Mark Zuckerberg.
They were the second school to get Facebook, and I was stunned at how rapidly engaged.
Why is it that social media has so much power over our lives?
Boy, we are such a social species.
Human beings love, love, love being around other humans for very good reason.
At one point, it was connect or die.
Yeah.
Okay, there were predators.
There were enemies.
And here we were.
We didn't have claws.
We didn't have fangs.
What did we have?
We needed each other.
Along comes social media.
It hooks into this ancient, really healthy desire to connect with other people.
But if you abuse it, if you use it too much, if you use it at the expense of actual human interaction, it's going to fool your brain.
You go, oh, here I am at this nice warm campfire with other people.
Put your hands out.
No warmth from the fire.
There are not real people there.
And your brain gets fooled and you go back to it again and again, searching what isn't quite there.
And that's what sets off this cycle of social media abuse.
Let's be real about this.
We're looking again for that heat around the fire, as you mentioned.
Who has a lot of friends on social media?
On Facebook, let's say.
500 or 1,000.
Back up here.
Hold that up there.
So, how many of these folks do you constantly connect with, and how many of them are sort of pretty peripheral to you?
Wouldn't give you the heat, as Wednesday was saying, from the campfire.
Um, ones I actually talked to, probably less than five.
Less than five people?
Yeah.
Out of how many?
A thousand.
Less than five out of a thousand.
That's actually probably not too far off for a lot of people.
Thank you very much for being honest about that.
So Wednesday, you say the first sign that social media is killing you, and it happens a lot, killing your self-esteem, is that we're playing this numbers game.
That we're bragging to each other about how many people are following us, and yet I'm hearing that we've got five people we actually talk to closely.
So why is it fundamentally important?
That's right.
It's incredible how whatever social media you're on, you're assigned a number.
You have a number of Facebook followers.
You have a number of likes.
You have a number of those little beautiful red hearts on Instagram.
These are popularity metrics, basically.
And as humans, when we start comparing those numbers, it makes us feel a little bit crazy.
So the study that was done actually looked at the fact that friends don't actually correlate with happiness.
It's actually quite the opposite.
The more friends you have on social media, the lower your self-esteem.
Think about that.
It's the opposite of what you'd expect.
The social media is not going anywhere.
So how do we use it in order to actually feel better about ourselves?
That's right.
We are stuck with social media for good and for bad.
And there are things that you can do.
Do what you do in real life.
Control your feed.
You have acquaintances in real life and you have friends.
Do some spring cleaning so that you're following most closely the people you care about the most.
And remember, you can unfollow people without unfriending them.
People don't like to be unfriended.
We're very sociable.
It's a dangerous thing to do.
Alright, FOMO. You all know what FOMO is, right?
Fear of missing out?
It's the next big sign that social media is actually hurting you.
So who's out there who feels like they've missed out?
They've been left out.
Oh, you got a bright red outfit there.
Can't miss that.
Hi, Dr. Oz.
Hi, what's your name?
I'm Erin.
So what is your FOMO story with social media?
Well, I was living in Atlanta recently, and I set up two of my friends on a date.
Six months later, they got engaged.
Good for you.
Thank you, bit of a matchmaker.
And they invited me to their engagement party.
I was invited to the bridal party, celebrating with them.
And then about a month later, I turned to Facebook News Feed and see their wedding photos.
All my friends were there.
This was a local wedding, and I just wasn't invited.
And that's how I found out, through social media.
It made me feel pretty bad.
That's terrible.
Yep.
Yep.
And they were good friends, too.
And now they have a baby, and everything's great, and they never acknowledge that I wasn't invited.
But that's how I found out.
So Wednesday, walk us through how can you be more subtle than not being invited to a wedding you should have been invited to?
That's right.
FOMO isn't a term for social science, but again, let's think about the reality it's describing.
Think again about the human animal.
We love connection.
When you weren't invited to that wedding, you didn't feel connected.
And remember, in our evolutionary prehistory, not being connected meant you might die.
So, you have to remind yourself The ancient part of your brain is operating on a different level.
And when you're feeling that intense anxiety about being left out, it's a residue of feeling like connection is survival.
And it's very powerful.
There's a third sign that social media is killing your self-esteem, and it's the fact that social interactions in real life just aren't measuring up.
That's a big topic.
So Wednesday Martin is on DrOz.com, our homepage right now, sharing her explanation.
So if you're multitasking, go check it out.
And obviously share it with your friends on Facebook because you don't want them to miss out either.
Wednesday, thank you very much.
Thanks so much for having me.
I love the insights.
Audience, thank you for your honest contributions.
Up next, legendary designer Donna Karan shocked the fashion world when she walked away from her billion-dollar brand.
She's here today to reveal why and to give you her favorite stress solution.
Later, want to start off your morning happy and healthy?
I've got three time savers for your daily routine to make your life easier.
This is your skin when it's dry.
This is your skin in the shower.
Healthy shortcuts in the shower that really work.
coming up.
My next guest recently made a bold decision to walk away from her fashion empire to focus on improving health and happiness around the world.
Now she's probably been in your home.
At least something with her name on it has.
A piece of clothing, a handbag, perfume.
I'm talking about the legendary Donna Karan.
Fashion icon Donna Karan redefined the way American women dress.
Nicknamed the Queen of 7th Avenue, Karen rose to fame in the 1980s with her Essentials line, offering seven stylish and simple staples for the career woman on the go.
And in a first, catering to more than just one body type.
But after a nearly five decade long career, Donna Karan recently stunned the fashion world when she announced she was stepping down as head designer of her company to follow a different path, one she says is dedicated to addressing issues rather than dressing people.
Please welcome my friend Donna Karan.
Oh, they're so excited to see you.
I am too.
So, let's start off with the big news.
Why did you decide to step down from this incredible fashion business you've built over 30 years?
I guess I'm not as young as I used to be.
Not at all.
That I know is not true.
I have so much that I want to do.
And I really felt that I was being bifurcated.
And I had to get clear and I had to get centered.
And I was running Donna Karan, DKNY, Urban Zen, all the philanthropy.
And I realized there are only seven days in a week, which I really was calculating ten.
Yes, sure.
A lot of us do that.
It didn't work that way.
You know what it's like.
You kind of have a passion, an obsession, and then you realize how much can you really, really do and do it well.
I know you've been very passionate about health and happiness, and we're going to talk about that because that's actually what you're dedicating your life to.
But I want to start off this book, My Journey.
This is absolutely beautiful.
Thank you.
Starting from the pictures, by the way, and designs, but also the story you tell in there.
But I want to, if I can, go to a mutual friend who's very close to you.
Barbara Streisand wrote the foreword to this.
It's a very compelling three pages of truth about you.
Very wise.
I want everyone to listen to this intro.
She says, Donna, this is, again, from a friend of hers.
Donna is the most scattered, disorganized human being you'll ever meet.
She can't remember anything, including plans you just made with her.
Chaos is her middle name.
Now, many women feel that they're living chaotic lives, but they didn't, I don't think, expect to hear that about you.
So how is it possible that you could accomplish so much if you're truly living a chaotic life?
You know, there's a difference between the chaos that I live, which is probably my personal chaos, and my professional chaos.
You know, people say to me, how do you do it all?
And I look quite honestly, I said, I have a pretty amazing husband who helps me.
So when I lost Steven, it was pretty much of a shock.
He had lung cancer.
And that's what really drove me into everything that I do today.
I realized that every single one of us is going to be affected by healthcare.
We are all affected by it.
So what can I do to make a difference in the world?
And through losing as many people as I have in my life, I realized there was a missing element in the healthcare business.
So I started the Urban Zen Integrative Therapist.
And that person is able to calm you down to help the doctor, help the nurse, help the patient and the loved one.
And that's what I felt was missing in healthcare.
So we started the Urbans and Integrative Therapist.
And it's been an extraordinary, extraordinary journey.
I applaud you for it.
Because, again, much of it came from the painful experience you had losing your husband.
But realizing that there are gaps in the way we try to give care.
I'm good at healing with the scapel, right?
Heal with steel.
But you want to help people in between those moments of intensity.
Come on over here.
One of the things that you taught me about is aromatherapy.
And again, this is something that's been used for centuries by Healer.
Smells were always a powerful tool for us to get better.
I'd love if you can just walk us through some of the ones you think are the most valuable folks that could have them at home.
These are, by the way, available in health food stores.
You can get them online, supplement stores.
Mmm.
How divine they smell, right?
They do.
So, peppermint oil.
Do you like the smell of that?
I love it.
And what do you use it for, usually?
Peppermint wakes you up.
You know, if any time you're not feeling well, I highly recommend you go to peppermint.
Rosemary is definitely digestion.
And this is something I had never talked about, vetiver.
And this is, you argue that it's a pretty good anti-anxiety tool.
Vetiver, for me, is finding that calm in the chaos.
I think that's, you know, the ultimate place we all want to be.
All right.
I've loved having you here.
Thank you for all.
Thank you.
You do, Donna Karen.
Oh, thank you.
All right, this is Donna's new book, My Journey, is available now.
And you can watch your answer, our this or that question, on drroz.com.
We'll be right back.
Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo!
Rachel Ray is here with five fast meals using two incredible sauces.
You are adding tons of nutrients.
All new eyes.
that's coming up tomorrow.
Morning is the critical time to set the tone for your whole day.
And I want you all to start it off really healthy and happy and easy as So I discovered the perfect place to start, where we all start, the shower.
I've got three healthy shortcuts that everyone can use in the shower.
I've got three viewers here to try them out.
First up is Nicole.
How are you, Nicole?
I'm doing well.
How are you, Dr. Ash?
So tell me your shoulders are a little stiff.
What have you done to loosen it up?
So I'm an esthetician and I recently opened my own spa.
So I'm constantly leaning over clients and I'm working 60, 80 plus hours a week.
So it's really something that really seems to cause a lot of stress and problems is my upper back and my shoulder area and neck.
So I've tried everything hot compress, chiropractic, and I'm always looking for something new to use.
You're going to like this because it combines all that at once.
Go ahead and use your squeegee and see how good you are at this.
And it is...
Ooh, a shoulder stretch.
But here's the deal.
A shoulder stretch in the shower is a little different from doing it outside the shower.
I'm gonna show you a quick stretch.
Do it with me.
So first off, part of the reason our shoulders get stiff is because we actually don't turn them in and out.
Everyone in the audience do this with me.
Turn your heart like this.
You can grab the neck of the person in front of you if you want.
Just kidding.
Back and forth.
Then twist it over and then pull it over in front of you like this.
Just one arm pulls the other.
And run the water on that shoulder.
The warm water.
By the way, please put a mat in the shower.
I hope you all have one so you don't slip and fall while you're doing this.
Try that and good luck with your business.
You'll feel better and able to put your back into it.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
All right.
Melara is next.
She has a nice little shortcut in the shower, but you haven't tried it yet, have you?
No.
It's called medit...
Well, show me what it is.
Oh, medity.
Is it the meditate?
Yeah, I'm...
What if it doesn't say it there?
I don't know.
Then we have a problem.
That was a really...
Come on now!
Okay, sorry.
You're attempting me.
I know.
You're about to get everything but the words.
So meditate.
What's the deal?
Why is it so hard for you?
Well, I have a full-time job.
I'm a soccer mom.
I'm a wife.
I'm always running around, doing things for my son, working full-time, doing things for my husband.
So I need that.
You know, so...
You know, meditation is interesting.
People don't realize the power it has.
It actually drops your blood pressure by managing stress in a very unique way that only you can control.
And the nice thing about a shower is that you can actually create an environment there where you're by yourself.
Most of the time, anyway, right?
Yeah.
So it's a nice little few minutes that you can actually get possession back of your mind.
You can even run the water along your head because that feeling of massage will feel good as well.
And it stimulates the body's relaxation response, which is incredibly powerful.
Oh, okay, cool.
Thank you so much.
Good luck with that.
You know, you can take a squeegee home with you.
Oh, yeah.
Practice.
Thank you.
Finally, Shauna says she's looking at a healthier shortcut to be in the shower.
Something that will just make you better, and you're open to a lot of suggestions.
So you want to try out what we have here for you?
I think you'll like this.
I like this.
She's going to like it.
I like to moisturize.
Let me see your hands.
Do you find that you have a problem with dry skin in the winter?
Yes, I do.
I'm busy, mom, working full-time.
I don't always find time to moisturize on a routine basis, but it's definitely something that I want to start doing every day.
All right, so if you trust me for a second, wait right here, I'm going to come back to you.
I'm going to show you something that you'll be very interested in.
Because there's a way to moisturize now while you're in the shower, which I want you to take advantage of.
And here on behalf of our trusted sponsorship partner, Eucerin, is dermatologist Dr. Elizabeth Tanzi and a good friend of mine at the same time.
So, as a dermatologist, why do you think finding a way of moisturizing in the shower is such a powerful tool?
Well I see a lot of dry skin and unfortunately a lot of people who could benefit from a moisturizer don't have a chance to use it and actually that includes me.
I'm a busy mom, I have two kids and in the morning I am rushed so I find an in shower moisturizer to be particularly convenient and quick to hydrate the skin without a greasy feel.
So what do you look for to find a moisturizer that will actually work?
The ingredients I look for, I look for intensely hydrating and nourishing ingredients such as pro-vitamin B5, glycerin and oils to protect the skin barrier and hydrate the skin.
What I particularly like about the Eucerin in shower moisturizers because it has all those ingredients plus it's fragrance free and it's good for sensitive skin.
And also the technology is amazing because it actually the ingredients get activated by the water in the shower to hydrate the skin while you're in the shower.
And you prepared a little demonstration for us.
So we can do this together.
Yes.
I get to do the dangerous part.
This is what happens.
And think about this.
This is your skin when it's dry, right?
Out of the shower.
This is your skin in the shower.
Because it's dry, it actually reacts differently.
These ping pong balls, they represent the little moisturizing particles when you put a moisturizer on.
So, if you take my dry skin, you can help me here.
Are you good at throwing things?
Yes.
Here, come on, help me a little bit.
Stand up there, guys.
Now, we're all gonna do this together.
We're gonna drop the moisturizers in here, but they can't come out, all right?
Because that's the goal, right?
You want the moisturizers to stay on your skin.
So this is how you do.
Can you do it?
Come on, throw on there.
Oh, not working so well.
Not working so well.
Oh, now you're hurting people.
Thank you very much.
None of us got much success here.
It's hard.
It's darn hard.
You want these particles to stick in there.
Now watch what happens.
Dr. Tansy, take it away.
Dermatologist.
Skin's hydrated.
And when it's hydrated...
Stick right to it.
Everything sticks there, which is what your goal is.
They stick to the surface.
Again, this is the water in here.
Allows...
It locks the moisture in.
Perfect.
So you've got this layer on top, locks in the moisture, which is exactly what you want, plus it's easier to keep it where you want it to be.
So how do you use Eucerin in-shower moisturizer?
So the lotion is formulated specifically to work with the water in the shower.
It's activated by it.
It's very easy to use.
So when you're in the shower...
After cleansing, you step out of the stream of water, you apply the moisturizer and then step back into the water to rinse well.
Now, like any moisturizer or even conditioner for that matter, you don't put it on the bottom of your feet because it could be slippery.
Remember that.
I saw how much you messed up this thing over here.
All right.
But once you're done in the shower, turn off the water, towel dry, you're ready to go.
You don't need to moisturize.
After that, your skin is already silky and you're ready to start your day.
All right, so I wanted to test it out, so I asked Shawna, who is our third guest over there.
Hey, Shawna, come on up.
She's actually been trying to use thin shower moisturizer.
Watch the ping pong balls.
These women drop ping pong balls on the ground.
All right, so what's it like when you actually do it in practice?
I love the product.
What I liked about it is that I could incorporate it into my routine every day.
So it went on nice and smooth.
It wasn't greasy.
That's one thing I really liked about it.
I used to apply lotion after the shower, and then I would feel greasy throughout the day.
So when I got out and would dry off, I would be not greasy.
So you like the way your skin felt after it?
Yes, and it's nice and smooth.
I love it.
So here's the deal.
We're going to do something real fun.
The guys at Eucerin are kindly, beginning tomorrow at 3 p.m., offering the first 2,500 people who go to dros.com a coupon for a free bottle of Eucerin in-shower moisturizer.
Now, that leaves me with one problem.
What do I do with the audience?
So I went out today, and I managed to find a bottle of Eucerin in-shower moisturizer.
So here we go.
I'm going to pass this around.
All right, pass that back here.
Give it to these folks over here.
Actually, you think that's too much.
Just use a small one here.
Just a little one.
All right?
So we're going to come.
I want you guys to line up.
You know, I got a better idea.
Audience, you're all going home with a bottle as well.
Thanks to Dr. Tansey.
All right, we'll be right back.
The search is on.
We're looking for a nurse to join our core team of experts to provide wisdom, expert commentary, and advice.
If you'd like to nominate yourself or a nurse who's made a difference in your life, go to DrRoz.com and click on hashtag nurse search.
Hi, Dr. Oz.
My name is Caroline, and I'm a registered nurse.
I would love to be chosen for Nurse Search because for the last seven years, I've been serving the nursing community through my books, videos, and audios.
And I would love the opportunity to serve your viewers as well.
We've been talking a lot about your head and how to clear it, so you can really focus on what's important.
And we've covered social media and the effects it has with your self-esteem and competitive friendships and brain fog, but did you know the right kind of music could also help you focus?
Here, you're gonna love this.
Ready?
Isn't that great?
You guys wanna hear it?
Yeah.
Just gotta turn it up.
Let's all hear it.
You like that?
Now, if you move back on this, research has found that certain types of music can actually help your brain focus more.
You're all more focused now with this music, believe it or not.
So I'm sure you're going to want to know how to pick the best musics to focus on.
So here's what you're going to look for.
You want songs that are like this.
There's no lyrics, right?
I can sing to it later.
Upbeat tempo.
They get you going.
They've been shown to increase your attention.
And in the OR, in surgery, believe it or not, any of you who've had surgery, this has happened probably all over the country, I play music before the...
The chest is open, like Springsteen, because it fits me.
Then we open the chest, play classical music with a very dainty operation with the small little sutures the size of your hair.
And then for closure, we'll play, you know, Celebration, Earth, Wind, and Fire, just to close things up and get guys going.
Right?
So it actually works for us in New York.
We actually play it for the patients, because subconsciously it affects how you guys think.
So, Scott, crank it up.
Tomorrow everyone's going to be talking about my focus playlist.
It's going to be on my Facebook page.
Listen to it, share it with your friends.
It'll help you get focused for anything.
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