EP. 004:
How Does Trauma Impact Our Physical Health?
With Dr. Neil & Dr. Sara Bomar
This week Christopher and Mickenzie sit down with Onsite Director of Medical Services, Psychiatrist Dr. Neil Bomar, and Functional Medicine Doctor Dr. Sara Bomar to explore how trauma can impact our physical and mental health.
The four discuss how Dr. Sara and Dr. Neil partner to help clients better understand the mind-body connection and many of the things we often dismiss or overlook regarding our physical health.
“The body has this innate desire to heal itself. If you get a cut, the body just heals itself on its own. But emotional wounds are just a little more complex.”
– Dr. Neil Bomar
“Trauma can often be the backdrop for a host of official diagnoses. And when we delve into someone’s story, it can help us unravel those diagnoses.”
– Dr. Sara Bomar
Meet Dr. Neil Bomar, MD:
Milestones at Onsite Medical Services Director and Psychiatrist
Dr. Neil Bomar has a varied medical and psychiatric background. He is an honors graduate of Vanderbilt University and completed his medical degree at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center in Memphis. An early career in primary and urgent care medicine led him to Kentucky, where Neil attended the University of Kentucky to pursue a residency in occupational and preventive medicine. He practiced occupational and corporate medicine before returning to Memphis to complete a residency in psychiatry.
Neil’s breadth of experience in psychiatry and primary care led to a focus in the areas of trauma and addiction. He now serves as the Medical Services Director for Milestones, Onsite’s Residential Trauma Program in Cumberland Furnace, TN.
Dr. Neil’s recommended resources:
“I’m a big fan of the work of Dr. Gabor Mate’. Not only is he a brilliant doctor and author, his personal story of how the Holocaust affected his early attachments is extremely moving and enlightening.
Gabor’s book “In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts” discusses the connection between trauma, loss, and addiction. It is a must-read for people who are trying to understand why they or a loved one continues to relapse despite overwhelmingly painful consequences.
His book, entitled “When the Body Says No,” connects the effects of trauma and stress on the development of chronic diseases and physical ailments; this is material we touched on in our podcast.
For parents trying to navigate raising children during this trying time, the book “Hold On To Your Kids”, which he coauthored with Dr. Gordon Neufeld, is an unapologetic treatise on the importance of staying connected with your child despite the pull of peers, technology, and culture.
No matter what topic he is discussing, Gabor’s authentic humanity and deep intellectual humility shine through.
“I do enjoy a good podcast and tend to gravitate towards those by Dr. David Sinclair (Lifespan) and Dave Asprey (The Human Upgrade).
I find Tim Ferriss (The Tim Ferriss Show) entertaining, and I enjoy some of his material applicable to the work we do, especially as it relates to personal development and business. The Empowering Neurologist podcast by Dr. David Perlmutter is worth listening to.”
Meet Dr. Sara Bomar, MD:
Milestones at Onsite Adjunct Physician and Functional Medicine Doctor
Dr. Sara Bomar scored in the top 7% of all physicians in the nation on her medical boards when she graduated from Meharry Medical College. While working as a resident physician in a highly competitive residency at Vanderbilt Hospital, Dr. Bomar developed a back injury and was expected to respond well to a fairly routine surgery. Instead of recovering, she became more and more debilitated. It would take eight years to receive a correct diagnosis and six more years for a treatment that would allow her to walk again and live with significantly less pain. Sara’s journey forever changed the way she would practice medicine.
Now running her own functional medicine practice, Dr. Bomar works day in and day out, helping individuals find the root causes of illness and implement changes at those roots.
Dr. Sara’s recommended resources:
Thought leaders in the world of functional medicine whom I find immensely informative:
1) Kelly Brogan, MD in the realm of psychiatry, especially regarding an inflammatory model of depression,
2) Peter Attia, MD, functional medicine physician with a terrific podcast that includes a wide variety of speakers and topics, including scientists presenting research from academic institutions3) Kara Fitzgerald, ND has insightful and well-written blogs for consumers and professionals.
