Adjuvants are important contributors to the Practices of the Healthcare Athlete. For optimal benefit, they must be utilized in a complementary fashion with the other practices.
Dr. Darin Davidson partners with Learner+, a CME/CE reflective learning platform for healthcare providers. For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CME/CE credits, Launch here. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits.
For downloadable, actionable strategies and tactics to leverage biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance, visit the resource store, Launch here. Chapters are arranged by topic so those of interest can be selected and each are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits through Learner+.
Throughout this article series, the psychological skills and somatic practices which form the foundation of the Practices of the Healthcare Athlete have been described in detail. When implemented in a complementary fashion, these skills, strategies, and tactics allow us to leverage our biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. There are other factors which can also be integrated into this overall framework. Specifically this relates to the use of adjuvants, including nutritional supplements, measurement of physiological metrics, and use of vagus nerve stimulating devices. Another broad category of adjuvants includes medications and other traditional medical treatments. Within this framework, any of these strategies, tactics, skills, and devices are considered adjuvants.
There is frequent discussion regarding daily nutritional supplementation and measurement of various physiological metrics. The various types of nutritional supplements can be integrated in various forms and ultimately serve to ensure that we have appropriate levels of micronutrients which we may not always be able to obtain through the food that we eat. The underlying principle is that these micronutrients are necessary building blocks for our biology to function in an optimal way.
Physiological metrics can be measured on a continuous basis using wearable devices or on a semiregular device using other methodologies. The metrics which are obtained typically relate to physical activity, stress and recovery levels, and sleep. One of the more frequently discussed metrics obtained in this fashion is heart rate variability. The underlying principle is that the collection and interpretation of these metrics provides a functional analysis which allows us a deeper understanding of the impact of our routines on our biology. The information provided can also be used for guidance regarding upcoming activities, such as training sessions.
The above overview of nutritional supplements and physiological metrics can serve to illustrate how these can be important contributors to our pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. The supplements provide important building blocks and physiological metrics provide important information which can guide our practices.
While there is no question that nutritional supplements and physiological metrics can provide important benefits, they should be used in a deliberate and intentional way. Most importantly, their implementation must be in a complementary fashion with our psychological skills and somatic practices. In addition to the discussion of physiological metrics, another important category is the use of specific devices which aim to improve our nervous system regulation. These are typically referred to as vagus nerve stimulating devices. Similar to the physiological metrics and nutritional supplements, these devices can be important contributors to our overall practice and should be used in a complementary fashion.
It is important to further consider what is meant by utilizing nutritional supplements, physiological metric measurements, and vagus nerve stimulating devices in a complementary fashion. Ultimately, it is important that when we utilize these strategies, it is done in conjunction with our psychological skills and somatic practices. The utilization of nutritional supplements and vagus nerve stimulating devices should not become the primary or sole strategy for attempting to leverage our biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. The use of nutritional supplements should not be intended as a replacement for the development of the necessary mind-based and body-based skills, strategies, and tactics.
To be sure, these various supplements, metrics, and devices can be extremely useful. In fact, utilization of vagus nerve stimulating devices may be, on a short term basis, an essential and primary method utilized to introduce improved nervous system regulation for certain individuals. It is critical, however, that we also develop at the appropriate time the necessary psychological skills and somatic practices so that we are able to predominantly achieve nervous system regulation through our own means. This is necessary for several reasons, not the least of which is that we do not always have access to these devices and as such must develop the ability to regulate our nervous system independently.
It is hoped that the above discussion informs how nutritional supplements, physiological metrics, and vagus nerve stimulating devices can be an important component of our overall practice. It is essential that we also develop the ability to utilize psychological skills and somatic practices independent of these adjuvants. Ultimately, if we are to develop the ability to leverage our biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance to the limits of our capacity it is necessary that we implement these skills, strategies, and tactics independent of adjuvants. The adjuvants can be an important contributing element to our overall practice, which should be thought of as serving a supportive role in the development of the necessary mind-based and body-based skills, strategies, and tactics.
In order to develop proficiency with the psychological skills and somatic practices, it is necessary that we get sufficient repetitions of implementing these skills across a range of activities and situations. In particular, at first, it can be useful to do so in association with the aforementioned adjuvants in order to better support the implementation of these skills. It is also important to develop the ability to utilize these skills independent of the adjuvants.
Ultimately, what is desired, is an overall practice in which we develop the necessary mind-based in body-based skills and utilize adjuvants in a complementary fashion. The overall ability to leverage our biology is maximized when we can integrate the various contributors in a complementary fashion. This creates a scenario in which the overall impact is far greater than the sum of the individual parts. In addition, certain strategies can compensate for and uplift others during times and situations in which particular skills, strategies, and tactics are less effective.
When integrating medications and other medical treatments, it is important to consider that at times they may be the primary strategy and at other times may function more as an adjuvant, similar to supplements. Furthermore, the specific role of this category of adjuvant may evolve and change over the course of time. For these reasons, it is important to maintain a degree of flexibility such that their integration with the other strategies and tactics is appropriate and specific to the particular situation. Within this category are interventions such as hormone replacement, for example amongst perimenopausal women, and surgical treatment, including reconstruction of torn ligaments such as the anterior cruciate ligament. The latter example provides an illustration of how the use of adjuvants can be the primary emphasis at one point in time, specifically in this example at the time of and immediately following surgical reconstruction, but then become a less emphasized modality, such as during postoperative rehabilitation and return to function. In the example of hormone replacement therapy, the intervention may be the primary strategy over an extended duration of time.
The above discussion is equally applicable within the pursuits of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. While many of the principles and concepts have been first implemented and evaluated in high performance domains, they are equally applicable to our pursuit of health and wellbeing. In fact, as discussed in past articles, there is limited ability, if any, to pursue sustainable high performance, if we do not have a stable underlying platform of health and wellbeing.
It is hoped that the above discussion illustrates how the use of adjuvants, including nutritional supplements, measurement of physiological metrics, and use of vagus nerve stimulating devices are important contributors to our overall practices. They are not a substitute, however, for developing the necessary mind-based and body-based skills, strategies, and tactics in order to fully leverage our biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. Similarly implementing medical interventions and treatments can be an important element to our overall pursuits and is ideally integrated in a complementary fashion for optimal benefit.
To learn more, including about biologically complementary coaching for healthcare professionals and others in high demand domains, please visit www.darindavidson.com.
Dr. Darin Davidson partners with Learner+, a CME/CE reflective learning platform for healthcare providers. For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CME/CE credits, Launch here. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits.
For downloadable, actionable strategies and tactics to leverage biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance, visit the resource store, Launch here. Chapters are arranged by topic so those of interest can be selected and each are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits through Learner+.