Well it's that time again.

Three to five years after my last one, it's time to have another colonoscopy.

People are afraid of having this test, but really the only thing that is difficult about this test is the prep.

That really is the worst part.

You have two choices of preps these days. You either have the Tri light which is the gallon of liquid that tastes terrible, bloats your stomach and makes you feel a bit sick.

Or the new one, that you take in 12 hour intervals. It's not nearly as much liquid, but if you schedule your colonoscopy for first thing in the morning, as I do, (and I highly recommend this timing)... then you have to get up at 2 o'clock in the morning to take the second dose and you might lose out on some sleep.

So I chose to do the gallon of liquid as I have done before. Its not that hard, its just a lot of liquid and you do feel quite full.

You'll likely spend a lot of time on the toilet either prep you choose.

Itching, chafing, burning, and sweating in places you might have forgotten you have...

We all know the importance of exercise for all aspects of your health. It can help you not only feel better and have more energy, increase circulation to your pelvic floor, and help prevent osteoporosis, but the endorphins can improve your mood even in rough times such as menopause.

At times though, it may seem that our body is rebelling against what should be a reward for your dedication to exercise. If women are not careful, these anti-rewards can sometimes rise up in the form of yeast infections, infected glands, bacterial vaginosis, and vaginitis (sometimes called crotchitis), among other uncomfortable things.

Different types of exercise can make women more prone to different kinds of symptoms. For instance, cycling, running, and swimming can have their own set of potential problems. I want to focus on the several things they may all have in common.

In addition to avoidance, there are some nutrients, foods, and natural options for supporting your detoxification processes and helping your body defend against the negative effects of toxins. Let's take a look at 10 of the most important natural detox foods, herbs, and nutrients for protecting your body against toxins:

Today, Dr. Holly Lucille welcomes Sarah Corey as a guest blogger. For more of Sarah's very useful information on stress and your health, listen as Sarah and Dr. Holly discuss "Are You Creating Stress in Your Life?"

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We are constantly surrounded by stress. Just being alive is a stress on our bodies.

Pile on the unreasonably high levels of chronic stress many of us are under in our daily lives and this can start to reek havoc on our bodies. Science indicates that
stress affects four major systems in the body, our digestion, our immune systems, our hormones, and our nervous system.

Want to lose weight, feel stronger, healthier, and more vibrant? Pick up a dumbbell! While strength training is a good addition to anyone's fitness routine, recent studies show that lifting weights may have special health benefits for women. And that's particularly true for older women.

For many, the Film Festival at Cannes, France, exemplifies the glamor of an industry well known for it. Indeed, a job in film and television is perceived to be one of the glitziest careers you can have. Part of the appeal for the thousands who seem to flock to Los Angeles alone is the allure of celebrities, parties, red carpet events and award shows, the potential paychecks and, of course, being part of the creative process.

If the L.A. film community is the draw, then a trip to Cannes represents champagne wishes and caviar dreams come true. When I got the opportunity to go to the Film Festival, I immediately put myself on a strict diet (which didn’t work) and used up an embarrassing amount of my finances to "look the part." Upon my arrival, I felt like I was in a scene from a movie, with every moment being more surreal then the last.

I thought, "If this is the lifestyle, sign me up." Seriously, though, where do I sign my soul away?

In 2010, a study published in British Medical Journal concluded that women taking calcium supplements significantly increased their risk of heart disease — by as much as 27%.

The authors’ conclusions were picked up by mainstream media and sensational headlines blanketed the airways and print media. The negative headlines made their impact as they fearfully convinced women to stop taking their calcium supplements.

What a mistake.

As a Naturopathic Doctor I have been taught to think about health and healing in a very comprehensive, holistic manner.

The science that drives my thought process is called Vitalism. Vitalism states that our bodies have an inherent self-healing mechanism and are brilliant and built to stay in balance through the harmonious efforts of many interrelated systems that are constantly working on our behalf to take care of us.

As a practitioner of this style of medicine, I am challenged to listen and ask deeper questions when I am involved with a patient who has become entirely out of balance and therefore symptomatic. Symptoms are the body’s way of talking to us, telling us that something needs attention. I have to understand where there might be obstacles to cure, where there might be some excess or deficiencies, and then work with the body to achieve a state of health.

A few weeks ago, social media and other sites blew up with the news that France had banned working after 6:00 p.m. Well, at least sending work emails after that time.

Here in the U.S., we rejoiced for the French and silently hoped that our very own country would follow suit.

It turned out that, in fact, the French did not make it illegal to send work emails after 6:00. Apparently, according to the Washington Post, the buzz stemmed from “an agreement made between labor unions and a federation of engineering and consulting companies, affecting 250,000 people and involving no official laws.”

It was like a bad game of Telephone via the World Wide Web. By the time it made its rounds, the real story had turned into something completely, well, wrong.

tel-e-phone [tel-uh-fohn]: the party game where a phrase is whispered down a line of players, with the goal of that phrase coming out the same by the end. Which, of course, never happens. “John and Amy are having a baby!” turns into “Don and Amy are going to Vegas!” Amy, I don't know who the heck Don is, but if he knocks you up, for the love of all that is sacred, please don't bring your screaming, crying child to Vegas.

So, no. The City of Lights did NOT decide to turn its lights off at 6:00 p.m. so that all French people could go home and watch Game of Thrones.

Besides, if it had been true, what about all the service industry folks? Why shouldn’t they be considered just as hard working as those business professionals and be able to shut down at 6:00? They might even be more physically, emotionally and mentally taxed than those in suits... I mean, have you ever had to deal with a rude American tourist?

It was a good thought, though, and for one fleeting moment, many of us were excited about the possibility of change. What if we didn’t have to be connected to our phones, email, laptops, tablets ALL THE TIME?

Monday is the Boston Marathon. Many folks might not have paid much attention to this day, in the past. But that all changed with the events that transpired just over a year ago. Now, this iconic marathon becomes even more so; dedicating the run and race to all those who were killed and injured.

My sister, Rachel, is going to be one among the pack. Last year after the bombings, she made it her mission to qualify and run Boston this year in memory and honor. And she did just that. See, unless you get a special "pass" or run with some sort of fundraising group, you have to qualify to run the Boston Marathon. It's the only marathon in the U.S. that requires you to do so. To make the cut, you must run the entire 26.2 miles under a specific time for your age group. Unfortunately, in my seven full marathons, I have never hit the mark. It's OK, she's faster than me. A little sibling rivalry can be healthy. In all honesty, I'm really proud of her. That's us in the picture, at the start line of the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington D.C. in 2011. If you can't tell by our body language, it was COLD. We actually did two marathons together that year, both within 30 days.

The Boston bombings rocked us as a nation, as it should. Terrorism is some tricky, nasty stuff. But as a runner myself, it hit especially hard. Runners run for different reasons. They run races for different reasons, too. Some of us do it for health (mental and physical) or to raise money for a cause. Some do it as a healthy competition, with others or with themselves. I've mentioned before that I run for a variety of purposes, but mainly to keep my sanity. I ran the Marine Corps Marathon in memory of my best friend's brother, Mike, who was killed in Afghanistan.

Runners, in my opinion, are a special kind of people. Call us "joggers" and you might get a dirty look or a swift kick to the groin. So, when someone intentionally hurts us – and our supporters – we don't take it lightly. We take it in stride. We rise above. We stay strong. Boston Strong? Hell yeah.

In addition to being a runner, I am, as you know, a writer. So, last year when the bombings occurred, I got out my pen and I wrote a poem. And then I went for a run.

I'm nearing the 21st anniversary of my first date with my husband. Twenty-one years! That seems like a very, very long time to be with the same person.

But, that's a generational observation. To my grandparents, who were married 50+ years before they passed on, 21 years was just a warm-up.

Obviously, things have changed.

Divorce is just as common as long-lasting marriages, with an estimated 2.4 million couples divorcing in 2012 (the latest reliable statistics available). In an environment where celebrities often set the standard of what life should look like, divorce is commonplace... even after a measly 72 days if you happen to be a Kardashian.

There's a ton of reasons why more couples separate these days. A hundred years ago, it was unheard of. Couples had to stay together for family strength, financial stability, a pending inheritance. Now, people divorce because they're not happy, they constantly fight, one individual wants financial independence, infidelity, etc., etc.

Which leads me to the question of monogamy: are people truly supposed to stay with one person for an entire lifetime? Or might there be something more to this concept of "the new monogamy"? Would you be OK if your partner suggested that you have multiple partners if it meant it might save your marriage?

It's been a concept for a very long time: women's intuition. Call it a sixth sense, gut instinct, a simple "knowing" that women seem to possess more often than men. But is it really real?

Psychology Today suggests that "...women are, as a group, better at reading facial expressions of emotions than are men. As a result, women are more likely to pick up on the subtle emotional messages being sent by others." That's their definition of the phenomenon; a science-based explanation of why women can sense things better than men.

According to Urban Dictionary, however, the definition of "women's intuition" is this: Something that every woman has where you just know. Whether it's that your lover is cheating on you or you get uneasy vibes from a co-worker, it's that gut feeling telling you that something is wrong. It may come in the form of a dream, deja vu, a funny feeling, all three, or something else. Never doubt this feeling. Ever.

I particularly like that last part... I think regardless of what is behind the feeling/sensation/suspicion, you should always know that it means something.