0 – Before the First Cut— An Invitation
Behind every white coat is a battlefield of values, emotions, and unspoken tension. In this special teaser episode, Dr. Lee Sharma shares a glimpse of what’s to come: real conversations about conflict, burnout, boundary-setting, and negotiating a better life inside modern medicine. On Scalpel and Sword, we’ll walk together into the places we were taught to ignore—the silent struggles, the private battles—and find new tools to face them. The journey begins May 19th. Subscribe today and be part of the first wave of voices rewriting what it means to practice—and to live—as a physician. Host Bio: Dr. Lee Sharma is a gynecologist in private practice in Auburn, Alabama. She holds a Master’s degree in Conflict Resolution. Dr. Sharma has worked for over thirty years as an advocate for patients and clinicians through local, state, and national medical organizations. Her husband, also a physician, and children, chemical engineer/bartender and third-year law student, have been her greatest sources of support. Dr. Sharma continues her work in health policy, health equity, advocacy and conflict management and is passionate in her pursuit of peace, equity, and quality for her patients, colleagues, and the entire house of medicine. Let’s Connect: 🌎 Connect With Me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajamalliga-sharma-md-ma-6a1b6731/) Want to Share Your Story? Your experience matters. We’d love to hear how you’ve navigated the conflicts of medicine. Reach out to join a future episode: scalpelandsword@gmail.com The Scalpel and Sword Podcast is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical, legal, or professional advice. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your specific situation. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com (https://pcm.adswizz.com) for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Are We Medicalizing the Human Experience? with Dr. Roger McFillin
On this episode of Vitality Radio, Jared and Jen sit down with clinical psychologist Dr. Roger McFillin for a challenging conversation about psychiatric diagnosis, mental health medications, and the medicalization of normal human struggle. Jen shares her experience of being prescribed Prozac at age 13 and spending decades living under diagnoses that shaped how she saw herself. Dr. McFillin explains why he has become an outspoken critic of his own profession and questions how conditions such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and ADHD are diagnosed. They discuss the DSM, informed consent, psychiatric medications, emotional suppression, personal agency, and the powerful effect a diagnosis can have on identity. This conversation asks an important question: Are we helping people understand why they are struggling, or simply giving their struggles a name?
Trillions of Exosomes? Everybody Lies, Nobody Knows
There's no sheriff in town. Exosome manufacturers self-report particle counts with no independent verification, no universal standard, and no regulatory oversight — meaning claims like "twice as many exosomes for half the price" can't actually be checked. Identity isn't content. Markers like CD9/63/81 confirm a vesicle is an exosome, but not what's inside it. Without breaking vesicles open for RNA/proteomic analysis (an expensive step most companies skip), you're buying a sealed "bubble" and trusting the label. Bigger numbers often mean smaller reality. Diluting a product inflates particle counts on paper while reducing true exosome concentration — a dynamic Dr. Park says pushed even the industry's founding manufacturer to abandon "billions" language in favor of ""trillions"" just to stay competitive.
The Root Cause Hiding Behind One Family’s Alzheimer’s Diagnosis with Nicole Bell
Ask the root cause question, even in the hardest cases. Nicole's husband was handed an early onset Alzheimer's diagnosis and a plan to simply track his decline. Her engineer's instinct to keep asking why is what surfaced the tick borne infections underneath, Lyme along with Bartonella and Babesia. How and where you test matters. Standard tick borne testing missed it at first, and Nicole is candid that detection in this space is still improving. Her point is not that a test guarantees an answer, it is that the wrong test can wrongly close the door. Think vectors, not just ticks. Bartonella can travel through fleas and lice, not only tick bites, so Nicole encourages people to look honestly at their own exposure history, a pet adoption, an infestation, time spent outdoors, before deciding the risk does not apply to
Chemicals Wrecking Your Hormones (You’d Never Suspect)
In this conversation, Jared breaks down: What endocrine-disrupting chemicals actually are and how they hijack your hormonal system at the receptor level The everyday products with the highest EDC exposure — including ones health-conscious people already think they've fixed Why going BPA-free didn't solve the problem — and what replaced it The EDC-thyroid connection: why so many Hashimoto's patients plateau even when their TSH looks fine What declining testosterone has to do with chemical exposure — and why blaming age is missing the point How EDCs disrupt neurotransmitters and drive the brain fog, anxiety, and depression that conventional medicine sends straight to psychiatry What PFAS "forever chemicals" are actually doing inside the body — and whether they can be cleared What your water filter is and isn't removing The three highest-impact changes to reduce your EDC load starting today If you've been told your labs are normal but you still feel terrible, or you've been doing everything right and still not improving — this is the conversation that might explain why.
Medical Video Games: How Game Design Is Training Doctors Faster
Discover how video game mechanics can help doctors develop mental models for rare cases, complex procedures, and high-pressure decisions. Understand why frustration, reward, challenge, and dopamine are not just entertainment tools, but learning tools that can improve medical training. Learn how game-based education can support patients too, from type 1 diabetes management to behavior change and digital therapeutics.
How Glyphosate May Affect the Microbiome, Brain, and Immune System
Discover why Dr. Ryan Cole describes glyphosate as more than a weed killer and explains its potential impact on soil, food, and gut health. Understand how glyphosate may disrupt the microbiome, mineral balance, amino acid pathways, and the gut-brain connection. Learn practical ways families can reduce exposure through cleaner food choices, regenerative farming awareness, and local advocacy.
Can Your Fingertips Reveal What Is Happening Inside Your Brain?
Why the sense of touch opens a deeper window into the brain than sight or sound, and how two vibrating fingertips reach the parietal lobe. What brain fog actually looks like when it is measured: two points that feel fuzzy instead of distinct, and the role of lateral inhibition. How a reaction-time reading done right differs from the phone and app versions that can be off by hundreds of milliseconds.
Birth to Menopause: Why Your Microbiome Matters
Discover why the infant microbiome should be dominated by beneficial bifidobacteria and how birth mode, breastfeeding, antibiotics, and parental gut health can influence early colonization. Understand why adult gut health depends on microbial diversity, fiber variety, butyrate production, and beneficial bacteria such as Akkermansia rather than simply eliminating unwanted microbes. Learn how vaginal microbiome balance can shift with hormones, postpartum changes, perimenopause, and menopause, and why Lactobacillus crispatus plays such an important protective role.
Mitochondria & Energy: Why the Body Breaks Down
Discover why organs and systems don't fail on their own — they fail first because cells lack the energy that mitochondria produce, and why toxins, heavy metals, and pathogens are the biggest threats to that energy. Understand why open drainage pathways (colon, liver, kidneys, lymphatics, lungs, skin, sinuses) must be working before deeper detox protocols can be effective. Learn about the MRX+ test, a simple, affordable blood panel that measures infection, inflammation, toxicity, malnutrition, and mitochondrial function — and is correlated with longevity.