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Dr. Donny Delp chose Family Medicine because he wanted to have personal connections with his patients instead of working in busy hospital systems, where people are often treated like numbers.

Dr. Delp is originally from Snellville, GA. He went to the University of Georgia to obtain his undergraduate degree. Nova Southeastern in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, is where he received his medical degree and met his wife, an OBGYN. Together, they have one boy child and one girl child. Watch the video to see how he lights up when he talks about them!

As a former wrestler in his younger years, he picked up the hobby of exercising. He loves mountain biking and snow skiing. Dr. Delp loves college football and has maintained season tickets to University of Georgia football games since he graduated.

Learn more about Dr. Delp and what brought him to Our Family Health Center by watching the video.

The relationship you have with your primary care provider is one of the most personal and meaningful relationships you will have in your lifetime. How did you get to know your primary care providers before your first appointment? Now, we make it easy for you to learn more about who our primary care providers are professionally and personally for your convenience.

“Meet The Providers” is a video series we created to help our patients learn more about their primary care provider options. Our providers are happy to share information about their professional backgrounds, upbringing, family life, and what inspired them to be who they are today.

To schedule an appointment with our providers, call 770-464-0280. If you are already an Our Family Health Center Patient, please visit the patient portal to schedule your next visit.

Anxiety is more common than people realize and in this episode of “Between Two White Coats”, we will discuss important facts and solutions. Have you subscribed to our podcast?

Dr. Plaster and Amber Foster are used to patients coming in for concerns about anxiety symptoms. It was necessary to have an open discussion about anxiety and to include mental health professional, Jane Robinson.

Topics Covered:

• Causes of Anxiety
• How to address it
• How to cope

This Episode’s Special Guest

Jane Robinson is discussing Anxiety with Dr. Plaster and Amber Foster. Jane has 20+ years of experience in clinical therapy and family advocacy. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in Social Work.

What is Anxiety?

Anxiety is considered an emotional response to stress with a deep concern for what has not yet occurred.

Anxiety & Depression Association of America’s Key Anxiety Facts

Anxiety can stand alone and be connected to many other related illnesses. The Anxiety & Depression Association of America listed some lovely facts on the topic:

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
  • GAD affects 6.8 million adults, or 3.1% of the U.S. population, yet only 43.2% are receiving treatment.
  • Women are twice as likely to be affected as men. GAD often co-occurs with major depression.
• Panic Disorder (PD)
  • PD affects 6 million adults, or 2.7% of the U.S. population.
  • Women are twice as likely to be affected as men.

• Social Anxiety Disorder
  • SAD affects 15 million adults, or 6.8% of the U.S. population.
  • SAD is equally common among men and women and typically begins around age 13. According to a 2007 ADAA survey, 36% of people with social anxiety disorder report experiencing symptoms for 10 or more years before seeking help.

• Specific Phobias
  • Specific phobias affect 19 million adults, or 8.7% of the U.S. population.
  • Women are twice as likely to be affected as men.
  • Symptoms typically begin in childhood; the average age-of-onset is 7 years old.
  • Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are closely related to anxiety disorders, which some may experience at the same time, along with depression.

• Stress
  • Everyone experiences stress and anxiety at one time or another. The difference between them is that stress is a response to a threat in a situation. Anxiety is a reaction to the stress. Read APA: Stress in America: A National Mental Health Crisis (Oct 2020)

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
  • OCD affects 2.2 million adults, or 1.0% of the U.S. population.
  • OCD is equally common among men and women.
  • The average age of onset is 19, with 25 percent of cases occurring by age 14. One-third of affected adults first experienced symptoms in childhood.

• Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • PTSD affects 7.7 million adults, or 3.5% of the U.S. population.
  • Women are more likely to be affected than men.
  • Rape is the most likely trigger of PTSD: 65% of men and 45.9% of women who are raped will develop the disorder.
  • Childhood sexual abuse is a strong predictor of lifetime likelihood for developing PTSD.

• Major Depressive Disorder
  • The leading cause of disability in the U.S. for ages 15 to 44.3.
  • MDD affects more than 16.1 million American adults, or about 6.7%of the U.S. population age 18 and older in a given year.
  • While major depressive disorder can develop at any age, the median age at onset is 32.5 years old.
  • More prevalent in women than in men.

• Persistent depressive disorder or PDD, (formerly called dysthymia) is a form of depression that usually continues for at least two years.
  • Affects approximately 1.5 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older in a given year. (about 3.3 million American adults). Only 61.7% of adults with MDD are receiving treatment. The average age of onset is 31 years old. (Source: National Institute of Mental Health)

• Related Illnesses
  • Many people with an anxiety disorder also have a co-occurring disorder or physical illness, which can make their symptoms worse and recovery more difficult. It’s essential to be treated for both disorders.

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are closely related to anxiety disorders, which some may experience at the same time, along with depression.

• Read on to learn more about the co-occurrence of anxiety and these disorders:

• Bipolar disorder
• Eating disorders
• Headaches
• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
• Sleep disorders
• Substance abuse
• Adult ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder)
• BDD (body dysmorphic disorder)
• Chronic pain
• Fibromyalgia
• Stress
• Children
  • Anxiety disorders affect 25.1% of children between 13 and 18 years old. Research shows that untreated children with anxiety disorders are at higher risk to perform poorly in school, miss out on important social experiences, and engage in substance abuse.

• See statistics for anxiety disorders among children from the National Institute of Mental Health.

Anxiety disorders also often co-occur with other disorders such as depression, eating disorders, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

• Childhood anxiety disorders
• Anxiety and depression
• Treatment
• Tips for parents and caregivers
• Anxiety disorders at school
• School refusal

• Older Adults
  • Anxiety is as common among older adults as among the young. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is the most common anxiety disorder among older adults, though anxiety disorders in this population are frequently associated with traumatic events such as a fall or acute illness. Read the best way to treat anxiety disorders in older adults.

Is Anxiety a concern for you or someone you love?  How do you currently manage it?

“Between Two White Coats”

Dr. Michelle Plaster and Nurse Practitioner Amber Foster, Our Family Health Center’s own medical professionals, have come together to create the “Between Two White Coats” podcast that discusses the most pertinent topics that impact people just like you, family medicine patients.

You can listen to the all episodes on Spotify.

Between Two White Coats is available on your favorite podcast apps. Copy and paste “Between Two White Coats” into the search bar of your podcast app.

• Amazon Music
• Apple Podcasts
• Breaker
• CastBox
• Deezer
• Google Podcasts
• iHeartRadio
• Overcast
• Stitcher
• TuneIn

About Dr. Michelle Plaster

Before becoming licensed in Family Medicine, Dr. Plaster worked as a Professor of Anatomy within medical and nursing schools. With her education and training in counseling, Dr. Plaster worked as a Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Counselor and a Hospice Counselor. Her work as a Professor of Anatomy, Physiology, and Pathology at massage therapy schools piqued her interest in Complementary Medicine. She learned the benefits of massage, acupuncture, Chiropractic Medicine, and Complementary Medical techniques. She set a goal of having a practice where her patients would have a choice in their health care.

Read More about Dr. Plaster

About NP Amber Foster

Amber Foster is your Family Nurse Practitioner at our Family Health Center. She received her BSN-RN at Georgia Southern University in 2004 and her MSN-FNP at the University of Alabama in 2009.

Read More about Nurse Practitioner Amber Foster

Listen to the latest episodes of Between Two White Coats and tell us how you feel about them on our Facebook page.

Some people are naturally very empathetic. I am one of those people. This is a great gift that allows me to connect with people every day when they share with me why they have come to see the doctor. I have grown aware through years of practicing medicine that people long for these connections. People long to be heard, share a moment and have someone appreciate their circumstances.

A patient last week told me, “I always feel better after coming here”. I made no medical adjustments during that visit. She shared with me how her best friend died and we simply felt sad for a few minutes together. Nothing that required a medical degree but healing occurred.

I understand why more people don’t practice empathy.

It’s hard! Not hard to do but hard to handle. Sharing someone’s situation can mean feeling their pain. I know I am asking you to do something hard. But this matters more than anything else we can do in this life. Let’s share each other’s pain.

We will change the world when non-minorities share the pain of discrimination, when straight people can know in their hearts that all love is love or when the well-nourished feel other’s hunger.

Practice empathy.

Walk in another’s shoes until it hurts. Look for opportunities today to ask yourself, “I wonder what that person is going through.” When a person is short with you think about what must be going on for them to make them so upset today. When a person looks down, frustrated, upset see if you can connect with them.

Simply select one person today and ask yourself what it must be like to be them.