All of us will have been caught out at some point without an umbrella or have found ourselves at our holiday destination with inappropriate clothing. In our hurried preparation we have overlooked something important or have had false expectations about the weather. Such situations often require unscheduled shopping on location resulting in additional expense and lost time. I often think that our approach to health is similarly haphazard.
To me, wellbeing requires a balance of health in mind, body and spirit. We need to nourish ourselves across all aspects of our lives in order to be well and bring a sense of purpose into everything we do. Good nutrition is foundational for our physical health and from there we can seek to satisfy our higher needs. However, a focus on purely physical health is insufficient as it will inevitably fail with advancing years and it is wise to accept this fact and mentally prepare for change. A balanced health approach will require that we achieve an optimum blend across our physical, mental and emotional needs appropriate for each stage of our lives. Becoming caught up in the corporate life with its heavy demands on our mental capacities often leads to stress related illnesses and even cardiovascular disease. Here failing to nurture the whole often results in an unscheduled hospital stop, significant expense and a lot of lost time.
Our current medical paradigm is based on a Sick / Not Sick choice of opposites that ‘gives us permission’ to follow abusive lifestyles until we’re clearly very sick indeed. At that point we turn to the Slash, Poison or Burn ‘Allopathic Remedies’ to manage the situation rather than cure it. If instead we considered ourselves positioned on a multi-dimensional wellness spectrum we could live so healthily that the Sick / Not Sick paradigm would become irrelevant. No one will encourage us to change perspective; doing so threatens the status quo. But when we accept personal responsibility for our wellness we will naturally address the interrelated dimensions of mind, body and spirit so that we achieve an optimum balance. We are open to new experiences of health. We challenge conventional dogma. We expect more of ourselves and are prepared to work for it.
When we do the results are often staggering. Thousands have walked the path before us. TED and YouTube are filled with the most inspiring examples and I will list some of my favourites here –
- Martin Boorman, disabled paratrooper walks again http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX9FSZJu448&feature=youtu.be
- Nick Vujicic, quadriplegic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc4HGQHgeFE
- Steve and Mary Newport, Treating Alzheimers’ and Dementia with Coconut Oil http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iScs0uzQZFk
- Terry Wahls, recovering from MS through the transformative power of vegetables http://blog.ted.com/2012/08/09/10-talks-on-the-transformative-power-of-vegetables
We deserve better than the Sick / Not Sick paradigm. Let’s seek out proper nutrition for mind, body and soul that will give us the wellness that is our God-given right.
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