The
World Health Organization defined health as ‘ a state of complete physical,
mental and social wellbeing and not just the absence of disease or infirmity’. It
is therefore clear from the above definition that any focus on the physical
health of an individual, community or nation at large without taking cognizance
of the mental and social health is not complete. Moreover, it is not enough to
be free from obvious and overt disease or infirmity, one needs to be at peace
with himself and others to be said to be healthy, hence the social part.
For the
spiritually inclined, the following verses will put into perspective the fact
that God does not only wish us to have spiritual relationship, he also wishes
us to live in health both physically and mentally:
"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of
His benefits; Who pardons all your iniquities; Who heals all your diseases; Who
redeems your life from the pit; Who crowns you with loving kindness and
compassion; Who satisfies your years with good things, So that your youth is
renewed like an eagle." Psalms 103:1-5
"A man's spirit can sustain his broken
body, but when spirit dies, what hope is left?" Proverbs 18:14
The Brent Vouri Story
In the book ‘Power of Focus’, the authors
shared the story of Brent Vouri who dramatically turned around his life and
health around.
A little summary and highlights of the story
goes thus;
•
He was hospitalized
as a result of severe asthmatic attack
• He was in coma for 15 days
• He lost 40pounds
• He was unable to speak for next two weeks
•
He then had to
think deeply for the first time in his life
•
He was only twenty
one years old at the time and it was as if his life was coming to an end.
•
He has been
asthmatic from childhood
•
His parents
divorced while he was just 10years old.
• He went into drugs; alcohol abuse &
smoking up to thirty sticks of cigarettes per day.
• He didn’t finish school.
• He usually ignores warning signs of the
illness.
•
After discharge he
decided to turn a new leave.
• He set as goal and completed 12 fitness
classes
• 3 years later, he was teaching aerobics
• Five years after that he competed in the
National Aerobics Championships
• He later obtained a diploma, and university
education.
• He and a friend started their own
manufacturing business, specializing in producing apparel for retail chains.
• Starting with only four employees,
Brent built the company into a multi-million-dollar enterprise supplying
high-profile clients such as Nike.
• By deciding to make better choices
and create better habits, Brent Vouri turned his life around.
Lessons to Learn From
the Story
• Life doesn’t just happen to you. You determine
how you respond to every situation, and bad choices often lead to unpleasant
outcomes.
• The situation; His parents’ divorce.
– The bad choices; alcohol abuse and cigarettes
• The situation; Asthma
– The bad choices; self-pity, passing the blame,
not taking responsibility, ignoring the signs.
But when he decided to reflect on his
situations and make the right choices by taking baby steps and building
momentum on his way to change, he was able to turn his health situation around
and went on to lead a very productive life.
A Few Better
Habits That Can Lead To Big Changes
• Regular Check-ups: There is a need to have regular check-ups. Anybody
above the age 50 should have at least a comprehensive physical check-up at
least once in a year. People with
diagnosed illnesses like hypertension, diabetics and other chronic illnesses
should follow their routine periods of check-up without fail.
• Seeking medical advice on time: There are a number of reasons why
people don’t seek medical advice on time ranging from the wrong model of
causation of illnesses, to seeking alternative methods of therapy. Especially
in Africa and Nigeria where I live, many would have tried alternative medical
therapy in the form of native medicine and traditional healers before ever
attempting to go the hospital when these have failed. There is also now a
tendency for people to go for foreign herbal/ food supplements, either Chinese or
American. Though the manufacturers have said that these are not drugs and
should not be substituted for seeing the doctor, some over-enthusiastic
distributors have led many to their early graves by misinforming people that
these supplements are curative and as such many have discarded the conventional
oral hypoglycaemic drug and other drugs leading to complications and death.
It is imperative therefore to present to the
hospital on time when you have any symptoms.
• Sticking to doctors’ advice: It is not enough to visit the doctor, you
must be true to yourself and follow the doctor’s advice and instructions. I
once had a patient who was diagnosed HIV-positive. Although she was doing well
with her depression, she was not regular in her clinic visits and in fact
stopped going for her antiretroviral medications. Needless to say that she
eventually decompensated and died. It was indeed a needless and unnecessary death
which resulted from ignoring all the advice given to her.
• Exercise and Lifestyle changes: Can we say this enough? All over the
internet and media lifestyle and health magazines are full of articles on
exercise, health and lifestyle generally. Build exercise into your routine.
Walk and jog regularly. Find a sport that you love so that it will not be
burdensome. Avoid a sedentary lifestyle. Have a regular sleeping and waking
time. Eat balance diet and eat natural food more than processed food. Grilled
and cooked food is better that fried food. etc
• Not being overly spiritual: I believe in divine healing and the
supernatural. I believe that God can heal just like the records that we have in
the bible. But I also believe that medical breakthroughs are God-inspired in fulfillment
of what is said in the bible that ‘in the last days knowledge shall increase’.
Medical breakthroughs are part of fulfillment of that. Why then should someone
be so overly spiritual to the extent of neglecting proven scientific therapies
and treatment modalities in the pursuit of the extra-ordinary or miraculous? Do
not be overly spiritual! Your life may depend on being simple.
There you have it! These are some little changes
that you can make in your health habits that can lead to great impacts on your
health and productivity in general. Remember the Brent Vouri story.
No comments:
Post a Comment