Without great health, nothing else matters.
I’ve had several moments in my life where this rang so true for me as I faced different health challenges. If you’ve faced health challenges of your own then I’m sure you may have felt the same way. But for some reason, once the pain or discomfort or symptoms go away, we tend to let our health slide well off of our radar screen until it’s challenged once again.
It’s a history that repeats over and over again, only really allowing us glimpses of living with great health. That needs to change.
If you know me at all then you know I have always been a pretty health conscious person and have led a pretty active and healthy lifestyle for much of my life. Despite that I still played into the symptom focused view of health.
When Health Is Challenged
At one point I developed pain in my mid to upper back on one side. It was a piercing pain that would not subside no matter what I tried. I saw a medical doctor, physical therapist, chiropractor, and other specialists. I even had an MRI and even a nerve conduction test. Nobody could properly assess what was going on. I was in near constant pain. I could not sleep. I could only get very limited rest lying in a sitting up position on the couch. I could not work very effectively either.
It was a problem that lasted for weeks. During that time I could not focus on anything but the pain. Nothing else mattered but trying to regain my health. Then, over time, the pain simply subsided and in my mind I was back to being healthy. But I didn’t get to the root cause. I was merely symptom free.
As I approached my 50’s I began to develop pain in the middle of one foot. I would notice it at times when walking. But while running is where I noticed it and where it limited me the most. I love to run. It has been a source of joy, social fun, competitive challenge, and even meditative stress release. To have it be limited by pain really bothered me. To get to symptom free meant to essentially stop running and find a way to accept it. Healthy once again? No, not really. I was not in great health physically or emotionally.
Then came the 50’s decline. That moment we all face where the accumulation of a lifetime of sedentary living, desk and computer bound work, or even heavy labour, takes it toll. That time where the stress of climbing the corporate ladder or growing a business or working long hours hits its unsustainable tipping point. The body’s breakdown rears its ugly head. Great health might feel like a distant memory. For me this actually acted as my wake up call.
Enough of the band aid approach to masking symptoms instead of getting at the root cause of the various symptoms, illnesses, injuries, and pain I felt. Enough of the outright ignoring my health concerns for fear of what they might be or hoping they would just go away. My goal was to one by one identify and then address each and every health issue that was there at one degree or another.
My goal was to regain my great health. I wanted to live my version of The One Wave Lifestyle.
Why?
Great health matters so that I can…
- Live as pain free as possible
- Maintain physical strength and functional independence for decades to come
- Be mentally sharp forever
- Be emotionally centred and grounded forever
- Have the energy to be highly productive in whatever work I choose to do
- Try new activities like wake surfing and enjoy it
- Continue to do all the things that bring me joy
- Experience my daughter growing up and maybe grandkids, even great grandkids
- Live a very long and meaningful life that just keeps getting better and better
Those are just some of my reasons why great health matters. What are yours?
If they are powerful enough and inspiring enough to you then maybe, just maybe, you are ready to break free from the symptom focused approach to health.
My advice to you…
Consider the impact of how you spend your 24 hours every day
You are lying down, sitting or standing for the vast majority of your 24 hours every day. How do each of these contribute to or detract from your ability to have great health?
Listen to your body
Become adept at watching out for signs or symptoms at very early stages for problems that can get bigger. Shift your mindset towards a thriving health mindset.
Get assessed from your health care professional sooner than later
Become okay at seeking assessment, advice, and treatment from appropriate health care practitioners. Get over your fear or apathy towards addressing health concerns. A lot depends on it.
Begin to train now for the life you want to be able to live at age 100
Sleep, exercise, nutrition, mindset, as well as meaning and purpose will all play a very large part of your being able to achieve and live with great health for many years or decades to come. Start now, while you still can.
If you can’t find the time, if you aren’t clear of your why, if you can’t see a future that is bigger than your past then NOW is the time to consider private mentor and coaching support or joining our One Wave Global Community.
We can help you break free from a life that has you sick and tired of being sick and tired. There is so much more available to you with great health!
