If you really think about it, what we consider “healthcare” in the United States is only used when we are sick. It’s really “sick care”. And that’s okay as long as we understand that we are not going to be healthy by relying on that system.
In fact, there is no true “healthcare” system here. When it comes to actual health, we are all self-insured: on our own to navigate the resources available and on the hook to pay for it ourselves. Most people have a very difficult time with this part of the equation–citing that they don’t have the money to pay for the things that they know will help them be healthier. It’s a strange thing because you either pay now or pay later (when you’re sick) except that culturally, we don’t pay for prevention. We are most willing to pay when we are suffering. When I attended a training with Dr. Mark Hyman, he called it NEP Syndrome… “Not Enough Pain” to do the things that were work or cost money in the name of prevention.
Why is this? Why have we become a nation of people happy to leave well enough alone until it’s a crisis? And really, not just in health–but we see it in finances and parenting and other places. Many times this only changes if the people around us are changing and we’re willing to do things with the group (even if they’re not a great fit for us individually). Doing what everyone else does feels safe because at least if something goes wrong, you’re all in it together.
It takes a lot of courage to step outside of the mainstream when the mainstream is not working for you. Leaving the path that everyone around you is on to break out into the new and/or unknown requires some strength, and some determination to make sure that you’re leaving no stone unturned on the journey to getting better.
Doing so shows that you know that you (or your children) are worth better than what you are getting. It means that you trust that you will find a way to figure out if these new ideas are worthwhile and maybe better than what you see before you now. It’s an effort because you are following a path you’ve never seen and have to do a touch more work along the way to blaze the trail.
But it is an exercise in the ultimate love for yourself (and your family).
And it is the greatest change we can make in the state of “healthcare”.
I totally agree with your message, Heather. Health care should be preventative and we should be in charge of our healthy habits and those of our children’s. If things don’t change, our children’s life expectancy will be less than our own and to make matters worse, the consumption of processed foods is preventing our bodies from decaying at death (similar to the McDonald’s hamburger that sat for a year). Health care starts with what you put into your body, on your body, breath into your lungs and good old fashioned exercise. P.S. I am a fan of Mark Hyman also!
I totally agree and I never even considered the “decaying at death” perspective. Wow… That just completely blew my mind.
I love this post Heather. I work for an employee risk management firm (aka – benefit brokers) and I see firsthand every day the crisis we are surrounded by in regards to healthcare. “When it comes to actual health, we are all self-insured” – this is brilliant. If we all took more time to ensure that what we are doing to and putting into our bodies was more on the healthy side of things, maybe the crisis wouldn’t be such a dilemma.
We’re just such a country of gamblers. “Maybe it won’t happen to me, so why make an effort for something I don’t KNOW that I need” whereas when they’re sick, they know they need help. Even so, I see a lot of people who get sick and still won’t tend to the problem because it seems so overwhelming. They don’t have any concept that these things can happen in baby steps. Everyone wants instant results. Nobody got instantly ill.
Great thoughts here – I couldn’t agree more! Thanks for posting this, and for encouraging people to take leadership of their healthcare options. So important!
~Mitzie
http://www.mindyourbodywellness.com
Heather you are spot on! The saying “we are what we eat” is exact truth. Of course there are always exceptions to any blanket statement, but for the most part….if one eats a diet filled with processed foods and crap, that is the health they’re going to enjoy – crap! An intake of clean vibrant foods, such as whole organic plants gives the body exactly what it needs, exactly how it needs it and exactly sends the nutrients to exactly where they need to go. It is only with a clean diet that these bodily functions can happen at their optimum. Thanks for a great post.