Sailing Through Life - A Story of Health and Sickness
By Dr. Brad Lohrenz
I have viewed health from many different perspectives. I spend much of my life teaching people about health and I have listened to many people talk about health and life. The reason that concepts of health have to be taught is that there is confusion over what health actually is. Health is often thought of as a state you achieve by exclusion: “I’m not sick, so I must be healthy”. I do not believe this. The definition of health I use is being in a state of optimum physical, mental and social well-being. I see health as a dynamic entity, someone moves from good health to bad health, bad to terrible and good to great health. Health is not static, it’s not something that you have or do not have. In viewing health as a dynamic state, it allows one to see that in order to achieve health, we must actively take part in the process. Health will not come to us without some effort on our part. In order to achieve this, we must take an active role in making our bodies and lives healthier.
If you do not have time for illness,
you better make time for wellness.
In looking at health, I have used an analogy of a ship. Your health is your ship and it will go where you allow it to go. You are the captain of your ship! In life, you can decide the route you take. You can steer your life to or away from upsets. Your boat can meet waves of physical stress; it can endure the swells of emotional stress, or experience the pounding of chemical stresses. You can guide your ship into turbulent waters if you wish; however, you also gain the ability to steer away from the turbulence and sail to calm, serene seas. You have a choice; you may take an easy route if you choose. However, I am aware that you cannot escape all stresses, there are too many that are built into our way of life. Therefore, it’s how you captain your ship when you hit a rough patch. It’s the energy you have to react to them and your coping skills when they hit turbulent waters that will determine how much damage these stresses will do. Don’t allow your stresses to sink your ship. You establish defences which are like putting a metal plate over your hull, or you can ignore your defences and hope that the termites don’t jump aboard and eat too much. You can be taught methods to safeguard your health so that your ship remains upright and sailing swiftly.
When left to luck, many ships crash. If you do not grab the wheel, your ship still sails. It will go wherever the winds and currents take it. You may be carried into the abyss of sickness, the sea of pain, or the ocean of disability and disease. These are not great destinations. I try to get people to establish a well-charted plan; to prepare for the journey of life. We want you to stay on a course of easy sailing. However, even with the best-laid plans, bad weather may still strike. If this occurs we want you to have established ways to cope with the unexpected. We want you to stay on course so you can come out of the stressful weather faster and with greater probability. We want to teach you to worry about the direction your health is going before you are sick and diseased.
How is your ship? How do you captain your ship? What is the direction you are sailing and how prepared are you to work to get there? How much of your health journey do you wish to leave to chance? It’s up to you. You are the captain – do you sail your ship or do you just go with the flow – do you hope for good weather and just go; or do you have a plan and an objective? Be more aware – find a good map and follow it. This will increase your chance to stay on a good path to calm seas and sunny islands. If you wish to learn more about sailing the seas of life and health, come and see me and get some “sailing lessons”. We can show you how to be proactive with your health. Learn how to safe guard your own ship; boost your immune system, strengthen your body, prepare for eventual rough waters. If you are ready, you will weather your own storms better, and this is what being in a state of great health is all about.
Happy Sailing!!
Dr. Brad Lohrenzis a chiropractor who practices in downtown in the Halifax Professional Centre
Robie @ Spring Garden Chiropractic Clinic
www.robiechiro.com
Direct Billing: Students from Dalhousie, Saint Mary's, MSV, Chamber of Commerce, Cowan, GWL and Greenshield
