I spent one day recently engaged in completing some Strategic Planning exercises to help me clarify how I will use my Health Coach Certification. The exercises I completed were helpful and fun and by the end of the day I had written a mission statement and a list of actionable steps to get me moving in the right direction.
Mission Statement: “To energize adults living with chronic disease to maximize their health, wealth, and happiness by adopting new habits, embracing positive attitudes, removing barriers, and focusing on what brings them joy“.
Lake Girl@mylittlebluekayak.com
In the rehab setting, I typically work with adults 50 and older who suffer from multiple chronic diseases. I have family and friends who are overweight, pre-diabetic, diabetic, have high blood pressure and Alzheimer’s disease. Chronic disease touches all of us in one way or another and presents challenges to both the patient and their loved ones.
The Center for Disease Control states: “Chronic diseases are defined broadly as conditions that last 1 year or more and require ongoing medical attention or limit activities of daily living or both. Chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. “
Center for Disease Control (CDC)
The CDC also tells us:
1 in 3 adults and 1 in 5 children are obese
Obesity related conditions are some of the leading causes of preventable, premature death
6 in 10 adults in the US have a chronic disease and 4 in 10 have 2 or more
Every 4 minutes someone in the U. S. dies from a stroke
1 in every 3 adults in the U. S. has high blood pressure (placing them at risk for stroke and heart disease)
90% of the nations $3.3 Trillion in annual health care expenditures are for people with chronic and mental health conditions.
The CDC includes Alzheimer’s, Arthritis, Diabetes, Type 2 Diabetes, Pre-Diabetes, Epilepsy, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Lupus, Obesity, Stroke, Tooth Decay and Certain types of Cancer (Breast, Cervical, Colon, Skin, and Gynecologic) in its list of Chronic Diseases. It talks about preventing and managing these diseases however it does not discuss curing them.
“Most chronic diseases are caused by a short list of risky behaviors:
Tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke
Poor Nutrition
Lack of physical activity
Excessive alcohol use”
CDC
The statistics presented above from the Center for Disease Control are mind numbing, depressing, staggering and downright scary. The health system in our country is quite amazing at handling acute medical conditions and infectious disease; but it is has been unsuccessful in addressing chronic conditions. WHY? That is a question bigger than I can begin to ponder! I would however argue that the risky behaviors noted to cause most chronic disease (tobacco, poor nutrition, lack of exercise and excessive alcohol) are often firmly entrenched, confusing to understand, and difficult to change. I think it is important to remember that even people who do not engage in any of these risky behaviors can get sick and suffer from chronic disease.
The more I read, the more I learn, the more I firmly believe we can as a nation drastically improve the statistics cited above. There are no quick fixes, no prescriptions to fill and no magic treatments to prevent, manage or cure chronic disease. We can’t keep looking to the health care system for a quick cure. Chronic disease doesn’t work that way. The only way to choose health when suffering from chronic disease is to make lifestyle changes that increase the bodies ability to heal itself.
Chronic diseases tax the bodies ability to heal itself. They typically appear after years and even decades of engaging in the risky behaviors discussed above. They don’t improve overnight, but can improve with even a modest 10% weight loss. They can improve with stopping the excess of sugar, processed foods, seed oils, alcohol, smoking. They can improve with better sleep, meditation and improved social connections.
I don’t want to be a statistic and I don’t want you to be one either. If you have been diagnosed with any of the diseases noted above, consider lifestyle changes to your diet, physical activity, smoking and alcohol use. Other changes to consider are to get more sleep, daily quiet time or meditation, interrupt stinking thinking and increase social interactions with people who bring you joy. Everyone is at a different place in terms of choosing health so if you have a good idea of your next step, I encourage you to take it today! You deserve good health.
If you don’t know where to start, share your concerns with a trusted person in your life and get the conversation started. The internet is full of information that can help. One of my favorites is a Functional Medicine Practitioner, Chris Kresser. He has a great website and podcast and shares his own journey to health at Chriskresser.com. He can also explain what is wrong with our current health care system and how to fix it! Keep reading My Little Blue Kayak and consider JOINING ME by pressing the button below to never miss a post!
Lake Girl
