We’re reading every day about the spread of swine flu and its potential danger on the health of Australians and it’s pretty hard not to be a little concerned about what it all means. Will we all get sick? Will the sickness be worse than the normal flu? Will it mutate or become something potentially more dangerous? And then we sit and watch our Sunday night show and find that there are now genetic tests that can give us lots of information about what could potentially kill us. Those of us who are on the high end of the pessimism scale get a strange satisfaction that their worst fears are realized and we always knew life was going to be a struggle to stay alive. Difficult not to be affected by all this information and plan to live our lives in ways that will keep us hidden from these potential germs.
And then, the news the next day suggests that the answer could be for taxpayers to fund gastric band surgery to help the obesity crisis!
But hang on a second!! Aren’t we missing something here?
There is a common theme that runs through all the above news items. Life should be lived in avoidance of death. Whether it’s the fight to avoid illness, disease or death by excess fat, these are all very reactive strategies. They are the values by which a character I refer to as the “Survivor” lives by. Maybe we need a gentle reminder that if we perhaps choose to live our life in a healthy, self-aware and self-respecting manner, we might not have so much to worry about? Yes, swine flu might strike but just maybe we could also just get over it? Yes, there is a chance that some of us will get Alzheimer’s, but we might also meet our fate when crossing the road one day. Should we perhaps avoid close contact with cars?
The concept of striving for optimal health is not about avoiding death and injury, it’s more about seeking out the good life, the satisfying, challenging, rewarding moments of our days that make our lives worth living. If we live with fear, we will die from fear. Why not concentrate on encouraging people to move more, eat a well-balanced and nutritious diet, and take up lifestyle behaviours that will not only reduce their chance of early death in years to come but add pleasure to their every day.
I would rather see my tax dollars being used to subsidise any program that promotes optimal wellness as a way of being, and that includes public and private enterprise. Surgery, drugs, medical intervention are all necessary services at the right time. Can we focus on avoiding some of these in the first place. The day that programs promoting movement and behaviour change towards good health habits become tax deductible is the day we may have a chance of creating a healthy Australia. But then I am biased.
