In my last article I discussed how the current pandemic is showing us that our health is in our own hands. This is true because we do not have any specific treatment for COVID 19 except strengthening our immune systems. This is also true because less people are now using the healthcare system because its resources are being diverted to deal with the current pandemic.

This is not to say that our hospitals and doctors’ offices won’t be there for you if you need them for acute emergencies and traumas, but that the pandemic has forced a limitation in these resources to deal with chronic disease to protect people in the general public from being infected.

We are now forced to face the stark reality that we must take our health into our own hands instead of looking outside of ourselves for the answers. So what is the first step to doing this?

The first step is choice. Choice is the invisible force which is at our disposal to harness our unlimited potential to alter our destiny. You see I could talk to you about adequate sleep, sufficient hydration, optimal nutrition and regular movement or exercise but this is information that you don’t need to get from me. It is information that you can find on the internet on YouTube and any other social media platform.

We do not need information but we need transformation. Transformation does not come from anything outside of ourselves but from deep within and it all begins with the power of choice. Choice is the medium of change and has the power to alter the course of our lives. If you take two people, one who has wonderful health and fitness, loving relationships, financial abundance and joy and peace and another who suffers with chronic illness, has dysfunctional relationships, is financially destitute and is full of anguish and turmoil, the main difference between these two people is the choices they make at key points in their life.

Any bad habit that anybody has begins with a single choice. If this choice is repeated over time, the bad habit becomes an addiction which leads to more dysfunction, anguish and suffering. When we see someone who is struggling with an addiction, we fail to realize that it all began with a single choice. This is why it is important to choose wisely. You see, we are constantly faced with choices, a donut or an orange, spending your money or investing for the future, hypnotized by a screen or engaged in conversation with your partner. It is your choices over time which will determine the quality of your life.

So how does one make the right choices which empower one’s health? It all begins with making choices which force you to lean out of your comfort zone. For example, it is always easier to sit on the couch and become engrossed in Netflix then it is to go for a run or to do some calisthenic exercises. Doing the latter will require you to step out of your comfort zone because it is much more comfortable to spend an evening on your couch, with your favourite drink, watching your favourite show then sweating through movements which will ultimately improve your health.

So why do people always make the easy choices instead of the ones that empower them by forcing them to step outside their comfort zones. This will be the topic of the next blog. In the meantime, ask yourself where in your life you could make different choices which would take your health to the next level?

Nauman Naeem MD