BE PROACTIVE!

In the last article, I introduced some of the principles underlying Stephen R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which we are repurposing here to apply to your health. Please keep these principles in the background of your mind as we begin the journey through the 7 Habits that can help make 2014 the Best Year of Your Life.

The first habit is one that is particularly important (and commonly deficient) to the area of health. That is the habit of BEing Proactive. Being Proactive is one of the amazing gifts possessed by humans. When something happens to us, or we are in a particular situation, we always have a CHOICE in how we will respond.

When we are faced with a health challenge, we have a choice in what we will do about it. We can choose interventions that may temporarily make us feel better but ultimately hurt our overall health, or we can choose to take action that will get to the underlying problem and thus improve our long-term outcomes. We can choose to cover up the surface, or work on the source.

If you listen to the languaging most people use regarding their health you will notice that they are REACTIVE, as opposed to PROACTIVE. They say things such as, “I had to have that surgery…my kid made me sick…my back is out…my doctor won’t let me play golf anymore.” These are examples of reactive language.

PROACTIVE language sounds like this, “I have been having a health challenge and therefore I am looking for ways to live a healthier life…I have allowed my immunity slip and am sick, time for a change…what is underlying this pain I am experiencing and how can I address it?”

Reactive language focuses on what you have or don’t have that is separate from the person living the life. Proactive language focuses on the person with the problem and the choices they can make. Reactive people’s health essentially comes down to luck. Proactive people influence their own outcomes.

Covey says in his book, “Any time we think that the problem is ‘out there,’ that thought is the problem.”

Central to being proactive is focusing on what is called your Circle of Influence, NOT your Circle of Concern. Your COI is what you have control over and what choices you can consciously make in regards to it. COC contains many things that we have no involvement in and cannot do anything about.

In regards to health, people have MANY concerns – just eavesdrop in any coffee shop and you will hear people talking about them (as they eat donuts)! Unfortunately, many people are not even aware that they have a Circle of Influence and do nothing until they feel like they have to go into pure reactive mode. These people go from crisis to crisis, their overall health typically gets worse as they age, and they feel like they are victims of circumstance waiting for the next problem.

Proactive people don’t wait for crisis to take action. They understand that their choices and lifestyle (while not bulletproof) have a massive influence on their present and future health. Most of their time, energy, focus and money go to PROACTIVELY improving their health, not reacting to crisis. If and when a crisis arises, they are typically well equipped to handle it, and their level of health typically gets better with age.

People utilizing Neurospinal Optimization care in my office use it both for Proactive and Reactive reasons. Most enter the office in pure reaction; in order to undergo care must come to an agreement to at least look to correct the underlying problem. We simply DO NOT patch up surface problems – there are others who are real good at that.

Neurospinal Optimization is designed to be Proactive and many of the folks we have been working with for some time are walking examples of a proactive mindset and lifestyle.

So, for the next week notice where you are proactive and reactive in your health and life. Pay attention to the words you use when speaking about your health. Where can you start focusing more on your Circle of Influence and less on your Circle of Concern?

Next week we move onto Habit II and don’t forget that we are having a workshop on Tuesday, January 28 at my office to go even deeper to Make 2014 the Best Year of Your Life. Phone Adele at the office to reserve a seat. This workshop is open to both patients and non-patients so will fill fast.

We are what we repeatedly do.

Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

            -Aristotle

Why do you spend so much time, energy, money, worry and focus on being ‘fixed?’ Nothing can fix you.  NOTHING can fix you!

Nothing is going to make everything okay. The pain going away is not going to make everything okay. Losing the weight is not going to make everything okay. Falling in love with Mr./Mrs. Right is not going to make everything okay. Getting the dream job is not going to make everything okay. The wonder drug and miracle surgery are not going to make everything okay. Having 6-pack abs is not going to make everything okay. The latest technology, new fad treatment, and expert doctor are not going to make everything okay. Money, the nice car and dream home certainly will not make everything okay.

The reason you can’t be fixed is that you are NOT broken. What if the illusion that you are broken is what is driving your obsession with being fixed? What if this is your primary source of suffering?

Everything is already okay. Stop trying to ‘get fixed.’ Focus on what you want in your life. Focus on what is great, beautiful, abundant and loving already and I promise you will have even more of it. Life will become simple, fulfilling, empowering.

In the last article we discovered that by focusing on symptoms instead of health we can actually end up sick, miserable, frustrated and even dead before our time. We also identified the 6 keys to winning the game of life. This week we will continue to explore those keys to a great life.

Key #2 – Being able to do what you enjoy! Having time for leisure and having the ability to choose how we spend our time are crucial to our mental and physical well-being. Active leisure can be divided into 3 categories: social leisure with friends and family, cognitive leisure focusing on mental stimulation, and physical leisure including sports and exercise.

While most people recognize how important these are, the reality is that our leisure time is disappearing. A study demonstrated that Canadians are spending an average of 1.5 hours less on leisure in 2005 compared to 1998.

What was the outcome of this? In 2005…35% of Canadians were overweight, while 24% were obese. 47% of Canadians were considered inactive compared to 23% active! Can you see where this trend will lead? You cannot win the game of life if you are fat and inactive.

Key #3 – Feeling Energized and Passionate! Here is some good news – a whopping 92% of Canadians say they are satisfied or very satisfied with their lives! Yet, according the same source, 1 in 5 Canadians were taking antidepressants in 2004 and suicide rates are at an all-time high.

What makes you energized and passionate? What are you yearning to do but can’t find the time for? Sports, hobbies, family time? What is stopping you?

The problem is in what takes up our time. Over 50% of workers say they often spend 12 hour days on work related duties.  The biggest concern among young workers is not having enough time for both their family AND work responsibilities and 40% of employees work overtime or bring work home EVERY week. The fact is that we are spending more time at work and less time enjoying our lives.

Key #4 – Nurturing and Fulfilling Relationships. Where would you rather spend your time – work or home? Since 1969, family time for a working couple has shrunk by an average of 22 hours per week. 88% of employees say they have a hard time juggling work and life and 64% of family caregivers are employed – most full time.

Do you have balance between work and life? Most don’t – 58% of Canadians report “overload” associated with their many roles. What is the result? Employees who consider most of their days to be stressful were over 3 times more likely to suffer a major depressive episode!

That isn’t all. About half of all workers feel that stress is affecting their interpersonal and sexual relationships. Couples who are stressed have a less active sex life and it is known that low sex marriages have a high probability of separation within 12 months.

It is clear that this lack of balance is a growing concern. Both workers and students rate work-life balance as their top concern and consider it more important than money, career advancement, or location.

In addition, this stress is affecting our physical health which can place even more strain on a relationship. Work stress is more strongly associated with health complaints than any other life stressor. Employees with the highest amounts of workplace stress suffer from over 3 times the rate of cardiovascular problems, over 5 times the rate of colorectal cancer, and up to 3 times the rate of back pain. 81% of people on earth say their jobs are affecting their health and health expenditures are 50% higher for workers with a high level of stress.

This problem has gotten so bad we are getting violent. 14% of people felt like striking a co-worker in the past year, 25% felt like screaming due to job stress, 9% are aware of an assault of violent act in their workplace, 18% had experienced a threat or intimidation in the past year, and 10% said they work in an environment where physical violence has occurred because of job stress. Are these the relationships we want where we spend such a large part of our lives?

This really becomes an issue when we bring it home with us. How is your patience with your children? How about your spouse? How are you dealing with all of the people you interact with such as in stores, at the bank, and on the road? Have you noticed that you have less patience lately?

Why is this important? These stresses are not just a concept. It is real and is damaging to our mental health, relationships and is costing us in the quality and quantity of our years.

If that doesn’t motivate you to get this handled, it is also costing you money. Stress means a loss of work and money. Disability claims have risen significantly and the area of largest increase is in mental/nervous conditions. The cost for our country was an estimated $7.9 billion in 1998 alone and about $6.3 billion was spent by individuals on uninsured services and taking time off work due to depression and distress.

Absenteeism due to stress has increased by over 300% since 1995 and over 50% of work days are stress related.

Perhaps this will motivate us to spend more time on what is truly important in our lives.

Next article we will continue with the final 2 keys to winning the game of life, and introduce the traps that most people fall into that lead to them to failure.