The Truth, The Way and The Life

There are three phases to health: Healthy, Unhealthy and Sick. You are in one of those categories at any given time. Within each category is a spectrum not just a clear cut jump from one phase to next. For example, a person could be just slightly unhealthy or unhealthy bordering on sick.

If you want to find out if you are healthy or not take this quiz:

Define Healthy. (In one sentence without having to pause for more than 4 seconds to think about it).

What are the 13 factors you need to be healthy?

Are you tired at the end of your workday?

Do you nap on regular basis?

Do you get at least one cold in a year?

Are your blood pressure and resting heart rate too high?

Do you run out of air in under 30 seconds when holding your breath?

Are you performing the 4 different types of exercises that you need daily?

Do you smoke?

How much water should you drink in a day?

Do you drink soda pop or diet soda daily?

Is your diet low in omega-3 fatty acids?

How many fruits and vegetables do you eat daily?

Do you sleep less than 7 or more than 9 hours/night and/or wake up during the night?

Are you depressed?

Has it been more than a day since you spent time with God?

Do you replenish your healthy bacteria every day?

Is your spine abnormal? Is your nervous system malfunctioning?

Do you have any genetic abnormalities?

Are you getting 15 minutes of sunshine daily?

Do you have any pain that is lasting more than 3 days?

Are you taking any drugs: prescription (includes birth control), non-prescription (daily aspirin), alcohol (more than 1 drink/day) or illegal drugs?

If you answered “yes” or “I don’t know” to any of these: then you are not healthy. If you want to find out how to be healthy, then keep reading.

What is healthy? Healthy is when your body-mind-spirit is functioning at 100%. In other words, normal function of your body-mind-spirit. I am referring to all 3 as distinct but intertwined. We can’t separate body from mind or spirit from our body in this state. When all your body systems are running at 100% then you are healthy. Statistics show that most people are healthy up to age 27, then its downhill from there. When a person is no longer healthy they become either unhealthy or sick.

Unhealthy is when a person’s body is not functioning at normal levels but not bad enough to be outright sick. Most adults are unhealthy. The most common elements that characterize unhealthy people are: stress, fatigue, stiffness and achiness.

Stress to joints, stiffness, stress to organs and mental stress. There is a feeling of unease. When a person is toxic, deficient or traumatized their body is under stress. There is spiritual stress when a person is not right with God. When stress hormone levels rise blood sugars go up, blood pressure increases, platelets become stickier, breathing increases, muscle tension increases, digestion decreases, mental cognition decreases and pupils dilate. When a person’s body is under stress and not functioning normally fatigue sets in. Most people are so tired by the end of their work day that they don’t have much energy left to cook a healthy meal, so its store bought microwave or canned food or fast food. Then it’s onto the couch for 3 hours of TV, then bed, wake up drag yourself to work. After work the same cycle is repeated day in and day out. That’s not living, that’s merely existing. Too much stress for too long leads to the third phase of health, which is sickness. It’s easy to know when you are sick, you don’t have to guess. Sick, however, doesn’t just mean you have a head cold or you are throwing up. Sick is when you have a noticeable symptom or illness. If you have diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, migraine headaches, back pain, allergies and so on, then you know you are sick.

Most people can remember a day when they were healthy. The energy that didn’t seem to quit, the ease of movement, mental clarity and pure happiness being able to use your body to do whatever you choose. That’s where the frustration sets in. Remembering the “good old days” leads to frustration. “I remember when I had tons of energy and felt great”. Sound familiar? If you find yourself saying “I think I’m healthy” or “I’m healthy except for …” then you are unhealthy. You don’t guess when you are healthy. If you truly know what healthy is then you know when you have it. Most unhealthy people are afraid of getting sick because they don’t know how to prevent it. Unhealthy people give up things they like to do because they feel worse if they do it. “As long as I don’t go bowling, I’m fine,” or “I’m healthy now that I don’t run anymore” are all signs of unhealthiness.

Why is it that someone can be aging gracefully at 100 and a teenager is stricken with cancer and dies? We can never fully have all the answers to that question but the more you know about health the better your odds of living a healthy life to 100 or older.

Research is showing that we can change our health if we give our bodies the right tools. Diseases like cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, allergies, asthma, dementia and diabetes can be reversed! We have to remove the toxicity, eliminate the deficiencies, deal with any trauma and get right with God. Then and only then will a person truly be healthy.