Let's Talk About Love... 
7.20.2015

When I was an intern just starting with the doctor I would eventually work for in the South Metro one of the first things he did was give me a book to read.  The book was called Nice Bike.  Weird title right?  When I began reading it, it really opened my eyes on how to communicate with people and more importantly love on people.  The entire premise of the book is based on treating people with common courtesy and every time you have an interaction with someone give them a compliment on something that day.  Whether it be how they are dressed, how they are acting or the services they are providing give them a sincere compliment of something for that day.  We never know what someone else is feeling on the inside and sometimes all it takes is a simple encouragement or acknowledgement of them to bring their day from bad to good.  We truly do not know how far our words can reach when it comes to others; both good and bad.  It reminds me of a book in a series I am reading with my son Theo right now entitled Words Are Not For Hurting.  My wife and I believe even at a young age it is important to learn the concept that way we do and say can have a profound impact on others.  We can either use our words and actions to lift up others and love on them or bring them down at no gain to anybody.  Remember going forward every interaction you have someone, no matter how big or small, will have an impact on them not only that day but possibly for the rest of their life.

There is a short story entitled The Greatest Thing in the World by Henry Drummond written in 1880.  And what pray-tell is the greatest thing in the world you ask.  It is love, that simple four letter word.  Love is a verb…..  

Part II

As a continuation from last week, let’s talk about love, specifically how the topic relates to our health and well-being.  Two of the nine components/traits of love, humility and unselfishness, have overlapping qualities.  We’ll start with them.

I am lucky enough to have the opportunity to speak to different businesses and organizations in our community and one thing I always remind my audience of is that to be healthy is to be selfless.  This may seem counterintuitive but think about it.  We all have obligations to others that we need to ensure are met. Selfless doesn’t mean that we think less of ourselves, but rather that we think of ourselves less often.

Let’s face it, when we don’t feel well we are selfish.  We can’t help it.  If we have a headache, we are thinking about that headache.  If our knees hurt, we are thinking about the pain.  And on down the line with, fatigue, sluggishness, back pain, etc…

So getting healthy and making your health a priority is one of the most selfless things you can do.  Remember those airplane instructions about putting your own mask on first?  There’s a reason for it.  If you can’t help yourself how can you help others?  As you continue to make better choices in what you eat, how you move, exercise and even think your body and mind will respond.  As we feel better, we have more energy and are able to distribute that energy to others instead of it being self-focused.

This of course doesn’t mean we won’t get sick at times.  You will need to see your MD.  You will have ‘sick care’ at times.  Bottom line you need a ‘sick doctor’ and a ‘well care’ doctor.  But remember the more often you take care of your ‘well care’, the less often you’ll have to focus on any ‘sick care.’ The more often you go to the one, the less often you go to the other.  And remember the greatest doctor that ever lives resides inside of you.  You innately know how to take care of yourself and when you do that you love yourself more!

It is sometimes hard to put yourself first and your health first, but I see it everyday here at Robin Wellness Center. Share your story below in the comment section on what made you realize you need to put you first.