Well it’s that time of year: NCAA Basketball, March madness (although March has come and gone so I’m not sure why it’s titled that), The Final Four, etc. To be honest, that’s really all I know about it. I no longer own a TV and when I did sports was never my interest. Yeah sure, I know that a free throw is a point, a regular basket is two and outside the line is three but that about sums up my knowledge of the game.
What interests me, however, is how we can look at the game and apply it to our own life. The players on that court have this enormous support system behind them cheering them on, coaching them, training them, practicing with them, financially supporting them, feeding them, etc. In order for that team to be successful it takes a village. Imagine what would happen if no one showed up to cheer them on. Would they be as successful? Could they have achieved their success without that village? Would they feel as good about their accomplishments if that village wasn’t there to cheer them on and congratulate them on their accomplishments?
Why then, is this model often forgotten in “real life”; especially when it comes to our health? For example, let’s take a middle aged overweight person. Let’s assume they have been diagnosed with diabetes, clearly obese by anyone’s visual standards, have high cholesterol, complain of fatigue, aches and pains; just generally unhealthy. If they utilize the structure provided by our society, they go the Dr. who spends maybe ten minutes with them talking, reviewing lab tests and prescribing medicine. The Dr. adds the advice to lose some weight and start exercising and return to the office in six months. An absolute recipe for failure and we see it fail over and over and over again.
In this era of so much rhetoric regarding personal responsibility, many of us mis-interpret and mis-apply the philosophy in our day to day life. The idea of personal responsibility actually serves to demotivate us because we take it too literally. Here are some examples of how that philosophy derails us. We tell ourselves the following: if I just had a little more will power. I’m so bad; I just can’t stop eating the chocolate cake that my friend always serves. I try to go to the gym but something comes up and I get off track and then I can’t get back on track. Since I can’t do all of these things, I’m a bad person. I’m not an athlete. I’ll never have the body I want. Really?
For a basketball team to win a game they have coaches, trainers, financial support, entire student bodies, alumni, a society focused on sports, doctors, nutritionists, entire corporations whose success lies with the success of the team etc. and yet we think we can change the habits we’ve developed, created and lived with our whole life with two ten minute doctor visits a year, some prescription medications and some will power. That’s the fatal flaw. Real change and success requires a village. You have to surround yourself with people and situations that pull for your goal, people that pull for your success, people that are your cheer leaders. You have to enroll your village in your goals so they can support you and that includes the personal stuff like weight loss!
When it comes to health, find a team of professionals who will spend time with you, work with you between appointments, and be a part of your village. They’re out there, you just have to look. Obviously we at Heartwood would love to be a part of your village but supportive participants in your life can be found pretty much anywhere. You just have to look and engage. Spend time finding your village and you just might find the keys to achieving your goals.
Kenton Anderson, ND
Hey – thanks for clicking on my bio. I’ve got a brief space here to provide information to help you decide if I could be a good health partner for you. That’s almost impossible – crazy impossible with so little space, but here goes. Listen, I’m just like you. I wasn’t feeling well and I wasn’t getting any better using conventional medicine. I had to find another way. So I did. I found Naturopathic Medicine. I learned how I could get healthy and stay that way, in spite of an autoimmune disease, in spite of genetic heart disease, in spite of years of bad behaviors, in spite of years of poor digestion, in spite of my negative self-talk. I learned how to get healthy and you can too! It’s not easy, but it’s simple. Call and find out for yourself if Naturopathic Medicine is the path for you. There is another way!
Credentials: ND