I am thankful for my health. I feel very fortunate that I don’t have any ailments that have rendered me incapacitated to live life to its fullest. My heart goes out to those with debilitating diseases and those with lifelong diseases which are incurable and some even fatal.
I’ve always had this running joke that rather than inherit a windfall inheritance of pure money, I stand to inherit a legacy of diseases from my genetic tree. The heavy hitters run in my family from diabetes to hypertension to heart disease to cancer. I’m trying my best to stay healthy, but I’m also human and I like to indulge in certain things once in while that probably aren’t good if done on a long term basis. My “vice” is food, but I make sure to remind myself of the long term consequences should I indulge too heavily in my favorite, not so good for you foods.
I am thankful that I am not on a steady medication regimen. I try to watch what I eat for the most part and I go to the gym (Zumba is my love!) – this is my way of expressing gratitude for being blessed with good health. I have to take what was given to me and make sure I take good care of it.
I may never be a professional athlete (although, at times, I wish I could have the body of one), but I will certainly try my hardest to come close! With each day that I don’t get to achieve that goal, there’s always a new day tomorrow to try again.
I currently work with patients in two different types of settings: home care and in a rehabilitation program in the hospital. I see a whole gamut of patients: those who are young and never expected to have a cardiac incident to those who never took care of themselves and threw their health to the wayside. A big portion of what I do is to educate patients on how best to take care of themselves now that they have had an incident. Nowhere in the world do you get a birds’ eye view of what different diseases can do to a person and how you should really take care of yourself…trust me, it puts things into perspective! Some people get a raw deal in life and are dealt some bad cards. I know someone whose friend is dying of lymphoma – he’s only 42 and has little kids at home. They have tried every means possible to keep him alive but it doesn’t look good at all. This is not to say other people deserve to get sick, but it’s disheartening to see someone who took care of themselves get stricken with a deadly disease.
At the very least, I just want to be healthy for my future family and for myself. I don’t want to get bogged down with something I know I could have prevented if I just took better care of myself.
How do YOU take care of yourself? What’s your diet and exercise regimen? Do you have a health-related story to share? I’d love to hear it!
XOXOXOXOXO,
Photo by Tax Credits 
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