As September fades into October this week, it's a good time to remind us all that self-care, includes health care. This is the time of year that traditionally means more time indoors than outdoors, and more exposure to seasonal contagion, including of course flu and Covid. I use the word "traditionally', because as I have written over this year of change, natural seasonal patterns are shifting, independent of the social order, or critique of scientific study, or outright disbelief. When the weather turns colder and daylight shortens, people spend more time in closed environments, and viral contagion is more likely. In the 21st century, self-care includes taking care of our health and cultivating a new awareness of changing seasons and weather patterns. Self-care also includes the awareness of others, their well-being, because our actions have consequences for others, and for society as a whole. In turn, the overall health of society, ultimately affects us as individuals.
For me, September has been this year's healthcare catch up time--I have lined up appointments for all the basics: annual primary care visit, mammogram, eye doctor, dentist and cleaning, immunizations--if not completed, they are scheduled, since medical scheduling can mean making appointments months in advance. My list includes Covid (I joke that it seems like my millionth shot), Zoster, and Flu shots. To me, these are all part of a Spiritual check list. It was my spiritual life that pulled me into the study of medicine, and carried me through my early science courses: chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, and physics. I never saw science as separate, or in opposition to spiritual discovery and the wonder of It All, all are aspects of the Grace of Healing. Alternative medicine, ancient systems of understanding the body, Aryuvadic traditions, Chinese systems and acupuncture--all have their place, as does body and energy work, and yoga, and meditation. There are so many forms of illness and injury and so many ways of healing. But, as with varieties of religion, we humans have trouble navigating multiplicity and variation. Not every healing mode matches every malady, or public health need.
As medical knowledge evolves, researchers are developing ways that specifically tailor treatments to individual needs, with the potential to develop precise, particularized treatment possibilities for the future. For now though, in public health, collective vaccines save lives. They are our collective power of healthcare, as are health screenings and prevention. The good news is that our accumulated, world-wide knowledge of healthcare is unprecedented. However, accessing that knowledge, and making choices, has become more and more complex. The "rules" are changing; availability is changing; predicability is changing, and the cost is rising. This week I encourage you to consider a broad sense of self-care, that includes how you take care of your health, from a Spiritual perspective, to a pragmatic practice. The current upheaval in American healthcare may be unstable for awhile; all the more reason to take time to remember your Spiritual life includes your physical health and well-being. Your personal well-being, as a unique expression of life, flows from the Source of all Life. Life takes care of Life. Listen to the way of health for you. (Susan Nettleton)
A site for reliable health info: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/al
https://grateful.org/resource/the-cure-for-it-all/
https://www.readpoetry.com/met-my-younger-self-for-coffee-jennae-cecelia/
https://wordsfortheyear.com/2020/04/08/the-cure-by-ginger-andrews/