Until I had children, my views on health were pretty bog standard. I would go so far as to say that I was a sheep, blindly following the rest of the herd, believing that it was best to leave these things to the professionals, the medics who know what they are doing. Never questioning, challenging nor taking responsibility for my own health and well being. Yet perhaps the seeds were already there for diversion from the path that the average person takes when it comes to health.
I had quite a strong urge to keep things as natural as possible, I occasionally took pain killers and indigestion medication and even more rarely took antibiotics. I also sometimes found other peoples approaches to managing their ill health a little baffling, was it really necessary to take strong pain killers, flu powders, cough mixture, decongestants, medicated throat lozenges and Night Nurse when really all you had was a heavy cold? I didn't think so. The adverts would have us believe there is a magic medicine for most things and that we should take this or that and carry on with our lives. There seems to be an eternal quest for 'the magic bullet'; that we humans can conquer all ills and live long, healthy lives free from disease and disability. Striving to keep the elderly and 'born too early' babies alive at all costs. Replacing, repairing, transplanting....playing god. And far too much of this is lead by greed, the big pharmaceutical companies wield power that would make a bevy of Roman, Greek and Norse gods green with envy. Much of this makes me, at best deeply uncomfortable, at worse very angry indeed.
Throughout my first pregnancy the urge to 'keep things natural' and avoid medication wherever possible became more pronounced; in the early stages of labour I rang the midwife at midnight for pain relief advice and was unable to take her suggestion as there was no paracetamol in the flat. I had grown another human being with only the help of the occasional antacid. (I did, however, hand myself over to the medics for the labour and birth, but that's a story for another blog post!)
The shift really began when my eldest daughter was three. From just over a year old she had had eczema. I had sought help and advice from the GP and had been using the emollients, steroid creams and bath unguents that they prescribed. These appeared to ease the angry, red, itchy rash somewhat. But it never completely went away and any time we missed using them the rash became worse. It was also spreading and covering more and more of her beautiful, delicate, pale skin. The skin in the worst affected areas was also visibly thinner and more fragile the longer we used the creams. I don't recall all these years later exactly what made me look for something else, but I do know that my inner mama lioness was fierce, I wanted to protect my precious child and make things better for her. Something had to change. We went along to see a homeopath....and slowly but surely my views on health began to shift, grow and evolve.
I'm no longer a sheep.....I question, inquire, challenge and take responsibility for my health and whenever I can, the health and well being of my family. I no longer take medics or medicine at face value. They often get it horribly, horribly wrong, knowingly or not. Now, I can see many of you folding your arms and getting disgruntled and offended. Let me just make it perfectly clear that just because I choose to do things a different way to you does not mean that I am saying what you do is wrong. I do, however, firmly believe that the world would be a much better place if everyone looked a little more carefully at how they treat their own and their children's health. If decisions are made with thought and care and a true inquiry and understanding of those choices then no-one can do more. However, I'm pretty sure that the majority of the routes taken do not involve this level of questioning, inquiry or understanding. I believe this because that is the way I used to behave.
There are a lot of sheep blindly following other sheep and revering the medics. This, I believe, is a sad state of affairs. It can be difficult not to appear evangelic/crazy/obsessed/a freak when one does anything that is different to the norm. It can be exhausting continually swimming against the tide, a lone voice in the wilderness. I spend a lot of time being personally attacked for my beliefs and choices, and there have often been times when I have wished that I could unlearn what I have learned and just do what everyone else does. Sadly, I find that this is not an option, once I have discovered the lies and atrocities committed by the big pharmaceutical companies, begun to take back responsibility for my own health, truly understood the implications that following blindly can have, I can no longer go back to my old ways.
I'm also plagued by the knowledge of just how much more I could do. I am continually striving to strike the balance and change my lifestyle sufficiently to become truly healthy. I'm often challenging long, deeply held beliefs, habits and ways of being, many of which are so entrenched I'm hardly even aware of them.
So why write this? what do I hope it will achieve? Well blogging, generally for me is a way of taking some of the incessant voices out of my head and giving me quiet relief. I suppose I could achieve this in a less public domain by simply keeping a diary or journal. However, you may recall at the beginning of this post I confessed to devotedly following and admiring several regular bloggers. If they had kept their thoughts for a private diary or journal I wouldn't be able to enjoy and share them (unless they became published after their deaths Anne Frank style!) and for that my life would be a poorer. We have at our disposal this vast social forum, the internet, so why not use it and embrace it? If just one person enjoyed reading something that I have written, in the way that I feel enriched by reading other's words, I would be chuffed. If just one person questioned how they approach health, confirming for them that what they do is right for them or changing something that isn't right then I would be chuffed, a starfish returned to the ocean.
From time to time I wonder what messages my family, particularly my children, have taken on board about health. I recently had a fascinating chat with my twenty year old son that gave me a wonderful incite into some of his thoughts and beliefs around the subject. I have to say it warmed the cockles of my heart! And not because he was blindly following me and my beliefs. He wasn't, he had clearly thought and researched for himself. He appears to also be carrying the torch of enlightenment too, dropping gems of wisdom here and there on the fertile ground of his friends minds. Stating what I believes, questioning their actions and the actions of the medics. (I would be equally as pleased if he had researched and questioned and come up with differing views to me, which he often has done in many areas all throughout his life!) It does feel good though to feel that he is there with me, standing shoulder to shoulder, making our way through the sheep and the big pharma and challenging here and there, hopefully making a difference. There are many routes to good health, but so often the busy, well known ones are the only ones that people use. If, just once in a while we all choose a less well trodden route or even forge our own, I think the world could be a happier, healthier place.
So what do I do differently than I used to? The GP or medication is no longer my first port of call if I feel unwell. I consider what's going on in my life, what am I doing or putting into my body that may be causing the symptoms? For additional support I turn to essential oils, homeopathy, supplements. I have deep concerns about vaccinations. I consider very carefully what I put onto my skin, avoiding petrochemicals etc. whenever I can. I respect the mind/body/spirit connection and take a holistic view of health, not compartmentalising as conventional medicine so often does. I take responsibility for myself and my health.
None of these things are that inflammatory or controversial, and yet to listen to some people speak you would think they were. I have, over the years been accused of neglecting and damaging my children, being crazy/kooky/irresponsible and just plain wrong. The areas in which I hold strong views often engender strong emotions in people...when this is the case I would suggest that there is a reason for this and simply ask to be treated with respect. Please don't think ill of me, or call me stupid. I have thought long and hard and researched widely before making most of my decisions, my hope is that you do the same and for a healthier world.
I think I have wandered from the path that I set out on when I began writing this post as I often do, I'm sure there were many thoughts and ideas that I was going to share that are lost in the ether. But that's the way my creative mind rolls, so be it!
I will end this by wishing you all good health, thanks for listening!
