Health Care

I get a newsletter from Elements of Health, a place I went for a short time for chiropractic care (the only chiropractor I have seen that would even touch me, but also said he couldn't help my problem after a few sessions.) I love this: (excerpted and summarized in some parts)

"The current health care crisis is the result of a lie. That lie is that you will be healthy if you get the right health care. The current crisis has developed because of the emphasis on treatment of disease and the lack of preventing disease. Ultimately, the most powerful, predictable, and cost-effective solutions for the current health care crisis won't come from a restructured health care delivery system; it will come from us taking responsibility for ourselves through practicing self-care.

Since health has no inherent value, the only manifest value associated with health comes from the utility of possessing good health. The degree that you possess health is the degree to which you are able to do and experience what you want in life. The quality of your health directly related to the quality of your life.

Being healthy is a sound financial investment. It keeps the money that you would otherwise spend on health care, surgery, and drugs in your pocket to spend. Ultimately, self-care leads to a greater overall effect on long-term health outcomes than health care, regardless of the quality, and at far less cost.

The author suggests that primary care should be free and easily accessible, connected to public health programs. This would lead to a decreased need for secondary care, although not eliminating it; private insurance would be used for secondary care.

For additional information on self-care, see the newsletter at http://www.theelementsofhealth.com/The_Elements_of_Health/Newsletter_files/Health_Care_in_Crisis_-_Part_III.pdf
There are two previous articles; this is Part III of a series but can be read alone.

The part of self-care that I think most of us should be doing and probably aren't is "being present and doing nothing." My PT asked me about six months ago to do this daily for 5 minutes, and it is very difficult to turn everything off and do this. This not the time to go through your mental to-do list! I continue trying to be....