I love analogies and metaphors and this could be one of my all time faves that I read or heard on a podcast:
Doctors are Life Guards.
Wellness Professionals are the Swim Coaches.
Let that sink in.
We're all swimming along through life. Just like Dory sang in Nemo, just keep swimming... But there are these crazy currents and obstacles that are trying to sink us all the time.
Diabetes, Cancer, Heart Disease, Depression... we all know someone or maybe its us that is dealing with these obstacles trying to take us under. Doctors are amazing. They can save lives. They can truly be the Life Guards to help with those obstacles. But unfortunately, they can't do it all. Sometimes it's too late and the current is too strong. They can't save everyone. And sometimes when they do, it's not without creating another current to struggle through.
We have a pond in our back yard. When my kids were little, we hired a swim instructor to come to our house to make sure our boys could confidently swim to safety. Strong enough to make it across the pond. We could have skipped the lessons and thought, we'll just jump in and save them if they go under. But we didn't. And you wouldn't. Because you want to stack the odds in your favor to not have to jump in.
That's why we all need to Learn to Swim. Before the Current takes hold. Find yourself a Swim Coach (personal trainer, nutrition coach, registered dietitian, life coach...) that will guide you on how to make your body the healthiest you can so that you can swim for as long as you want. Do your own research. Move your body. Nourish your body. Respect your body. Listen to your body.
You only get one so treat it well.
We need to do our Doctors a favor and learn to swim. Then if we need them later to Life Guard we've done all we could on our own. But hopefully, we'll swim along for a long, long time.
Need help finding a Swim Coach? Book your FREE Find YOUR Fit Consult.