Really Do Doctors Know Best?

http://grandpazcupboard.wordpress.com/2009/02/02/37/

The more I speak with people concerning their health and fitness, the more painfully
aware I become of the level of confusion that exists in peoples minds, their
thinking, and their lifestyle. Perhaps this confusion exists because of the information
boom where just about anyone including yours truly can publish information for
a world wide audience. The question begs to be asked, how could any man or
woman or for that matter any organization know everything? It would be
impossible.

How can your family physician have every answer to your health and fitness
matters? They cannot. Yet, it appears as though we live in a culture where we bow
down to these gods of medicine. Now hold on a minute. Im not saying that we
should burn doctors at the stake or crucify them. Oh no I am only suggesting that
our attitudes towards them appears unhealthy as we blindly accept much if not all
they have to offer. We seemingly have voluntarily submitted ourselves as medical
slaves or Ginny pigs only to be left at the mercy of our medical masters.

For starters why is it that when we (or our children) become ill we want to run to
the doctors or the medicine cabinets as if we can find the answer to our health
matter? Who told us to take the medicine that we give ourselves and our children?
Where did we get this information in the first place? How accurate was the source of
information? And what caused the illness? How many of us can honestly say that we
have ever asked these questions let alone found answers to them? If we do not or
care not to ask these questions, should it be difficult to see where I might (strongly)
suggest this notion of blind acceptance? Is it hard to understand why I might
suggest the idea that we have placed doctors and the medical professionals as our
medical masters? I trust not.

We know that doctors receive specific training to address specific symptoms. We

understand that no one doctor knows everything even within his specific field. We
intuitively know that it would be impossible for any one doctor to keep up with all
the medical discoveries and maintain a substantial medical practice. (He just does
not have the time to do both.) Yet, it appears as though we persist in elevating them
upon a platform when they too are only flesh and blood. They are mere mortals
susceptible to human shortcomings and failings. This type of blind obedience on our
part peaks my interest. What say you?

Lets take a quick look at what doctors (in general) do so we can understand how
better to assist both them (in becoming more aware of our need for change from
the status quo) and ourselves in becoming better caretakers of ourselves. Doctors
function in two capacities: 1) preventive (pre-emergency or pre-injury) and 2)
emergency or post-injury. Thats it. Lets examine their two functions.

Preventive: Doctors function in this capacity to prevent injury or loss (of health). For
example, they may prescribe vaccinations for both adults and children to prevent
them from some future illness. They may prescribe prenatal vitamins and minerals
to pregnant women to prevent any possible birth defects. They may also prescribe
flu shots to prevent a possible flu attack. In any event, all such prescriptions will
always be preventive in nature to ward off some pre-injury or pre-illness that has
yet taken effect on the unsuspecting victim. Could this be a farce or a crapshoot? A
gamble? Perhaps.

I know. I know. Thats easy for you to ask the question; but what if I catch
something some illness? Could I not have prevented it by taking the
prescription? The real question you should perhaps ask yourself is not whether you
could have prevented the illness by taking the prescription, but what you can do
everyday to strengthen your immune system so that you no longer feel the need to
get the shot. Besides, if you believe you have a chance of catching illness, then
most likely you will get it regardless of a preventative shot. (As a man thinks in his
heart so is he.) More importantly, where does it stop? If I told you that you could
catch some disease say like the Weebol Virus would you go to your local drug
dealer and get a shot? Would it mean more to you if all the television networks told
you the same story? Would you get the shot? Hmm thats something to think
about.

Anyway, doctors spend little time doctoring their clients in the preventive phase.
They tend to spend their time informing their clients of the possible (not actually
real or the un-happened) ills of contracting such potentially dangerous viruses.
Can we blame them? Arent they just doing their jobs as they have received
training? Perhaps we should question ourselves to understand why we accept the
shot or take the blue pills. Is it out of fear that we act? Perhaps.

Post-Injury or Post-Trauma: It is at this point that doctors function best and

comparatively spend most of their time doctoring. They function best because this
is where their training begins paying dividends in prescribing medicine or some
medical procedure.

Think about it. Doctors get paid when were sick and when we decide to visit them.
(They also get paid when were not sick but pay them a visit. anyway) If few
became ill, many doctors would starve. Why? Because doctors discover, diagnose,
and prescribe all according to a symptomatic formula they learned in school for
people battling illnesses. Most if not all their work in the post-injury phase
consists of matching a certain prescriptive medications to a certain set of
symptoms.

For instance, the hospital trauma unit admits a man involved in an auto accident.
Lets say he suffered a head injury. Doctors (nurses) aid the wounded (post-injured)
man with post-injury prescriptions to revive him, relieve him of his pain, and/or
repair the injury through surgical measures.

Whatever the case may be, the more proficient doctors become in performing this
acquired post-injury-prescription skill, the more effective their practice becomes.
Why? Because we all, at some time, suffer to some degree or another from some
type of illness with which we want relief and we know that as a satisfied client we
bring repeat business. Repeat business and client satisfaction thereby lend
credibility to each service providers medical practice. (Of course bedside manner
and personality is a plus.)

Although much of the focus up to this point has been on doctors, it should not be
too difficult to understand the clients role in all of this. The patient or prospective
client becomes the patient/client either post-trauma or pre-trauma. Most often he
becomes the patient after post-trauma and only on rare occasions will he admit
himself into the doctors office prior to an injury. Hence, it is mostly our doing that
drives us into the doctors office not doctors or media. We must volunteer
ourselves before a doctor can make a prescription and begin ringing up a tab.

Does it not just makes sense that the vast majority of doctors focus on post-trauma,
symptom-related illnesses where patients admit themselves or are admitted after
suffering some type of injury? Isnt that why we submit ourselves in the first place?
Moreover, it is precisely because of their specialized function in post-injury
prescription that they lack the knowledge and experience in the fields of health and
fitness which are in most cases pre-trauma.

However, where do we typically go to seek information concerning our health and

fitness? Dont we usually differ to the medical professionals, doctors, for answers to
our health and fitness questions? Dont companies often use suggestive language in
order to compel us to consult a medical professional before attempting to perform

any physical activity or orally ingesting some non-medically prescribed formula? Do

not the media also do a great job in maintaining doctors god-like image where we
feel compelled to consult them for all our health and fitness needs? Have doctors
become our health and fitness high priests of confessions? Have we voluntarily
submitted ourselves as cult members of a global medical cult whose priests we
worship as gods with our trust and resources? Hmm.

In truth, the medical industry with the help of media grease, slick marketing and
advertising programs us to accept its gospel as our authorized source for health
and fitness. Such blind acceptance on our part has been to our demise, for it
appears as though we have surrendered to the health industry our responsibility to
care for our own bodies. (Have we not read the appalling health statistics on obesity
in this country?) The interesting thing about this is that at no time have they twisted
on arms for compliance. Instead, we all at some time or another have voluntarily
submitted ourselves to the Pied Piper of medicine.

Where should one begin looking for answers to his health and fitness when there is
all this conflicting information available? Yahweh (God) knows. He knows everything
and is willing to share what He knows with those who are interested. Yes, Yahweh
created us, man did not. Should we not therefore look to Him, our Creator, for our
health and fitness solutions? Should we not go directly to the manufacture for our
repair?

We already know much more than our family physician with regards to our health
and fitness. We know how we live; we know our present lifestyle. We know what we
eat and drink in an average day. We know what experiences have caused and
continue to cause us pain, discomfort, and stress. What we lack is the
understanding to take all this information and apply a practical life-solution/liferemedy that would assist in relieving unnecessary stresses.

Few of us know what to do with the information we have in our possession. We

essentially lack the skills to connect the dots and make (for ourselves) practical
health-and-fitness-sense decisions based on our individually personal self
assessments. Instead, we commonly defer to so-called experts, our family
physicians and the medical industry as our only hope for health. Is it because were
lazy? Perhaps its because we have not taken the time to stop and begin to connect
the dots. Whatever our individual case may be whatever our reasons are, does it
not appear important that we should consider our ways and begin connecting the
dots to better understand our health and fitness paths? If not, we receive that for
which we ask somebody else taking care of us while we shirk our responsibilities.

The truth is these so called experts are not capable of healing nor can they
prescribe laboratorial-produced medication that heals our bodies. Our bodies heal
on their own and in accordance with Yahweh, our Creator, and His laws of nature.
We can and should only supply our bodies with the proper nutrients they need to
support speedily recovery and healing.

Shouldnt we know better? Shouldnt we know or at least want to know how to

take better care of our bodies and whats happening to our bodies so we can better
care for ourselves? Is it not our responsibility to manage our own health and fitness?
Are we not stewards of our own temples and should we not be concerned with
everything we put in, on and do to our bodies? Indeed we should. Anything less
would place us at the mercy of another man, woman, business, or industry who
more often than not all look to increase their bottom lines, their profits. At the
very least, shouldnt we begin to ask questions to determine how we not
somebody else can care for our bodies? (Perhaps I ask too much.)

If we ignore our bodies responses to certain foods we eat like those foods that cause
us heartburn and continue consuming them because we know there are over-thecounter medications we can take, well shame on us. We should no better not to
eat them. We only stand the risk greater intestinal damage because we were too
foolish to regard the warnings. What difference would it be if we all foolishly
disregarded red stop signals because we like the idea of moving in our cars? I trust
we all get the point.

Dont we, instead, run to our medicine cabinets to get the over-the-counter
heartburn medication to relieve us of the pain and like dogs returning to their
vomit we ingest massive quantities of pink or white pills and continue eating the
same foods that initially caused the heartburn? I guess were gluttons for
punishment.

Each of us will need to answer these questions for ourselves. (Caveat: We first must
be honest with ourselves.) It is the billion dollar question that may assist us in our
obtaining better health. In truth, our answers are much closer than we realize and
are, in many instances, free of charge. We simply need to do our homework, accept
responsibility, and question why we do what we do what we do.

We know our bodies better than any doctor will ever know. Doctors do not live with
us. We live with ourselves and could more efficiently and effectively make lifestyle
adjustments because we have full-time access to us.

I know is sounds simple. It is! Unfortunately, many of us have lost our way and
blindly go into that good night without trustworthy guidance. Please, dont take my
word for it. Do your own research. See what you discover and lets compare notes.

So where does one start? Good question. Perhaps one would first begin to
understand oneself and why one does what he does with regards to his health and
fitness. Perhaps one could begin by answering those questions listed in this article.
Perhaps one should begin asking himself whether the information contained herein
is applicable and begin making conscious, small *heart-style (not to be confused
with hearth-healthy) and lifestyle changes in beginning to take responsibility for his
own health and fitness and not rely so heavily on medical professionals. Whatever
the case may be, one should start thinking/doing something different in order to get
different results. If not, I can predict that your present level of health and fitness will
only decrease; you will chain yourself to the medical-prescription ball; and you will
continue to enslave yourself to medical high priests, medicine gods whose alters
you will frequent.

Its your choice. Make it the correct choice based on information within this article
you know to be true and information you will discover as soon as you begin your
journey in discovering greater health and fitness truths. Happy trails. I am certain
that you will enjoy the journey and absolutely love discovering more about you,
your health, and you fitness. Get no stay excited!

Uncommon Sense