 |
| Courtesy of paleoplan.com |
Number of deaths for leading causes of death:
·
Heart disease: 614,348
·
Cancer: 591,699
·
Chronic lower respiratory
diseases: 147,101
·
Accidents (unintentional
injuries): 136,053
·
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases):
133,103
·
Alzheimer's disease: 93,541
·
Diabetes: 76,488
·
Influenza and pneumonia: 55,227
·
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and
nephrosis: 48,146
·
Intentional self-harm (suicide):
42,773
Source:
Health United States, 2015 Table 19 [PDF- 9.8 MB] (Data are for 2014) https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/leading-causes-of-death.htm
So from the above list except from “intentional
self-harm (suicide)” which can come in different forms (pills, driving off a
cliff, jumping off a tall building, gun to the head), we can see a basic trend
for mortality.
As you know I volunteer my
services as a Tai Chi instructor to teach patients with chronic conditions such
as cancer. My research has suggested some root causes, evidence-based studies and
opinions from reliable sources support my argument.
All points toward “stress.”
The following article or post
is one of many articles supporting my contention.
I taught martial arts for
over 40 years, Qigong and Tai Chi for about six. And in that time my intent was
to introduce a unique form of exercise for baby boomers specifically those who can
participate and benefit, a bucket list thing.
As time passed that led me to further research, I learned that the
movements, ideas and the philosophies behind them were far-reaching.
One interesting note that I
have learned that people through testimonies have verified health benefits to
the point of cancer patients being healed to the point of remission. From a
personal and layman’s point of view, truth lies behind these words. So
when I teach classes, especially to those who are affected terribly to the
point of losing almost all hope, I share these anecdotal testimonies and share
them for healing and courage.
In one class I told them
about my opinion on “multi-tasking” about a well-known slogans, “if we wanted to move up in this world, we had to work our tails off; skies the limit; you’ve got
to give it all you got; do whatever it takes"…and so on. It’s not without merit. Some succeeded and others didn't; and, without
realizing it, walked a road fraught with consequences. Examples. Some ended up divorced, being drug addicts,
participating in criminal activities, such as “white collar” crimes. All for the pursuit of a dream.
Included in this big
reward. You got it. “Stress.”
The above post “How Does
Stress Affect Your Immune System?” provided an erudite and discussion on how
stress affected our immune system. I remembered this old television commercial
promoting margarine, where the theme was, “Don't mess with Mother Nature.” Well,
I suppose, by overextending the natural response of stress, Mother Nature
provided the body with a terrible unintended result, such as heart failure,
diabetes, poor immune system, and cancer.
So what do we do?
I'm reminded of this joke.
Question: How many psychiatrists does it take to change
a light bulb?
Answer: One. But
the light bulb has to really want to change!
Let’s examine the
following situation.
A business person travels
to work; faces bumper to bumper traffic, arrives to work running to catch up
with a long “to do list; does his/her thing, gets home, plays with kids,
watches the news, decides to run to the gym and bang hours’ worth of exercise from
Zumba, to power lifting, to yoga, to spin cycle, to Brazilian Jiujutsu, to
cross fit, to this, to that. It goes on
and on. Then he/she check cell phones
for texts, social media posts, tweets. Goes to sleep after the 11 o’clock
news. Wakes up in the middle of the
night because of a note to self about what isn’t finished or needs to be done
or schedule a calendar regarding an important personal event like a son or
daughter’s soccer game or recital. Several hours later of fitful sleep and the
alarm goes off.
The cycle repeats
itself.
Over and over, again.
Like a rubber band
stretched to a breaking point, one of these days…
 |
| Courtesy of linkedin.com |
“SNAP!”
Several doctor’s, labs and
x-rays later, the doctor tells you, you have lupus, rheumatoid arthritis,
diabetes, hypertension, fatty liver, kidney failure, heart failure…
CANCER!
I realize that, for some,
change is impossible. They are either stubborn, hardheaded, believe that habits
can't be broken, or have big fat egos, so inflated that to suggest a change represents an affront to their lifestyle, their successes.
 |
| Courtesy of naijapv.com |
“Unprecedented financial
pressures, and an ever-increasingly aggressive public culture, along with social,
moral and spiritual fragmentation, are leading to lives being overwhelmed by
stress, intolerable interior isolation and even quiet despair.” -- Sean Brady
I shake my head thinking
that a successful dead person has no value to those that rely upon him or her
for financial, mental and spiritual support.
“When I look back on all these
worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he
had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened.” –
Winston Churchill
My next posts will work on what small steps we can do. Interested?
