Lifestyle @ The Intersection: December 2023

“When health is absent, wisdom cannot reveal itself, art cannot manifest, strength cannot fight, wealth becomes useless, and intelligence cannot be applied.”

– Herophilus (335-280BC)

By Dr. Mollie Netter

Herophilus was an Alexandrian physician believed to have been the first to study human anatomy. I am not a historian; therefore, my mind cannot even quantify how long ago this was However, I know that BC stands for "Before Christ." His health and wealth perspective captured in the above quote still holds extreme relevance. As a clinician, I have had the opportunity to care for people from all walks of life and I couldn't agree more with the pricelessness of good health. It does not matter how one looks or where life has taken them; we can all agree on the universality of the significance of wellbeing.

Perhaps Theophilus may be far removed from our perspective, but as you read through this, you are probably using an Apple device, and so I will assume that you are familiar with the genius behind the invention, Steve Jobs, whose life was tragically cut short due to Pancreatic cancer. On his deathbed, Jobs stated, "You can employ someone to drive the car for you, make money for you but you cannot have someone to bear the sickness for you.

Material things lost can be regained. But there is one thing that can never be found when it is lost – “Life”.” When all is well, it is human to seldom think that our health is the most priceless treasure we must guard as we journey through this Earth. However, when it comes to wealth, we may all agree that there is no way that a prudent investor can trust anyone with their hard-earned money without due diligence to verify worthiness of an investment. The same applies to the loaning institutions; there is no way a lender can give anyone a loan without making him or her go through rigorous creditworthy checks. For example, When I was about to buy my home, I went through the most annoying, frustrating, and difficult process before the bank approved that loan. In hindsight, I believed this was a required process, but at the time, I could not help but wonder if this was some sort of discrimination. I remember the day my broker called to tell me the good news about the loan approval; instead of jumping for joy, I felt numb and could not help throwing a little sarcasm at the broker. “Are you sure this is over?” And he said, “yes. They do not need my blood type?” ...and he laughed.

Similarly, our health must be regarded as the most priceless asset. We should guard it and demand the best clinicians to collaborate. We must empower ourselves to by having enough knowledge to make well-informed decisions instead of letting clinicians decide for us on how our health should be managed.

Modern medicine has excelled in strides. We live long, but often, the quality of life is substandard. Why not strive for both quality and quantity of life?

Almost all diseases do not just happen overnight but are a consequence of years of neglect.

Can the body self-heal? Absolutely. Whether for or against medications, one truth remains - there is nothing medicine can do that our bodies cannot do. Medications may work because the manufacturers developed them to mimic what the body can do independently. Just like a car, our bodies need maintenance. Unnecessary medical costs can be avoided if one becomes prudent in health maintenance.

The Covid-19 pandemic made modern society rethink its priorities regarding health and wealth. Mitigating the the unknown virus forced governments to make the most drastic moves in contemporary history - shelter in place or lock down. For the first time, the intersectionality of health and wealth became center stage. In the end, the health of populations took precedence, leading to huge financial losses. People lost jobs, businesses shut down, but lives were saved, and now nations have another chance to rebuild. Post-pandemic, let us choose intentional living and make those active decisions to get checked up instead of waiting until we run ourselves down to the point that we can not return to wellbeing. The true essence of healing lies in addressing what may have happened for the disease to manifest. People do not just wake up and become sick; rather, most conditions are an accumulation of years of negligence and unaddressed traumas.

Health can translate into wealth at many levels, but wealth may not translate to health. May we aspire to be our healthiest selves to realize our true potential in whatever we do. Healthy minds and bodies are the essence of how one should define wealth.

I look forward to having meaningful conversations as we explore and look at self-healing through lifestyle changes and when medication use becomes inevitable.