CONNECT: October 3, 2014

Lean On Me...

When You're Not Strong

    

    

Spoiler Summary - So you're not in perfect health and you're ready to make a strong comeback? Tell the important people in your life that you love them....and let the power of ELEMENT #5 go to work.

Last week I wrote about a powerful new study that added strong support to a wild claim - one that my team makes on most days of the week: injuries, negative conditions and disease are largely preventable. In the case of heart attack, 86% preventable as evidenced by the study of several thousand men over more than a decade.  I talked specifically about four of Pro-Activity's "ELEMENTS" (MOVE, FUEL, RECOVER and ENDURE) and the powerful impact they can have in helping prevent heart attack.

But what if you already HAVE the problem? What if you already have a disease? Then what?

Well, not surprisingly, the same elements apply.  Physical Therapists help people restore their mobility and strength using exercise (MOVE) for injuries all the time. Nutrition experts use dietary approaches to help speed up recovery in athletes (FUEL) after a grueling training session, and regular rest cycles are needed tonight to give our bodies & minds a chance to repair from today's grind and make sure they are ready for the trials of tomorrow (RECOVER). We need to balance all three to guarantee we are giving ourselves the best chance to get through the storms of life and ultimately ENDURE.  So just like staying healthy in the first place (sometimes called "primary prevention"), we use the same formula when we've slipped,whether a little, like some symptoms or signs or a bunch, like an injury or an illness.

However, there's one element that seems to get glazed over with most folks.....one that people understand at the gut level, but have a much harder time making sense of.....and, as new research on the topic once again has demonstrated - Bill Withers was onto something when he wrote the famous song "Lean on Me".  We call this element CONNECT and, although perhaps not as well understood as the first four, it's very important.  

People with strong relationships simply perform better in the long run.  In the workplace they have less injuries.  Outside of the workplace they have a lower burden of disease and a better quality of life and....when they do get sick or injured (such as a heart attack)......as evidenced by new research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association on 9/30 - they have better health status, quality of life and a lower risk of depression at 12 months than those who don't have the same support.  Said another way - social connectedness and the quality of our relationships influences our ability to recover from serious injury or illness.

This is so hugely important is warrants a replay:

Social connectedness and the quality of our relationships significantly influences our ability to recover from serious injury or illness.

Think you can do it all alone? If you can, it won't be forever.  Think you're better off keeping the world at a distance?  You might be, but the effect is temporary.  On the other hand, if you think a genuine smile, retelling some old stories or sharing some deep belly laughs with family and friends not only makes you feel better in the moment, but makes you better overall,  You're right.

By the end of your career you'll have spent as much time with the people at work as you have with almost any other group of people in your life....make it count.....for them AND for you.

Have a great week,

Mike E.