Education

Don’t Let Control-Freak Politicians Diminish Your Well-being

We can self-diagnose and act upon what ails us more effectively than any generation before us.

Published

2 years ago

September 7, 2021

Jeff Davidson

In the last 18 months, we have witnessed how mayors and governors, particularly in Democrat strongholds, seek to control our lives. They take great, well-disguised joy in telling us when to come and go, what to wear, and how to act, while personally flouting their own edicts. Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan; Gavin Newsom, hanging on as governor of California; and Bill deBlasio, mayor of New York, immediately come to mind.

A bit of what they’ve decreed is benevolent and makes sense, but much of it extends beyond their duties and jurisdiction. Even in these challenging times, and despite intentional government interference, ours is the first era where people can effectively take charge of their own health.

Due to an abundance of information resources, available primarily via the Internet, we have the opportunity to diagnose and to act upon what ails us, more often and more effectively than any generation before us.

Unquestionably, doctors play an important role and always will. We never want to substitute legitimate medical observation for what we conclude on our own. Still, what we can research and discover as a result of our comprehensive reading, increasingly, represents reasonably sound information.

Natural Cures Abound

In some instances we can avoid having to pay for expensive visits to doctors, outpatient services, clinics, or labs: Today, for whatever ails you, it’s possible to find potential natural remedies and to avoid ingesting pharmaceuticals. And why not? For tens of thousands of years prior to our recent history, people communed with nature and they gleaned many health-enhancing gifts that nature had to offer.

Untold numbers of herbal remedies, and plant and flower extracts were discovered through the ages, passed on to offspring, and are available to this today. One can search online and find potential natural cures for this affliction or that. Food is a remedy in many cases, as are legitimate supplements.

When else has humankind had the capability to learn so much, so easily, that could be of value to one’s health? Rather than endure a surgical procedure that, say, as recently as one score ago was often regarded as your only option, alternatives might well abound. Undertaking the exploration is worth the pursuit. Thereafter, if surgery is the most prudent path to take, with the advances in surgical procedures, it’s likely to be to your benefit.

The Array of Options

No matter what edicts a Kathy Hochul or a Bill DeBlasio levy in the name of ‘protecting’ us, ostensibly from ourselves, we have an array of options. We can find useful information to help lower blood pressure, stave off headaches, or reduce stress.

Meditation is effective as a stress reducer and immediately comes to mind. If you’ve never tried it, try it. Medical journals now discuss the multitude of benefits that accrue to regular meditators. The physical manifestation of meditation, namely yoga, is also beneficial to your health. Yoga is proving to be a physical “elixir” of sorts that can help you in ways that normally one wouldn’t presume.

Stretching can work wonders. The older you are, the more likely you need to be stretching on a regular basis. You can buy books on stretching, read articles on stretching, and view YouTube videos on the topic. You can gather a variety of key illustrations and carve out for yourself a program that could last for months or years. Even doing simple stretches yields amazing results.

Exercise, of course, is vital to effective mind-body functioning. Exercise offers you greater mobility, enhanced mental sharpness, better sleep, better digestion and elimination, and much more. As with meditation, yoga, and stretching, a host of web resources are available to guide you.

Supplements, Yes; Pharmaceuticals, No

As you assume greater charge of your health, you’ll encounter information about supplements. They will show up in your reading. Many people are confused between vitamins and food supplements, versus pharmaceuticals and prescription drugs.

Vitamins and supplements are the extracts of a larger volume of food. The best have no additives. They offer you the benefits, in part, that the original source would provide. Pharmaceuticals and prescription drugs, such as those in a pharmacy, are chemical compounds manufactured in a laboratory, to achieve a specific outcome within your body.

Pharmaceuticals are not natural and generally include a host of additives and preservatives. The list of ‘side’ effects issued at a rapid pace on TV commercials are the direct effects of ingesting artificial substances and abdicating control of your body in the hopes that such ‘magic pills’ will ‘fix’ you.

Work in Tandem

Enlightened doctors recognize the importance today of working with you. So, discover as much as you can about your situation before your appointment. Then, let the doctor know what you have uncovered, suspect, and conclude. It’s all grist for your personal health mill.

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Jeff Davidson

Jeff Davidson is the world's only holder of the title "The Work-Life Balance Expert®" as awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He is the premier thought leader on work-life balance, integration, and harmony. Jeff speaks to organizations that seek to enhance their overall productivity by improving the effectiveness of their people. He is the author of Breathing Space, Simpler Living, Dial it Down, and Everyday Project Management. Visit www.BreathingSpace.com for more information on Jeff's keynote speeches and seminars, including: Managing the Pace with Grace® * Achieving Work-Life Balance™ * Managing Information and Communication Overload®

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Education

Eight Dysphemisms to Start Your Week

A dysphemism is a word or phrase that is more offensive than the words it is replacing

Published

1 week ago

March 20, 2023

Jeff Davidson

A “euphemism” is the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that might suggest something more bluntly or offend others, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. To say, for example, “He doesn’t have all his marbles,” is regarded as gentler than saying “He is stark raving insane.”

The Mighty Dysphemism

The opposite of a euphemism is a “dysphemism.” A dysphemism is a word or phrase that is more offensive, blunt, or harsh than the word or phrase which it is replacing. For example, instead of stating that the Manhattan District Attorney is “cognitively challenged,” you refer to him instead as a “total partisan whack job.”

For your amusement, at the least, here are eight dysphemism followed by the kinder, gentler, or at least more definitive terminology of what is being said:

“Biting off more than you can chew” – Orally extracting an amount of edible matter that exceeds what one is comfortably able to masticate.

“That’s a load of B.S.” – Your assertion reminds one of bovine excretion.

“Sh__faced” – Bearing an expression that one normally associates with the act of removing solid waste from the body.

“Can’t tell your ass from your elbow” – Unable to differentiate between your dorsal side orifice and the joint connecting your forearm and upper arm.

“Stepping in a pile of crap” – A pedestrian venture into an accumulation of animal or human waste.

“Go F-yourself” – Engage in the act of physical consummation with yourself.

“Up to your eyeballs in crap” – Finding yourself surrounded at the visual level by unpleasantly aromatic organic waste.

“Carnal knowledge” – Having a close encounter with another, free of garments and other impediments, leading to direct tactile stimulation.

A True Time Saver

Thank goodness for dysphemisms. In a most fundamental way, they are true time-savers. Without them, we’d be groping for tedious phrasing all day long. “Up your nose with a rubber hose,” if you don’t “catch my drift.”

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Education

On Listening Carefully for the Sake of Your Children

The decades long lack of African-American academic achievement is a do-it-to-yourself proposition

Published

2 weeks ago

March 16, 2023

Jeff Davidson

I attended a two briefings at East Chapel Hill High School (ECHHS) for the parents of rising 9th graders. All parents of eighth graders received the same invitation. The first session focused on what courses students would need to graduate from high school and to be prepared for University studies, technical college, or direct participation in the work force.

I listened closely. I found the information presented to be so vital, that had I not attended I would be unprepared to assist my daughter in course selection in any meaningful way throughout her time at ECHHS.

At the first meeting, the nearly 200 parents in attendance listened with rapt attention as well s evidenced by the many questions. Graduating from ECHHS with the new requirements would not be a cakewalk. The demands were rigorous.

The eighth grade children of many parents, however, did not attend these crucial meetings. Only one African-American parent was in attendance at the first meeting although the African American student population was more than 12%. At the second meeting where parents had a chance to meet and listen to school counselors, department heads, and teachers, about 275 parents attended, three of which were African-American.

All of the above occurred in 2004. Such poor attendance is another disheartening aspect of our society that bodes well for no one. To me, this spelled the future of America. In 2023 – today – the 13- and 14-year-olds represented by the parents that night are now 32 and 33, out of college and graduate school if they attended, car owners, possibly home owners, heads of families, and hopefully participants in the economic mainstream.

Those students whose parents didn’t listen in 2004 were the most likely to be unprepared at age 13 and 14 and all throughout high school, and the most likely today to be unprepared to be a part of the economic mainstream. Yet, someone will say that education Chapel Hill is unfair or sets students to fail, and that it rewards only certain groups and deprives others.

They will be among the first to rail on about some vague notion of “social justice.” They’ll say the teachers are biased or that the educational system favors whites and Asians. This is simply not the case.

The decades long lack of African-American academic achievement is a do-it-to-yourself proposition. It has nothing to do with CRT, biased teachers, or a dozen other lame excuses. In another 19 years – in 2042 – I wonder if anything, at all, will be any different. I wonder if greater numbers of African-American parents will take the time to listen to school administrators, teachers, and counselors who hold vital keys to the quality of their children’s lives.

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