I’m taking stock of the year in general and health in particular and 2009 was a keeper, a very good year for me. After talking at length to a woman on the phone yesterday about bone loss and thyroid/hormone problems I really got the message about what a good place I am in right now. She has all the symptoms that I was dealing with before I got well and as she talked I remembered all the paths I tried back then. Now it is easy to forget that I was ever sick.
Also since I started investigating bone loss about 6 years ago there has been a huge turnaround in the way women think about their bones. Six years ago I was a renegade. Most women still believed that their doctors knew best and took whatever drugs were passed out. Now most women will at least do a google search before they take a new drug or get a diagnosis. They are finding out that there are alternatives to drugs and that drugs are often dangerous to our health.
It has also become common knowledge that statistics are used in a very misleading manner in order to provoke fear in women so they will accept drugs that have been tested improperly for insufficient periods of time.
Dr Susan Brown’s latest newsletter has a good article on misleading bone statistics. Here is a quote, “When it comes to hip fractures, the Surgeon General estimates that only 17% of women over 50 will fracture her hip in her lifetime — a far cry from 50%. Casting this in a more positive light, 83% of American women over 50 will NOT experience a hip fracture! In consideration of those who can see the light better from the shadows, the average age of hip fracture in the US is about 82, whereas the average life expectancy for a woman in the US is around 80 — I think we can all do the math! “
When they say 50% of women over 50 will get a fracture it is like saying that 95% of girls over 5 will get their period. Yes, but not until they are much older. What is great is that this kind of misleading, often-quoted statistic is finally being examined with scepticism, and the truth that drug companies are not really our friends is becoming obvious at last.
I just read something recently about people’s expectations that is interesting also. Most of us do not do anything new and exceptional because we so strongly believe in our own limitations. I know that is true for me! There are certain things I believe I can do and I do them well. There are others, like riding a bike, that I don’t believe I can do so I never try. So I’m thinking of stretching a bit this year, trying some new skills. I haven’t decided what yet.
I truly do believe that we have a lot of negative stereotypes about aging in our culture and we have to let them go and move beyond them into the infinite realm of possibility. If you are a youtube addict there are so many examples of stretching the human envelope there that just blow me away. The latest one is a young guy who taught himself to do incredible tricks with his bike. Within a year there will be dozens of kids all over the world doing the same tricks! It just takes one person to show us the possibilities.
Our human bodies are a miracle and we certainly haven’t reached the limits of their possibilities yet, not by a long shot. So this year I challenge you to look toward what you do want in your life instead of fearing what you don’t want. Whenever fear comes up, distract yourself back into hope. Leave your inner wisdom to figure out the details.
That’s been part of my success story this year. I have learned that struggle is not necessary, nor even helpful. I trusted my inner wisdom to work on my desires for me and bring them into my reality. If that sounds wahwah, I sympathize but it really did work for me.
Blessings on 2010 for anyone reading. I really do intend to have my best year ever this year and I’d love it if you do too.
Pam