Recently, I was at the local mall when I ran into Greg. We both used to work at the Trust Company before retiring. We hadn’t seen one another in awhile, so we decided to have a coffee and do some catching up.
I told him he was looking good, but that he had lost quite a bit of weight since I last saw him. He smiled and said, “I sure have, but now that I have lost a few pounds, I’m back to my normal weight”. Hoping
that he had not be ill, I asked what brought that on? “Oh, that’s quite a story”, he replied, as we sat down with our coffee.
He continued, “You know the story of Charles Dickens’ “Scrooge”, where he is visited by Jacob Marley and three ghosts? Remember how they showed him the error of his ways and he was able to redeem himself and become a more charitable, caring person while it was still possible”.
“Well, something like that happened to me but without the ghosts. When I visited my General Practitioner (GP) a couple of years ago he told me he had been considering retiring because his practice had
grown to the extent that it was draining his energy and it was affecting his family life. But, because of the shortage of doctors right now, he decided to continue his practice by partially changing the emphasis
from treating patients for their existing illnesses to, whenever possible, providing them with advice and guidance they might need to avoid becoming ill in the first place, and thereby lessen his work load.”
I had to admit that the only time I go to my GP is when I’m sick or have injured myself in some way. I wondered aloud how he intended to do it.
“Oh!” Greg replied, “ He explained that many diseases start early and go unnoticed in any dramatic way. For example, he asked me to stand up, then to step on his scale. When I weighed in at 215 pounds, he remarked, that he felt I was overweight, and should go on an exercise program and a calorie reduced diet. He then pointed out that obesity can cause many, many health problems that eventually lead you to seek care from medical specialists and doctors like himself. He pointed out, for example, that the Mayo Clinic, claims that obesity isn’t just a cosmetic problem, it’s a medical problem that increases the risk of many other diseases and health problems.
“I was a little surprised, and asked him to explain?” He just smiled and said, “Look you didn’t come to see me about that. You need to make another appointment with my secretary and we’ll discuss it at length,
at that time.”
“Which I did,” continued Greg, “I called his office and made an appointment. After our consultation, I went on an exercise program, changed my diet and become much more active. Now I feel great! I hope that these lifestyle changes will have a positive effect on my health and I may be able to avoid or lessen any chronic illnesses.”
We chatted a while longer, and agreed to meet with one another more often. I left him with the strong feeling that I too should review my state of well being, and possibly make some changes to my lifestyle to improve my present and perhaps more importantly my future health. I couldn’t help thinking of the old adage, “A stitch in time, saves nine!”