Not feeling well? Here’s the reason…

A few weeks ago, I was sick — throwing-up sick. Fortunately, it didn’t last long. But what really bugged me (after I got better and returned to my normal life) was that everyone wanted to diagnose the problem.

“There’s a flu going around” some said.

“Maybe it’s something you ate” someone else said.

You’ve probably heard these diagnoses from well-meaning (and non-medically trained!) friends and family. I don’t think they’re trying to cure you, I think they just want to share their thoughts about why it happened.

But I know why I was sick. I know why I get sick EVERY TIME I get sick (which isn’t that often). Guess what, I know why you get sick, too.

The reason is: There isn’t usually ONE reason we get sick. It’s usually a combination of factors.

• Maybe we caught a “bug” or ate something bad
• Maybe we’ve been cutting into our 7-hours-of-minimum-sleep or maybe we’ve been oversleeping
• Maybe we haven’t been eating balanced meals
• Maybe we haven’t had enough exercise
• Maybe we haven’t had enough water
• Maybe our stress level is high right now

I think that we can’t just blame our sickness all on one thing and exclude the possibility that there were contributing factors. If our stress level is up and we haven’t been eating or sleeping properly, our natural defenses are down and our immune system isn’t what it should be… and when we do come into contact with something or we eat something that isn’t quite right, we will get sick.

(Note: I don’t want to get all weird and mystical about the causes of sicknesses and I’m not suggesting that if you eat right and drink 8 glasses of water a day, you’ll avoid cancer. You realize what I’m saying, right? I’m saying that our bodies are a variety of systems that all exist in balance with each other and when we keep those things in balance, we’ll live healthier lives and avoid a lot of the really common colds and flus that can get us down.)

So the next time you find yourself feeling under the weather, take a look at your life: It’s possible (and entirely likely) that there’s a primary trigger, like maybe you ate some bad sushi at your cousin’s wedding yesterday. But it’s also likely that there are several underlying reasons as well — perhaps you’ve been slacking in the exercise department and indulging a little too much in treats from the candy cupboard.

Posted on January 29, 2012