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Three principles for living a healthy, long and motivated life in retirement. Keep focused on what's important and don't overdo or obsess about stuff. Do what you love, but don't do too much of it!
What about children? How does a sick child behave? How do you judge a healthy child? Is there a connection? If you became ill, what would be your first reaction? Obviously you'll want to get better. And how would you get better? Do you go to the medicine cabinet, pharmacy or even the doctor and get medicines, take them and hope the sickness will go.
Let your plan of quitting smoking made known to your friends and families and also your doctor. Their advice will go a long way in helping you quit smoking; your family doctor will help you develop a good plan for stopping this habit.
Walk everyday for at least 20-30 Minutes and perform in a natural living environment is best. (Parks, fields, Gardens, Beach, etc) Please note the walk does not have to be a fast pace, for many people a leisurely stroll is exactly what the doctor ordered. Avoid the hyped up American and/or Western view that exercise should be intense and aimed at 'losing weight' 'burning calories' or 'building muscle' - while these exercise modalities are important they are NOT recommended if you are stressed out.
Along the same lines, you don't want to eliminate all of the foods you love from your meal plan, and you don't want to cut out entire food groups. Both of these moves will only hinder your success and lead you to binging, rebounding and failure in the future. Instead, you want to focus on moderation and making small adjustments.
I happen to be married to a nurse who works in administration at a local hospital. So we walk together to his hospital every morning. It takes about twenty minutes. We say goodbye, and I walk back. A forty minute walk every weekday in rain shine or snow in Healthy living advice heat or cold at seven in the morning. I go shopping every day to top up the fridge of the bed and breakfast apartment that I run. A few times a week I have to make the beds, clean the B and B apartment, sweep the leaves in autumn, shovel the snow in winter.
So when I first retired, I took to completing crossword puzzles every day, feeling that maybe I needed some mental stimulation now that I didn't have the mental challenges of my previous occupation. However, crosswords are essentially boring and not my thing at all. Or maybe I'm just Health and living advice no good at them. Then in an email I was alerted to a website that provides mentally stimulating puzzles and logic tests. I did a free trial of some of the services. However, I found it a bit stressful, and didn't think I really wanted to join up and pay the monthly fee, so I didn't pursue it.
We feel guilty about doing something for ourselves. From the very moment we decided to become a professional in the medical field, it has been about serving and helping others. The very essence of who we are may have been overshadowed by our goals and aspirations to serve as a doctor, nurse, nurse practitioner, physician assistant, or provider. How you see and value ourself is tied to these roles. It is foreign to create space in life for self care and nurturing when it has always been about treating patients and putting others first. The truth is that taking care of yourself, with a healthy mind, body, and soul is essential to unlocking more and more success in our personal and professional life. Healthy thinking about who we truly are beyond the ties of medicine opens up doors for healthy living.