It has been a while since I wrote a blog. A combination of circumstances have kept me engaged and made me tardy in doing my regular writing. We hope to get back on a more regular schedule though the posts will not be every week as it has been in the past. More details on that will be coming up.
It has been an interesting few months, professionally and personally. I have started working at local Phoenix hospitals as a part-time hospitalist. Once again I get to re-experience the world of modern hospitals. Large volumes, protocols to help physicians deal with the vast array of medical problems they face and a system that is built on treating disease more than promoting health. All in all, I think they do a great job of treating acute illnesses. However as I see people come in with various health conditions, I am reminded that my passion is to use our understanding of health to keep my clients out of this predicament whenever possible. This is why I have been inspired to follow this particular mode of practicing medicine. In fact, practicing medicine is not the ideal term for what is done at Harmonia. It really is more a role of scientific adviser, coach and guide in helping clients find a way of life that enhances health and facilitates full, vibrant living.
Recently I gave a talk at a networking group in Scottsdale. I talked about how the United States spends approximately $4500 per person in healthcare expenditure. In contrast Cuba spends about $400 per person in healthcare. Life expectancy in Cuba is only marginally lower than in the United States. Is there something wrong? Our current medical system fails to emphasize the importance of daily living, stressors – both physical and mental, poor diet and lack of physical activity in keeping good health. We cannot separate our daily actions and even our daily thoughts from our state of health. Social circumstances like a good support network of family and friends play a huge role in life expectancy. In preparation for the talk I researched numerous studies and found ample data supporting the role of each of these factors in health. And yet these are hardly ever discussed in our healthcare system. Harmonia aims to help you understand how your daily choices affect your health. We give you practical programs, ideas and support to reverse poor health or improve already good health. We don’t heal you, you decide to heal. That’s where the journey begins.
The volume of benefit associated with changes in these choices has been documented in multiple studies to be astoundingly large. As the famous quote goes” we do not expect too much from our life, we expect too little.” The same can be said about health. We are beaten down by prognoses and diagnoses, television commercials that tell us about medications and are followed by a long list of possible negative consequences to taking these medications. We have been trained to accept less than satisfactory results. We have been sold drugs and prognoses that imprison rather than empower.
This need not be so. Most people who embark on a proactive journey of healing find results that are better than their expectations. Sometimes it takes a while. Especially if you’re working with long-standing health problems. But persevere and you will find. And most of all don’t be afraid to expect more from your health and your health care practitioner. There are great options out there. Now its time to go out and get them.
Yours in health,
Thomas Alexander, M.D.
Jonathan V. Wright, M.D., Tahoma Clinic
Leo Galland, MD
Life Extension
Phillip Alexander, BrandMuscle
Tom Peters!
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