Health takes a backseat
Probably one of the biggest points of agreement we can all have about our 20s is that they are bloody busy.
Perhaps it is this pressure to “have it all”, but I frequently feel I have demands flying at me from every direction. Career demands are hurtling at me from one end, family pressures from another, and hey look, here’s finances flying towards my head, and don’t forget about your relationship, plus your house is a mess. Sometimes when I take a good look at my to-do list I feel like my oxygen has momentarily stopped.
At times like these, when items are being added to the list at a faster rate that your pen can cross them off, it is simple to come to the conclusion that “something’s gotta give”.
And, at least for me, what often gives is my health.
In general, I think that our generation, despite ostensibly being all about low-fat this and fortified that, yoga this and hiking that, tends to be pretty nonchalant about our health. I’m sure we all have stories about our friends’ perceived invincibility. I have the male friend who took three years of burning stomach pain and vomiting several mornings a week to actually seek the aid of a doctor. A female friend, nearly 30 years old, mentioned casually this weekend that she had never had a pap smear, and when queried, said she was more paranoid about the procedure involved than the prospect of cervical cancer.
Top this attitude off with a packed schedule, and we have a problem.
As I find my schedule getting busier, I get less sleep. This means I hit my snooze button a few more times in the morning, leaving me no time for breakfast, outside of a styrofoam cup full of coffee. Shopping takes more of a backseat, meaning that as the weeks go on, there are fewer vegetables in my crisper, and I have to start relying on the canned and frozen fixtures back-up foods– mmmm, chunky soup and french fries it is! After a long day, the last thing I want to do is walk out the door to the gym, as my couch is far more appealing than a treadmill. Not to mention my back is in desperate need of a chiropractor, I am usually dehydrated, and it has been so long since I set foot in a dentist’s office that I almost forget the taste of strawberry fluoride.
It’s a cycle I’m all too familiar with… but that doesn’t make it okay. Just because I’m still a reasonably perky young adult doesn’t mean such things are consequence free. After all, I’ve already cursed high and low about the epic dip in my metabolic rate since my teenager years, which means that donuts have effects they never used to. Baby steps are needed, whether it is waking up 15 minutes early to have a bowl of cereal, or sticking in a pilates tape rather than logging onto Facebook.
What are your health weaknesses? What do you do about them?
November 17th, 2008 at 1:23 am
[...] Random Feed wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptProbably one of the biggest points of agreement we can all have about our 20s is that they are bloody busy. Perhaps it is this pressure to “have it all”, but I frequently feel I have demands flying at me from every direction. Career demands are hurtling at me from one end, family pressures from another, and hey look, here’s finances flying towards my head, and don’t forget about your relationship, plus your house is a mess. Sometimes when I take a good look at my to-do list I feel like my oxyg [...]
November 17th, 2008 at 10:31 am
I have had to take a week away from work today because I was totally exhausted; but I am so focused on my work - I was planning on managing a project of mine from home…. until my boss found out and threathened to kick my ass if I tried to.
I had left a knee problem for 3 years before I got it checked out - I had to end up having an operation on it. I had also left an ankle problem for too long - luckily physiotherapy is sorting that out.
Regardless - I think you are right - the current 20 something generation probably is too “busy” to look after themself.
November 17th, 2008 at 10:59 am
I FEEL LIKE I WROTE THIS. Especially the part about not getting enough sleep and relying on my non-perishable foods instead of fruits and veggies. I’ve been eating pasta for every meal for the past two weeks, for example.
….seriously.
November 17th, 2008 at 11:05 am
I have all the above weaknesses as do most people I know in the 20-something-trying-to-do-it-all category.
Another thing I have run into is how hard it is to find a good doctor. I have moved so much in my 20’s that I have not been able to stick to a regular doctor or dentist which makes it harder for me to schedule regular appointments because I dred it so much. As soon as I find someone good, I move and have to start all over!
November 17th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
what are these fruits&vegetables you speak of?
um yeah, my doctor was a step away from kicking me out of her office when she asked me what my daily diet consisted of. trying to work on that though. keyword = TRYING.
November 18th, 2008 at 12:30 am
I was diagnosed with cancer at 27 (breathe again, keep reading, I promise not to scare you too much). After treatment I launched a road trip throughout the U.S. interviewing other 20 and 30-somethings to find out how they handled dating, career, family and friends in the midst of cancer. The overachiever in me is a beast that will not die. My book about my travels will hit the shelves in Feb. and amid final revisions and running around like a PR maniac, I don’t get enough sleep, often forget to eat, never exercise, and I have cancer! It is so easy to ignore our bodies when we are riding the wave of the moment.
November 18th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
This is such a great topic! I was someone who totally refused doctor visits. Then, I got sick, so sick I couldn’t stand, eat or go to work. I stayed like that for a WEEK (I know. I’m still shaking my head). When I finally did go to the hospital, it turns out I had a severe kidney infection and had to be admitted. I stayed in the hospital for three weeks while they figured out everything else that was wrong with me- like I was allergic to gluten. My doctor told me that if I would have been coming in regularly to tell him how I was feeling (tired, sluggish, mildly depressed because I was always tired…) there’s a chance I could have found out about this years earlier.
Now I’m better about going to the doctor. I wish though, I was better about eating breakfast…
November 18th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
I’m guilty of the pap smear thing. For the same reason.
I’ve not been to the dentist in six years.
And I haven’t had a contact lens check in ages either.
No lectures. I don’t accept them. I’ll get it all dealt with . . . when I have a minute.
November 19th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Ok, there’s no excuse for the pap smear thing. I don’t care if it’s a phobia, you’re only sitting there spread eagle for 10 or 15 minutes, get over it. To think there’s women walking around with cysts and other ailments that are totally treatable and preventable (before they get worse and inoperable), I mean, seriously?
I was totally guilty of just being a total lazy bum. I lived a really, terribly inactive lifestyle. I sit at a computer for nearly 8 hours a day, if not more. I didn’t do any kind of exercise and my doctor warned that my good cholesterol was falling rapidly. On top of that I was suffering from bizarre ailments like anemia, joint pain, malnutrition, chronic fatigue, painful periods and as a 25 year old who is 120lbs, it’s totally unacceptable. So now I’ve taken up jogging otherwise known as TORTURE. I complain about it a lot on my blog.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:46 am
Great work! I also have my own blog I just find it hard to write quality content like this.