Discover the secrets to achieving a healthier and happier life with [Your Personal Guide to Wellness] by Jamie F. McManus, Dorothy S. Casper, and Vicki C. Spackman. This informative book offers practical advice on living a healthy lifestyle. With a focus on family and relationships, as well as health and fitness, this book is a good read for anyone looking to improve their overall well-being. This 311-page paperback covers topics such as healthy living, nutrition, exercise, and stress management.
Growing up in a small town in Northern California as one of six children brought me to adulthood with a great sense of family and a somewhat naive view of my abilities to reshape the world. My dad is an engineer who believes that we all have a responsibility to do something meaningful with our lives. When I was only six or seven years old, I remember having conversations with him about what I would become. Because I liked science and enjoyed people, I thought I should be a doctor. No family member had been remotely involved in medicine, but it seemed like a noble profession. My dear father instilled in me a desire to succeed and a belief in my ability to do so.
I have loved every minute of being a doctor. I appreciate each and every patient that has ever entered my exam rooms (from Roseville, California to Mukilteo, Washington) over my 15 years as a practicing family physician. My patients taught me to listen intently and to focus on the entire person in the context of his other life. They taught me to be open-minded and creative and to challenge established and traditional approaches. They also taught me that it is their body and life; and they inspired me to work with them to create a treatment plan that they could be put into effect after they walked out my office door.
As a practicing physician, I saw a need to help people understand that health is their responsibility (in partnership with their physician). Because of the importance of this concept, it was a natural transition to focus on bringing the message to an audience outside my exam rooms. Doctors are simply too busy to devote the necessary time to each and every patient: to give advice on diet and weight loss, to illustrate stress management techniques, and to outline personalized exercise regimes so that each patient has the best chance to stay healthy. We have become a treatment-oriented, disease-supporting medical system with little time to spend on the prevention of disease and promotion of health. We recommend appropriate screenings, but spend precious little time talking about what can be done to preserve health. Most physicians just don't have the time to learn about all the possible alternative approaches to consider assisting in the management of a particular condition.
