The WellnessOptions Guide to Life

In its constitution, the World Health Organization defines health as "as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." So why do so many guides to health have so much to say about disease and so little to say about wellness?

The key to good health, say the editors and experts of bi-monthly magazine WellnessOptions, is the decision to pursue wellness as a way of life. It is only when we take responsibility for our own health-when we decide wellness is central to our day-to-day existence-that we can attain optimal well-being.

But there is so much information out there, much of it conflicting, that it is difficult to know what choices to pursue in our quest for wellness. The Wellness Options Guide to Health brings order to the chaos, integrating conventional medicine, natural and Oriental approaches to well-being. Lillian So Chan, the founding editor of WellnessOptions, together with an international team of medical experts, provides balanced and informed perspectives on a wide range of health issues, including sleep, nutrition, exercise, sexuality and aging. The result is more than a guide to health-it's a guide to life.

“I’ll stay feeling well.
Even when I die, I’ll die feeling well,” she decided.

Years ago, a 19-year-old girl, bursting with youth and vitality, a top student with a sparkling future, was suddenly stricken with cancer. The news landed like a bombshell, and once the initial shock had passed, she was overcome with anger that the world was so unfair, that she was so powerless and unable to control her own destiny. What possible meaning could there be in life?

On a moonless, windy night as she sped down the road on her motorcycle, thinking of her plight, the anger kept growing in her until, rounding a curve, she saw the “SLOW” sign. She gave herself over to the consuming rage, sped up, and charged toward the sign. Girl, bike, and sign flew into the air. The lights of a thousand homes glittered and twisted below, and in one brilliant instant, she realized she did not want to die.

“I’ll keep my eyes open,” she thought. “To see how I die!”

She embraced the darkness rushing toward her with arms stretched wide. A dull thumping sound followed as she landed with a taste of grass, mud, and blood mixed in her mouth. It was a strange homecoming after reaching such great heights. She looked up, relieved to see the stars from the right perspective. Then everything went black, and all she could hear were the fading sounds of people running.

The girl woke up in hospital and asked for a Coke. She savored every sip; it was simply the most marvelous beverage on Earth. How could she have failed to notice this before?

On the day she was allowed to go home, she looked out the taxi window and realized for the first time that not all the leaves on the trees were the same. Never before had she seen so many shades of green. It fascinated her, and she smiled.

Everybody has to die. Nobody can overcome death. What is there to overcome? “I’ll stay feeling well. Even when I die, I’ll die feeling well,” she decided.