The picture below looks like standard social media click content and while briefly deciding whether to share it something stood out. A fact that that should, for all intents and purposes, shock the medical community….yet it flys well under the radar.

Many who are not in shape will look at the top portion of the picture and consider it too attention getting. Often the average out of shape person will consider it unrealistic and even tell themselves it’s not what they would want for their lifestyle and body. Now while everyone has individual taste it is fundamentally odd not to desire greater strength and fitness which leads to an even darker reaction/viewpoint to the bottom half of the picture.

After being in our industry as long as we have a sad fact we have come to know is this – some don’t think the bottom picture looks that bad. Modern medicine has been so successful with emergencies people have misinterpreted disease and illness. It actually looks comforting the idea that you’d be well cared for and doctors could likely cure you. Hospitalization doesn’t seem as akin to suffering and risk as it actually is.

The lack of self worth and self esteem linked to thinking the top pick isn’t for you and the bottom pick is reasonable is bordering on if not well into mental illness. If you’d choose not to work at being in shape because you’d like medical care to look after you like a parent you may need help. We’re not talking about being out of shape because you don’t know where to start and have trouble prioritizing. We’re talking about thinking it’s ok to be sick and just slowly get sicker because it means you’ll receive pity and responsibility will be abdicated to someone else.

Sorry for the longer blog today but yes we do think this is a real thing. We have seen a split in society growing. Those becoming more obsessed with fitness than even past fads because of social media influence and those confusing poor lifestyle habits with a disability. If you lost a limb in an accident you’d be disabled but if you cut off your own limb you’d be deemed insane. No one needs to be obsessed with fitness to be healthy but the opposite of fitness is not neutral….it’s the diseased state.

Be well, be strong,

Andrew and Tierney