The COVID-19 opportunity: a different perspective

Shifting our perspective

Anxiety, fear, stress and worry are in the air. Facts and information are scarce. We are all unsure what’s going to happen tomorrow. This is what life is like living with the threat of COVID-19. How do we battle something that no one seems to know enough about? Maybe it’s not about us battling it per se. Maybe it’s about shifting our perspective on solutions. Maybe it can be about us supporting our bodies in doing what they are meant to do and focusing our efforts on strengthening the greatest chance we have of making it through this – our amazingly wonderful immune systems.

I would agree it is probably easier to change handwashing habits and how often we touch our faces than it is to change our wellness habits and how often we eat our veggies.  But that same focus on what is easy and convenient vs what will impact health outcomes long-term has resulted in the very situation we find ourselves in with COVID-19.  We are so focused on not contracting the virus; we have forgotten about the importance of helping our bodies fight if it if we do.

This is not unusual for us in the US.  Our healthcare and medical paradigm is mostly reactive, not prevention-oriented or proactive.  There is less focus on our own immune systems and more on drugs that help soothe signs and symptoms, while leaving the underlying conditions left unchecked.  Despite the fact that heart disease was already the number one killer of Americans (even before COVID-19, approximately 655,000 die annually according to the CDC), we have struggled to effectively address the condition or take prevention seriously.

One of the few things we do know about COVID-19 is that the risk of getting very sick increases significantly with certain chronic conditions (i.e. heart disease, hypertension/high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity).  The Western (mostly US) diet and lifestyle is known to be a key factor in most of these diseases, and likely also the same reason the US leads all other countries in both COVID-19 cases and deaths.  For too long, we have accepted many of these chronic, preventable diseases as part of “everyday life.”  The changes we have always known we can and should take to prevent these known comorbidities of COVID-19 are the same steps we can and should take to prevent death by COVID-19 itself.

I know, it may seem extraordinarily difficult to make the necessary changes to our diet and lifestyle at this time.  You may be thinking: how can I get more sleep with everything that is going on right now?  You are probably saying: my gym is closed, that fitness class I love is cancelled, and aren’t I supposed to stay inside?  And, believe me, I too could use a drink, and crave sugar and fatty foods with the stress of it all!  

But we can (and hopefully will) create a shift in our perspective and positively impact our health in the process.  Choose to look at things differently… now that you don’t have to commute, you have time to get more sleep, make home-cooked meals and/or exercise.  Technology has never been more supportive of both working (out) from home (online fitness options abound) and connecting with friends and family.  Speaking of family, take the opportunity to re/discover play together outside and inside.  Now that you have more time at home, catch your favorite comedy show for a good dose of the “best medicine” and even finally do that spring cleaning you never seem to get around to!  We can change our perspective to look at this as an opportunity (and a wake-up call) to live our lives and our habits differently in more ways than just wearing a mask and washing our hands more often.

It’s a win-win.  By shifting our perspectives in this way to look at the opportunity side of this hand we have been dealt, we are already doing more for COVID-19 and chronic disease prevention than handwashing alone can do.  By changing our outlook to something more positive and actionable, we can also change our moods and our states of mind which in turn also strengthens our immune system!  The mind-body connection is real!  By taking small, gradual steps to change our habits, behaviors, diet and lifestyle, we are supporting our bodies in being their strongest against any disease!  Let’s take this as an opportunity to rediscover ourselves and a long overdue, new approach to our wellness!