If you're like me and were born between 1965 and 1980, you probably suffer from generational middle child syndrome. Generation X is the shortest spanning generation sitting between the Baby Boomers and the Millenials. Generation X is currently facing a mid-life crisis.
Even though we are at the prime of our lives, we still face the struggles of getting old. We are the generation responsible for taking care of our elders, while at the same time we raise our own families and attempt to have successful careers. We are a generation too busy to take care of ourselves. We grew up in the time of microwave dinners, fast foods, processed sugars and we were consumed by a lot of successful marketing. Also, we grew up in the big AIDS scare and the Cancer era, so we are afraid of diseases and terrified to even visit the doctor’s office.
The main problem with our generation is that a lot of us are not taking the necessary actions to approach our health in a proactive way. We expect to extend our retirement and live longer lives, but we can't commit to a regular exercise routine, rarely eat healthy and fail make it to an annual check-up (neglecting to follow the doctor's instructions if we do get to the appointment). Does any of this sound familiar?
If we as x-ers can overcome the reasons we often avoid the doctor, we can improve the likelihood that our remaining years will be full of vitality and health.
Fear of hearing bad news leads the list of reasons Gen Xers reportedly don’t go to doctor, even if they do have a health problem. When tests and visits are avoided entirely, you roll the dice with your health. I can say for sure that if problems are caught early, it’s much easier to treat them. Facing those fears is a big step toward taking better care of your health.
It is important to talk to your doctor to establish your baseline, understand your risk factors and identify how often you need a health exam to avoid pushing the envelope and risking missing an early diagnosis. Uncontrolled high blood pressure, for example, which strikes young and old alike, is the number one risk factor for stroke and heart attack – you’ve got to know your blood pressure numbers!
For many Gen Xers, there’s no room in the budget for health insurance. Too “affluent” for Medicaid and often not given coverage at work, many in Generation X must pay health-related expenses on their own. As we know, healthcare is not cheap. It’s easy to see how general preventive care such as annual exams and standard screenings could be perceived as a luxury, not a necessity.
Having a health emergency fund and clarifying up-front how much procedures and tests can cost will help you make decisions to comparison shop for the services you need.
The most important investment you can make to reduce long term health costs is to take care of yourself now. Recognize that financial and other worries can impact your health; stress is one of the primary reasons people visit doctors, so managing it effectively through practices like yoga, meditation, grounding and exercise can help you stay healthy.
While most x-ers are aware that healthy lifestyle habits can lay the foundation for good quality of life in old age, they don’t see the need to make them a priority in their daily life NOW.
Unfortunately, most of us never realize how precious our health is until we’ve lost it. Prevention is way easier than cure. Take my word for it here, make the switch to healthier, higher vibrational living – it’s like additional “insurance.” No more try, just do. If you're having trouble getting motivated to take control of your health while you still have it, you can consider Pravan Health, a new health care model focus on prevention and easy access.
In summary, our generation has the opportunity to turn their relationship with the doctor's office around. At Pravan Health, through a concierge membership model, we develop a therapeutic relationship with our members to hold their hand on their journey to optimization of health and wellness. Although a lot of health and wellness information is available on the world wide web, as a generation we still trust and prefer the face to face contact with a physician or health professional. Pravan Health has quality time to spend with you and welcomes Generation X-ers into our member base.
Visit our website to learn more about our memberships and the services offered at Pravan Health or call for an orientation at 787.414.1119 for more information about what our concierge medicine model can do for you.