This post is inspired by a post by “The Diary of a CEO”. Inherent to the piece is the debilitating effects of short form media on the brain. Studies are being done and apparently results are starting to roll in. What we are about to learn will be unsurprising to us people watchers who have been witnessing a degradation in human interaction.
The writing I’m doing today is in advance of a skating occasion booked for 135 minutes from now quite distant from my seated position. Since time is short, I could have decided to spend the time in passive short form but instead I chose an active pursuit requiring executive function. Consequently, there will be something more of value produced.
This blog has been active since 2009. That’s a fairly long time and has required a continual application of small bursts of periodic energy in context of what’s deemed to be a fair distribution of my time. I do it because I care. I do it because I know it my heart that I offer value for folks who are open. I know through experience and statistical history that few have an attention span for this despite my eloquence. I am gifted with the written word so others’ lack of attention in no way is attributable to a perception of poorly focused fodder. The technical connection between search engines and posts also plays a role but my intuition concludes that folks are more inclined to seek more immediate stimuli in quest of their appetite for gratifying brain nourishment.
The headline in Calgary this morning is that a toddler in a stroller was run down in a cross walk. Parents survived. It was in broad daylight on a Sunday. The child has died. I’ve witnessed impatient drivers all over town. There have been deaths and there is no question in my mind that the affects of technology is contributory. People are less compelled to engage in conversation because they now value text over voice. Folks are reticent to complain because of the gaslighting effect. Kids are isolated because this condition is preferential to being bullied. Then there is a school shooting and we rightfully mourn but carry on without implementing real change. The rate of which police officer are absent on stress leave is 30 per cent while infractions are unenforced because they are deemed innocuous. Those unenforced laws lead to the kind of behavior creep that emboldens 4×4 trucks to run intersections thereby killing kids. Is the retracement of our civil society going to continue or are we going to return to principled conduct exemplary of frontal cortex executive function?
For those who know me well – you know that I initiate conversations with strangers. I like it. I like learning about people during my travels.
Today I spoke to a heart attack survivor in the gym. I first saw him on the track but then when noticing him on the nautilus equipment I felt compelled to know his health story. At first he was perplexed by my outreach but then he warmed up and spoke of the day of the incident. Despite all the drama, he said the one thing that stood out particularly was the look on his wife’s face as he was wheeled into the ambulance. At that moment in time he concluded that if he made it out of the situation alive, he was going to make big changes. Admittedly he was obese and never took care of himself.
He received four stints and morphene for the pain. While in recovery he had witnessed multiple medical professionals in the adjacent room deliver thumping blows on a 42 year old woman’s chest in order to revive her from her heart attack. She didn’t make it.
Every day we get to orchestrate how we spend our time. Not enough of us are caring for our heart by making it work vigorously and regularly by flowing blood through it with the kind of velocity applicable for cleansing arteries and veins. It is plaque deposits which accumulate over time which creates problems. If you are a week end warrior – look out because you may be at a higher risk than anyone else due to the irregularity of your work outs. Imagine that accumulation of plaque which potentially can become dislodged when your cardiovascular systems is suddenly taxed when it’s not accustomed.
If you want to start working out and you’ve been sedentary…you must begin at low intensity and preferably with the guidance of a doctor. You know what January means. Gym membership sales people will be at the ready but will you?
It’s been two years without a car and I’m loving it. City driving can work you over emotionally and it can be impactful on your psyche. I see evidence of this every day. I was one of those enthusiastic 16 year olds out to get licensed at the earliest opportunity and I’ve owned a car for all these years but now I don’t. I walk. I jog. I take Uber / transit. I drive with a car sharing service and on the rare occasion I rent a vehicle for the weekend. Rarely I’ll also ride a rent a scooter (Neuron). While walking I sense the impatience and frustration of drivers. There are those who have their wheels turned toward you creeping forward as you traverse the cross walk. There are those who speed incessantly when given some breathing room between lights. There are those who follow too close. There are those who express their vanity in boutique or hot rod rides. There are motorcyclists annoying their neighbors with modded mufflers.
Robotic driving apparently is upon us with the google voice telling you how to get there. You now no longer need to think about your route as a potential distraction from the gridlock. A poll shows that Torontonians are seriously considering leaving the city due to congestion. Not all of you will have the luxury of going without a car but if it’s a possibility….you might consider it seriously. What is the cost of getting home after work and saying something stupid to your family out of frustration from your ride?
Exercise stimulates the release of endorphins and adrenaline. These hormones when coupled produce a feeling of energized well being. You know this and you’ve asked yourself why you don’t exercise more often having just wrapped up a work out. Let’s examine benefits of exercise.
Exercise physiologists speak less frequently regarding the motility of blood through the bloodstream which arises with an increased heart rate. The blood provides nourishment and oxygen to muscle fibers during exercise at a higher rate in accordance with increased muscular requirements. We’ve all come to learn from people close to us etiology arising from a sedentary lifestyle and heart disease unfortunately ranks. It stands to reason that the faster blood moves through the circulatory system that the less opportunity it has to deposit plaque. Additionally, regular exercise may prevent the opportunity for plaque to deposit. In fact, it’s recommended for sedentary individuals to check in with a doctor prior to taking up an exercise regiment because of the potential risk of breaking off plaque deposits within arterial walls when the circulatory system is not acclimatized to the stress of higher throughput.
Exercise will also enable you to burn calories at a higher rate thereby helping with weight management. The associated movement can assist the skeletal system with alignment through increased flexibility and strength. Active joints assist with the removal of metabolic waste thereby potentially reducing the chance of arthritic onset.
People typically come into your life as a result of physical activity and the positivity surrounding the endeavor produces healthy topics for socialization.
Did you know that Quebec reported 50,000 health care workers now on “leave” from work due to “burn out”? Just when your country needed them most….those nurses in Quebec are now collecting a disability cheque. That’s right – short term and long term disability claims are enormous right now. The actual number not on the job is actually 70,000 with the other 20,000 associated with those in current isolation. It’s staggering and you can look to see an increase in insurance costs for whichever policy for which you apply because you are not immune from the effect of claims paid in sectors unrelated to your policies. There is some correlation between sector related claims pertaining to generating premiums but that correlation is not 100 per cent. Insurance companies spread risk through a process called “reinsurance” thereby indirectly affecting you.
You know when Canadian soldiers lined the trenches while securing our freedom, there was no 1-800 number to call for applying for mental health leave. Of course, there are the “professional associations” and “unions” which provide complicating variables in restricting governments from casting a broader net for acquiring human resources necessary during this critical time. It should be no surprise that doctors are sparse and unavailable to assist due to our system of education and influence of the professional association in limiting access to the profession.
Here we are in a health care crisis whereby those associations so adamant at protecting their professions are now desperate. Nurses in Quebec and across Canada are needed now. Help them help us.
