To grasp the true meaning of dis-ease we must first comprehend health. The World Health Organisation (WHO) characterizes health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”

It might surprise you to know that I have never encountered anyone that meets that criteria in its entirety. I take this to mean “the perfect human condition” in all respects. I sincerely hope these healthy people exist, and I desperately wish to meet them. I believe that the more truly healthy people around, the more others will follow, and eventually the more beneficial that would be for the whole of humanity.

If you look around carefully, you will clearly see that we all have at least one or more defects that disqualify us from the description above, whether a mental, physical, or social challenge. If any one of these aspects is out of balance, the other two will be affected. This associative intricacy firmly stands out even in the simplest of situations. It is the domino effect—a person gets upset by an action or comment of a colleague or friend, this stress creates a stomach-ache, the stomach-ache takes away their appetite, the lack of nutrition makes them feel listless and weak, this leads to sluggishness and fatigue and even a headache, which now hinders their sleep. If these compound effects persist for an extended period of time, the resultant malnutrition and sleep deprivation can manifest not only in profound energy loss but perhaps even trigger depressive episodes which take on a life of their own.

At this point I would like to focus on the official health definition and the issues related to achieving and maintaining the healthy being—given my perspective on the intrinsic relationship between the three crucial aspects of a totally healthy person. Taking the point of view that we have yet to actually achieve the perfect being, I would conclude that all the research on pills and other healing substances are done on unhealthy bodies and minds. Also, if we haven’t seen or experienced perfect health, as described by the World Health Organization, how do we absolutely understand how to re-create that healthy body? After all, if a researcher’s sole focus is on what effect their work is having on the physical body, then who is monitoring their mental reactions, and the effect their social environment is playing on the subject’s condition? Who is looking for any domino effect? Therefore, do we really know what to exactly expect when we suggest pills to make people healthy? How would we know about the end result if nobody has dealt with a totally healthy person? It seems that everyone shoots into a dark tunnel hoping to hit the right target at the other end. That is, they may know the direction to aim in, but they cannot see which way the tunnel curves or if it elevates or descends. Any number of unseen obstacles or deviations can cause a miss, or in our human being, an unknown or unexpected result, which unfortunately seems to be the accepted norm!

What do you think?

Mariya