wellness

What is wellness?

Wellness stems from the belief that the when the body is working properly, it heals and maintains itself effectively. Because the body is capable on its own, proper function comes not through adding anything to the body system, but by removing things which interfere with the body's ability to operate at maximum potential.

If your goal is to simply not be sick or not be in pain, wellness says that is a mediocre one. The goal of wellness is optimal function of the entire body system. It is a wise alternative to doctors, drugs and surgery, where the idea is to not get sick in the first place, or to at least live in such a way that the body effectively handles each challenge, and where illness does not last as long or become as severe as it might otherwise.

It comes from within.

Standard medical care tends to treat symptoms. It does so using medication, surgery and procedures. This approach often leads to side effects and never succeeds in getting to the root of the problem, since its only aim is at treating symptoms. Even worse, because the modern medical approach to dysfunction in the body is to add something from outside the body system, it gives the impression that health and healing come from the outside - from what we choose to either put in or do to our bodies.

If this were true, why would anyone with access to modern medical care ever remain sick or diseased? How could those without access to medical care (or those who choose not to use it) ever be healthy?

Health must come from the inside. And a wellness lifestyle is about removing things that interfere with the body's natural ability to achieve and maintain health. It is focused on lifetime health, as opposed to short term treatment.

You are in charge.

The first step in achieving a wellness mindset is to assume authority over your own health. Only you can choose to become aware of, take responsibility for, and make proactive decisions regarding your health. And certainly no one can force you to follow through with a deliberate lifestyle. Wellness only works if you want it, understand what it's about, and strive for it.

You are responsible for your own choices regarding nutrition, physical activity, sexuality, sleep, the use of alcohol and drugs, and the informed and appropriate use of medication and medical care.

Chiropractic promotes wellness; Dr. Kolbus promotes a lifetime path to good health through chiropractic care as the foremost physical ingredient of a wellness lifestyle.

What wellness is NOT:

• Wellness is NOT the same as holistic medicine, homeopathy or naturopathic medicine. These practices differ from traditional medical care in that they rely on natural remedies and treatments. While these alternative approaches to health care advocate the use of some things which may be used to support a wellness lifestyle, such as unprocessed or whole foods, they are all treatment oriented. This is a clear contradiction to the preventive nature of a wellness lifestyle.
• Wellness is NOT the same as Preventive Medicine (sometimes called Prevention). Preventive Medicine focuses on risk assessment, early detection and medical intervention to avoid progression of and reduce symptoms and impacts of illness/disease. Prevention may seem similar to a wellness approach in that they are both proactive, but prevention still operates under the assumption that health and healing come from the outside-in, rather than the inside-out.
• Wellness is NOT the same as Health Education or Health Promotion. Both of these modern movements in America are geared toward a respectable goal – creating a health-conscious and informed population. However, the focus again assumes an outside-in view of health. Both movements tend to encourage medical intervention immediately (instead of as a last resort) and the idea of predisposition to illness. The information and the care advocated are largely contrary to the concept of leading a wellness lifestyle.