When it comes to getting things done and accomplishing the goals we set out to accomplish regarding our health and wellness, we rarely do our best going it alone. Sometimes, there’s so much to learn and understand that even the very thought of where to begin with a miles-long to-do list is too daunting to undertake.
We need a team for a variety of reasons
- We don’t come into this world knowing how to best care for ourselves
- We can’t obtain all of the knowledge and tools needed to best care for ourselves alone
- There are professionals who’s very job it is to provide us with this knowledge and these tools
- Our self-care needs are in constant flux, and our team therefore is likely to change over time
Our Healthcare Team Players
With regard to health and wellness, there are all kinds of support available to help up stay strong and lead an active, healthy life. We need the expertise of specialists to teach us, guide us, provide what we cannot for ourselves, and follow our progress over time. Review your needs and put the right players on your team to champion your wellbeing.
- Primary Care Provider whether healthy and free of any health conditions or not, everyone needs a primary care provider. Your PCP will help in developing your health plan, oversee your annual test and exam needs, and coordinate emergency care needs should they arise.
- Dietitian The expert in food and nutrition, an RD will see to it that you build a solid and realistic plan involving healthy foods, sufficient sleep, stress management and regular activity/exercise. Your dietitian will help you sort through the plethora of food and nutrition information that bombards us from magazines, news stories, the internet, and social media. Once your goals are established, you will want to keep in touch with your dietitian at least annually, as life always changes and you want to be sure to maintain those goals.
- Health Coach If your dietitian is not also a coach, a life or health coach can add to your armory of tools and skills to get over and through life’s hurdles while bolstering and maintaining your daily health routine.
- Fitness Trainer Trainers are a wise investment to keep you injury free and on a tailored workout plan that is suited to your fitness level. This plan should challenge you to go to the next level, keep workouts fresh, and help motivate you with the added accountability many of us need to keep workouts a priority.
- Massage Therapist More than just a pampering, feel-good moment, massage is very therapeutic in working out toxins in the body, keeping us in alignment, ensuring our lymphatics have good flow, and, of course, relieving tension. Massage is recommended at least monthly for health maintenance.
- Physical Therapist If you do have the misfortune to experience an injury, or have a chronic physical ailment, odds are a good PT can work wonders. Especially helpful are those PTs who specialize in manual therapy: using your body’s own resistance to realign and strengthen the musculoskeletal system.
- Mental Health Therapist Whether you have a behavioral health diagnosis like anxiety or depression, or you simply need some talk therapy to work through a troubling situation, don’t hesitate to add this expert to your team. The brain is the most powerful organ in our body and deserves to be taken care of just as the rest of our body does.
Karen Fisher, MS, RDN, CDE is a dietitian in Reno, Nevada, happily promoting the benefits of healthy foods at her nutrition consulting firm, Nutrition Connection. Find her website at www.NutritionConnectionNV.com
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