What is Normal?

Are you Normal?  Am I Normal?  Who decides?

          Who decides what normal is?

Is it determined by how “most people” are?

Mentally, what is Normal based on?

Psychologically, what is Normal based on?

Medically, Who knows what Normal is?

From a book by Gabor Matte, he questions, if most people shared the same vices, would that make it normal?

If so many people share making the same errors, would that make it truth?

If millions of people show the same mental pathology, would that make them sane?

It’s sure something to think about.

Some of the information in this blog comes from Gabor Matte’s book, The Myth of Normal, which I recommend for you to read.

And you might know, my focus on this subject of Normal would be on health.  And you know why I focus there…it’s the most important thing that keeps us going.

We are actually in a health-obsessed society right now…But Are we WELL, as a Society?  For sure, as a Society, we are not well.

Is it normal to be “sick” and diseased? …to live out our later years with dementia and with disease (the disease called “old age”)?

Is it normal for disease and illness to randomly attack some of us, like “the luck of the draw”?

Please allow me to give you just a few statistics that Mr. Matte gives in his book:

Our culture today is full of chronic physical disease, mental illness and addiction, in addition to covid and its effects on our society.  With all the advances in Medicine, should we be alarmed that we are not increasing our “Healing”?

Could there be a link to our society and ADHD, Cancer, and Diabetes in childhood development?

Could there be some blind spots somewhere?

COULD CHRONIC ILLNESS BE A CONSEQUENCE OF THE WAY WE LIVE?

What are some toxins we have in our world today?  Environmental pollutants? The spread of increased Negativity and agitation? Distrust being the standard first impulse?  Do these things sink deeper into our social structures? Into our values?

According to Mr. Matte, one of the things that has been proven, but is not widely recognized, is the prevalence of “Stress”.  High Stress.

Our world seems to be focused on Health.  But even though our bodies do need to move, and we do need good nutrition to be healthy, those are not the only things that we need for good health.

Good Relationships are one thing that keeps people healthy.  We need connections with other humans.  Good Sleep is something that’s very important to keep us healthy.  And then there is HIGH-STRESS.

We stress about the environment, the government, the stability of the world, the economy, technology, medical resources, poverty, IN ADDITION to our everyday stresses with our work, our families, our personal health, and our income.

Mr. Matte says that millions of humans die prematurely of diseases we know how to prevent.

The United States: 60% of adults have a chronic disease;

Over 40% have two or more chronic diseases;

Nearly 70% of Americans take one prescription drug

Over 50% of Americans take two.

In 2019, more than 50 million Americans (over 20% of adults) suffered an episode of mental illness.

Millions of children and youths are being medicated with stimulants, anti-depressants, and anti-psychotic drugs (and the long-term effects on the young, developing brain has not yet been established).

In 2019 Science Alert, cited child suicides are skyrocketing in the U.S. (and no one knows why)

Autoimmune diseases, including MS, are increasing.

30% of our adult population meet the criteria for “obese”.

Canada: Up to ½ of the baby boomers are on track for hypertension if the current trends continue.

Depression and anxiety are the fastest growing diagnoses.

Mexico: 38 people are diagnosed with diabetes every hour.

Asia: is catching up

China: is catching up

In the Western World:  Mental health diagnoses are increasing in every age group; the young, adults, and the elderly.

Europe: Mental disorders are the largest health challenge of the 21st century.

UK: having a surge of student anxiety, mental breakdowns and depression.

ADHD is increasing, and is now a public health concern.  (Finally.)

Hopelessness is on the rise.

Is all of this “Normal”?

In the practice of medicine, there is a line between health and disease.  “Normal” is what doctors aim for.  Success or failure is measured against statistical norms. 

This doesn’t seem to help us progress to a healthier future.

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I lived like most Americans, eating the Standard American Diet (SAD), working at my desk all day, eating what was handy, when it was handy, rushing-rushing-rushing “getting everything done”, sleeping little, paying absolutely NO attention to everything I was neglecting.

I was healthy, and I worked hard, and I loved it!  And I didn’t have any inclination to change.

Then one day I had a gall bladder attack.  Couple years after that I burned my finger, and it started a rash that wouldn’t go away—for any doctor, nor for any medicine.  Little did I know at that time, my heart was also in jeopardy.  My rash became so bad on my hands, my fingernails began to die and come off.

After a hint from my dermatologist that it could be autoimmune disease, (since absolutely nothing helped it), I began in earnest to uncover Every Rock I could find to make me better.  It took a lot of personal research, over a long period of time, when I finally came across something called “Functional Medicine”, and a Functional Medicine Doctor called Dr. Amy Myers, MD, Austin, Texas, who specialized in autoimmune diseases.

When I went in the office, I said, “Can you please help me feel better!” And the calm response was: “What about if we just make you well.” (I had been told by my dermatologist and others, if it was autoimmune related, there was “No Known Cause” and “No Cure”.  I was never given hope of healing before this day.)

Even though these Functional Medicine doctors prescribe medicine when they need to, they never prescribed any for me.  They prescribed to me that I change my lifestyle—all of it.  My eating, my “quiet time”, my rushing, my food, and my rest.  Within about 4 months my rash was gone.  And I was on my way to good health.

This isn’t something NEW.  It’s what’s real, and always has been.  It’s what’s common sense.

Let’s help ourselves to get back to the Real Normal of good health.

Much of what passes for Normal in our society is neither Normal, nor Natural.  Multi-billion Dollar Industries bank on our on-going investments in what they call “better health”.

We have Nature-Given Needs.  If we could begin to see illness, not as a cruel twist of fate, or some mystery, but as a sign that our body is trying to send us a message of how to care for it.  Not a pathology report indicating what drugs or treatment we will need, but as true “Alarms” that give us clues for what our bodies are calling out for.  So we can make them healthy again.

Science has already agreed with nature.  It’s recorded in medical journals.  The mind and body are one, and everything works in unity.  All our systems work together.  Let’s let our bodies talk to us.  Let’s listen.

Modern medicine has made great strides, and does wonderful things in so many ways.  And modern medicine saves lives every day.  This is in no way any kind of idea of looking down on modern medicine or doctors. 

But let’s look toward Health.  For Healing.  Let’s start looking back to a Better Normal.

If you are searching for a Functional Medicine doctor, you may go to IFM.org, or I can help you find one.  If I can help you any way as a health coach to help you learn ways you can help your body be healthy, please call or email, or private message me.

Let’s raise the bar for our New Normal.

Thank you for reading.

Sharon