Meaning of Health

There are many ways that people describe 'health' or 'being healthy.'

1. Absence of sickness or injury

Photo by Morgan Sessions on Unsplash

   According to Oxford Languages, the first definition of health is "the state of being free from illness or injury."  While this is what people seem to refer to when they say they're glad they, "have their health," it's not necessarily all encompassing.  It's a bit of an over simplification and leaves out mental well being.

2. Someone's looks

    When people describe someone else's health, non-medical professionals tend to use visual references to make assumptions.  People bring up size, coloring, visual injuries, and tend to ignore anything not visual, like mental health.    

3. Mental & Physical well being

    The second definition of Health listed in Oxford Languages is "a person's mental or physical condition."  While this is far more advanced than encompasses and legitimizes mental health conditions, it leaves out social well-being, which is generally included today.

  

For me, health means a general balance of physical, mental, and social well-being.  While not necessarily a perfect balance and maybe not completely free from injury, but at a level where I can do my daily routine and life without being hindered.

    Everyone's thoughts, feelings, and journey with the word health will look and feel different.  Here, I'll currently be focusing on my health, and all the elements that come with it.

    At the moment, a lot of my health focus here will be on physical health.  My posts on Medium focus on more mental and social health related topics.  Physical health is the focus here as we look at attempting to expand our family in the next couple years.  

    While I'm no expert, I can speak to my own experiences and goals, as well as my skills and knowledge from being a certified K-12 athletic coach.  

    Let's get to work!