Paging Doctor Who?

This week I’m doing my research and gathering my thoughts in preparation to record a video interview for the Heal Yourself online retreat (May 22-26, 2023). I’m reminded of a quote from Hippocrates, who many consider to be the father of all physicians and the most famous doctor in all of history.

A quote from Hippocrates: "If you are not your own doctor, you are a fool."

Can you imagine making an appointment with your primary care physician and he or she tells you that you’re a fool for not being your own doctor? Hippocrates, after whom the Hippocratic Oath is named (which every modern physician must swear to abide by), lived in classical ancient Greece. This period produced the most amazing scholars, philosophers and healers of all time. In contrast to our current disposable culture, their insight and wisdom has stood the test of time and continues to influence modern society as it has for thousands of years.

Therefore, we should ask ourselves why would a brilliant doctor tell us to be our own doctor? Perhaps we can find the answer by looking at a few more quotes from Hippocrates.

A quote from Hippocrates: "Our food should be our medicine and our medicine should be our food."

Hmm. Seems “the Father of Western Medicine” was an advocate of the prevention of disease by virtue of a healthy diet- not to mention a Naturopath. What a contrast to our Allopathic, Corporate Doctors of today who barely study nutrition and are more likely to write you a prescription for some big Pharma chemicals than to advise a change toward a healthy lifestyle!

Perhaps this is why even with the ridiculous variety of Pharma products available, modern humans are in declining physical health. Cancer rates have soared, heart disease has soared, diabetes rates have soared, I could go on and on. But people keep on ingesting their prescriptions and suffering the side effects without ever addressing the cause of their illness! Sad.

A quote from Hippocrates: "Before you heal someone, ask him if he's willing to give up the things that made him sick."

From this next quote we can see that human nature was the same in Hippocrates day as it is today. One can perceive the frustration he felt when treating patients who refused to participate in their healing by following his advice and being their own primary care physician.

Hippocrates knew that caring for and communicating with our body is the key to good health. Our body is designed to speak to us when we’re doing something that isn’t going to promote our overall health and well-being. That’s why we get a hangover when we drink too much. That’s why we lose energy and vitality and put on fat when we eat foods without nutritional value. That’s why we decline in strength and mobility when we become a couch potato and neglect exercise. That’s why we shouldn’t take prescriptions that have side effects. All these things are our body speaking to us! Are you listening or are you ignoring the warnings?

A quote from Hippocrates: "Illnesses do not come upon us out of the blue. They are developed from small daily sins against nature. When enough sins have accumulated, illness will suddenly appear."

Oh Hippocrates, why must you be such a party-pooper! We modern humans are addicted to our feel good drugs, our sugar, our low nutrition carbs, our caffeine, our nicotine and our processed, poison-loaded convenience foods! We want fast results when we go to the doctor to alleviate the diseases these bring to our body! And if the drugs our doctors prescribe bring more illness, we’ll just take more chemicals to relieve those symptoms. Who cares if this leaves us dangerously overweight and too sick to enjoy life? We have disability insurance to cover that, not to mention big comfy couches and multiple entertainment options to distract us from our miserable, immobile condition!

A quote from Hippocrates: "The greatest medicine of all is teaching people how not to need it."

Hippocrates was a true physician who wasn’t greedy. He wanted to see his patients healthy and enjoying life each day they lived, from youth to old age. I can only imagine how he would react to the pill-pushing, Pharma-owned “physicians” of today. In his honor, I propose we all vow to heed his advice and become our own doctors first by taking care of ourselves and listening to our bodies when they speak to us. The answer to the question “paging Doctor who?” is simple. Paging Doctor YOU!

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