HEALTH IS WEALTH

Taking care of our health should be the most important of all things. While it is for some, the others would see it necessary only when the body is completely weighed down. But there is even a more serious challenge than the physical health, the mental. Most people would not understand why they should take care of their mind or brain. Come to think of it, why would a person who barely see need to take care of his body see need to take care of his mind.

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It might sound like I am over exaggerating all of these, but I am certainly not; I speak with reference to the environment I find myself, an environment where treating issues relating to health with leniency has become the norm. In as much as such an environment is concerned, a psychologist or a psychiatrist is almost of no use. The usual doctors often get to handle those whom their health issues have gotten to a critical state. It might be same in most other part of the world, but I simply speak with reference to where I find myself.

Health is wealth as many will opine. Afterall a man on his sick bed would certainly not have the capability to go in search of his daily bread. If that be the case, then a man must learn to invest most in the business of his health. Only then would he be strong enough to go about other business.

There is popular story over here in Nigeria about an Onisha man whose business is located in the biggest market in west Africa (Onisha main market). This man would not go to the hospital until he is completely broken and carried to the hospital by his family. At the point where he regained his consciousness his first concern was his business. Observing that every member of his family were all around him excited that he came back to life, he was unhappy to find all of them around. He must have observed that his shop is closed since everyone is with him and so he asked: "whom did all of you leave the shop for?" In the case of this man, his health is certainly not his most important business and that is the problem. If this man has failed to take care of his physical health, how then would his mental health not suffer.

Where I come from, there are so many mad people on the street and no one practically cares. It is probably the case that the mad people themselves never really cared until they got mad. So many practically live with people who have severe mental health issues without doing the right things to help them get better. Funny enough, some even are of the opinion that the reason for madness is spiritual and that explains why they would never do anything medical or psychological to help a person with mental illness. Some would even prefer to take their relatives with mental illness to a prayer house instead of a psychiatric hospital.

Another category of people are the poor, those who cannot afford the expensive bills from the hospital. This category of people simply have no option than to believe in God for everything they cannot afford including their mental and physical health. Religion eventually becomes their relieve, but sometimes she is unable to solve all of their problem. Many people around you belong to this category, look out for them as much as you can.

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