How to ward off sickness.

Are you one of those people who talk about your sickness with pride? Each time you converse with your group of friends, it is about pain.

If you happen to have someone who is as "sickly" as you are, you will feel that you've found someone who would understand. You compare notes and each one will try to top the other and compete for who have experienced the worst agony. You brag about how this time, your head throbs worse than it was the last time.

You tell them how careful you are about what you eat. You avoid chocolates, cheese and beer because you were informed that these foods trigger your pain.

On top of that you have consulted many physicians and specialist to overcome your ailments. You bought books and read about your illness. You try all kinds of remedies because you don't want the pain.

But regardless of what you've done and taken, you still experience that migraine, the gastric pain or whatever.

Eating right is important but insufficient. Knowledge about your pain is good information but what's the point if you use it to let your friends know how conversant you are about the thing that ails you.

• Perhaps the simplest remedy is to stop talking about it. Better still, refuse to think about your ailments. Think positive, hopeful thoughts and think of good health instead.

• Stick around people who talk about their aspirations and see beauty around them. Practice a healthy lifestyle and exercise regularly. Learn to breathe the right way consciously until it becomes a pattern.

• Learn to use your mind to ward off thoughts of ill health. Don't nurture it. When you nourish your mind with thoughts of health, your body responds accordingly and you give yourself the chance to heal.

• Keep yourself busy doing things that you love. You'll forget about your sickness because you are enjoying life .

• Take a break or stretch in between your hectic schedules. Allow yourself time to do nothing but sit quietly and relax your mind, body and soul. Listen to what your body is trying to tell you during the quiet moments.

• Develop a healthy self-esteem so that you don't need to seek approval or gain attention. Unconsciously, some people crave for them and discover erroneously that people will listen, feel sorry and accept them.

What would it cost you to discipline yourself to do some of the things suggested? What benefits will you gain?

Think about it and make your own conclusion.

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