{"id":939,"date":"2010-02-25T14:33:26","date_gmt":"2010-02-25T14:33:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html"},"modified":"2010-02-25T14:33:26","modified_gmt":"2010-02-25T14:33:26","slug":"are-you-among-the-walking-unwell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html","title":{"rendered":"Are You Among the ‘Walking Unwell?’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"sick-1.jpg\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

I woke up this morning to this email from my husband: “I’m just outside of Normal.”  He meant Normal, Illinois, where he’s traveling for business.  But his note could have just as easily referenced how many of us feel about our health.  Lab tests come back “normal,” or just outside, but we still don’t feel well. 
<\/i><\/p>\n

What’s to be done?  In this guest post, integrative physician and friend of Fresh Living Dr. Shilpa Saxena<\/a> explains a concept she uses in her practice: “The Walking Unwell.”  Read on to learn whether you fit this category, why lab-feeling discrepancies are so common, and what you can do to emerge into wellness.<\/i> —Holly<\/i><\/p>\n

“The Walking Unwell”<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n

By Dr. Shilpa Saxena<\/a><\/p>\n

Early
\nin medical training, a physician learns that
\nthere are many ways to gather information related to a patient’s
\nillness.  As eager detectives, we search for the source of the
\nproblem.   We can ask the patient to describe their symptoms, the
\ntiming of when they began, if anything makes them better or worse.  We can
\nlook closely at them, listen to bodily functions, palpate or feel for a
\nproblem.  Ultimately, in the course of our investigation, we find
\nourselves ordering laboratory tests.  If the results confirm our suspicions of the source of the
\nproblem, BINGO, we’re on track.  However,
\nvery often the results are “normal.”  So, what does
\nthis mean about your symptoms?\n<\/p>\n

It
\nis a popular misconception that the values that run down the far right side of
\nyour lab reports determine if you are normal or abnormal.  Actually, if
\nyou look closer, you will see the column heading will read,
\n“Expected” or “Reference Range.”  Why
\ndoesn’t it just say “Normal?”  Well, because there really is no
\nsuch thing!  When Reference Ranges are established, patients
\nwith varying age, sex, race, diet, medications,
\nstress levels, and many other factors are sampled.  If, for example, samples are
\ncollected on someone who doesn’t know they have liver problems from their
\n“normal” alcohol use, that value is still included to calculate the Reference Range. <\/p>\n

Because of this, Reference Ranges include many values that could still be
\n“abnormal” or more precisely, unhealthy.  These types of
\nresults widen the reference range.  So if your numbers fall inside the
\nReference Range, it only means that you are in the range of 90% of the people
\nthat were sampled.  And unfortunately, these days, I wouldn’t say that
\nif you are like 90% of the American public, you are optimally healthy or
\n“normal” in terms of body function.
  <\/p>\n

The
\nother consideration is that while we are all human, there is such a tremendous
\ndegree of variability among us.  When we factor in diet, level of
\nexercise, social activities, sleep, stress levels, and genetics, one
\nperson’s feeling “great” is another person’s “sick.”  <\/p>\n

A very simple example is with vitamin B-12
\nlevels.  Most of us recognize B-12 as “the energy
\nvitamin.”  The clinical Reference Range for this lab is 200-1100 pmol\/L.  In my practice, I routinely witness
\npatients who feel chronically exhausted when their values are around 500
\npmol\/L, yet I have other patients that are full of energy with B-12 results of
\n350 pmol\/L.  <\/p>\n

So where does that leave you if you feel bad but are still “in range?” That puts you into a category that I call The Walking Unwell.  The Walking Unwell live between
\nthe zones of being Optimally Well and Obviously Diseased, and they make up the
\nmajority of patients.  <\/p>\n

If you intuitively know
\nsomething is off yet the conventional medical system has not yet determined the what,
\nwhy and how these symptoms came to exist in you, it could be because the
\ncurrent system of healthcare was not designed to focus on and treat
\nyour issues.  Modern medicine is so good at fixing problems with
\nsurgical procedures and prescription drugs–problems like broken bones,
\nruptured gallbladders, and infected lungs.  These are called acute medical
\nissues.  <\/p>\n

But chronic diseases that develop over years, like diabetes, high
\nblood pressure, and long-standing digestive disorders, do not “correct” with this conventional
\napproach–and these chronic diseases are often in the mix for The Walking Unwell.  The current healthcare model “treats” diseases, but I believe that
\nlong-term health lies in understanding that
\nwe need to fix the root causes of those disease.   <\/p>\n

So, where does that
\nleave you? <\/p>\n

The
\nanswer is simple, and it starts with understanding that people aren’t
\nhealthy one day and chronically diseased the
\nnext.  Poor health is more often the gradual progression of a problem (or dysfunction) that at some point just tips over into where your labs look
\n“abnormal.”  <\/p>\n

But long-term health is attainable, and often taking a close look at your lifestyle is the roadmap to attaining it.  What I’ve found most of the time is that The Walking Unwell have
\nlifestyles that are not conducive to living long, healthy, vibrant lives. 
\nInstead, because of daily poor food choices, lack of movement, or poor stress
\nmanagement, Walking Unwell patients develop issues that they suffer with needlessly.  <\/p>\n

So my advice is, don’t wait for your labs to fall outside the Reference Range
\nbefore you decide to make a change.  Your body talks to you
\nevery day.  Listen to it and start treating it well
\nwith whole, nutritious food, energizing movement, and time for relaxation every day.  Then, relish
\nthe joy of being able to walk, jog, or run
\nright out of The Walking Unwell zone!<\/p>\n

\nLearn more about Dr. Saxena at www.sevamedinstitute.com<\/a>, and join her wellness community on Facebook at www.facebook.com\/centerforlivingwellness<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n

More from Dr. Saxena on Fresh Living<\/u>:<\/p>\n

Why Whole Grains Feel So Good<\/a><\/p>\n

Asparagus: What’s That Smell?<\/a><\/p>\n

(image via: http:\/\/www.sodahead.com<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Like what you see? <\/strong>Click here to subscribe<\/strong><\/font><\/a> and get Fresh Living in your in-box every day<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Integrative physician and friend of Fresh Living Dr. Shilpa Saxena explains a concept she uses in her practice: “The Walking Unwell.” Read on to learn whether you fit this category, why lab-feeling discrepancies are so common, and what you can do to emerge into wellness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,173,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-by-holly-lebowitz-rossi","category-guest-blogger","category-health"],"yoast_head":"\nAre You Among the 'Walking Unwell?' - Fresh Living<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Are You Among the 'Walking Unwell?' - Fresh Living\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Integrative physician and friend of Fresh Living Dr. Shilpa Saxena explains a concept she uses in her practice: "The Walking Unwell." Read on to learn whether you fit this category, why lab-feeling discrepancies are so common, and what you can do to emerge into wellness.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Fresh Living\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-02-25T14:33:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/freshliving\/files\/import\/assets_c\/2010\/02\/sick-1-thumb-220x222-11790.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"hrossi\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Are You Among the 'Walking Unwell?' - Fresh Living","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Are You Among the 'Walking Unwell?' - Fresh Living","og_description":"Integrative physician and friend of Fresh Living Dr. Shilpa Saxena explains a concept she uses in her practice: \"The Walking Unwell.\" Read on to learn whether you fit this category, why lab-feeling discrepancies are so common, and what you can do to emerge into wellness.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html","og_site_name":"Fresh Living","article_published_time":"2010-02-25T14:33:26+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/freshliving\/files\/import\/assets_c\/2010\/02\/sick-1-thumb-220x222-11790.jpg"}],"author":"hrossi","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html","name":"Are You Among the 'Walking Unwell?' - Fresh Living","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/freshliving\/files\/import\/assets_c\/2010\/02\/sick-1-thumb-220x222-11790.jpg","datePublished":"2010-02-25T14:33:26+00:00","dateModified":"2010-02-25T14:33:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/#\/schema\/person\/168fb6fdfd4f4d1a2e41e628b308b687"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/freshliving\/files\/import\/assets_c\/2010\/02\/sick-1-thumb-220x222-11790.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/freshliving\/files\/import\/assets_c\/2010\/02\/sick-1-thumb-220x222-11790.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/2010\/02\/are-you-among-the-walking-unwell.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Are You Among the ‘Walking Unwell?’"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/","name":"Fresh Living","description":"Holistic, Health and Wellness","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/#\/schema\/person\/168fb6fdfd4f4d1a2e41e628b308b687","name":"hrossi","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/b92\/b928efbbb02076837659d614a160f471x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/b92\/b928efbbb02076837659d614a160f471x96.jpg","caption":"hrossi"},"description":"Holly Lebowitz Rossi is Beliefnet's Health and Relationships Editor. A graduate of Cornell University and Harvard Divinity School, she has more than a decade of experience writing about religion and spirituality for Newsweek, The Washington Post, Spa Finder, Sojourners, Search, and many other publications. Her commentaries have also been heard on NPR\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153All Things Considered.\" When not at her desk, you can find her baking, in her garden, or rockin' out in water aerobics class. She lives in Arlington, Mass. Visit http:\/\/www.hollyrossi.com for more.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/author\/hrossi"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=939"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/939\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/freshliving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}