against all odds
P E R S O N A L S U R V I V A L P L A N
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INTRODUCTION
The Merriam-Webster’s COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY Eleventh Edition defines HEALTH, partially, as “the condition of being sound in body, mind, or spirit; esp: freedom from physical disease or pain.” They also define “…sound…” as “1. a: free from injury or disease.” A search of various traditional sources for a definition of HEALTH will not encounter any definition of HEALTH that is much different. This also includes the long-standing definition used by the WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION as described in the Preamble of its 1946 Constitution, as in: “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”
The driving theme for NATIONAL HEALTH began with the observation that the absence of a multi-dimensional, yet inclusive, definition or concept of HEALTH may have contributed to the paradigm paralysis of our Nation’s healthcare. Throughout our nation, the average level of each person’s Stable HEALTH is declining, and the excessive health spending for our Nation’s healthcare industry is progressively bankrupting our Federal government. To be precise, a high level of cognitive dissonance has occurred between the scientific and humanitarian realms of Knowledge applicable for understanding our nation’s POPULATION HEALTH. The influence of this cognitive dissonance has paralyzed our nation’s ability to focus on the steady decline of social cohesion within our nation’s communities. With a focus on the fundamental responsibilities of each person’s generational Family, I offer a new definition of HEALTH.
HEALTH may be postulated as
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a person’s daily experience of lifelong Well-Being
that occurs when the resilience of the person’s survival has been
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A. Endowed initially by the maternal, Family Traditions existing before conception and
subsequently by the gestational formation of synergy between
the person’s innate temperament and the person’s baseline homeostasis to achieve
adequate resilience for the person’s continuing survival immediately after birth and
thereafter by a Personal Survival Plan that originates from within their Family;
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B. Nurtured by the person’s caring relationships that originate before birth from within
the person’s Family, its Family Convoy, and their Home’s close neighborhood
1) during their early childhood development with a goal to enrich the person’s search
for the broadest portrayal of their uniquely-endowed Human Capability
while becoming a joyful ‘dependent person’ and
2) during their late childhood, adolescent, and early adulthood development
with a goal to mentor the person’s simultaneously evolving
personality, moral reasoning, and self-esteem for the broadest portrayal
of their uniquely-endowed Human Capability while becoming
a courageous, sustainably self-sufficient ‘independent person’ after adolescence;
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C. Challenged by the person’s daily encounter with disruptive processes
involving discordant social interactions that begin before birth,
occur as interacting combinations and patterns, and
cause variably reversible and either beneficent or maleficent changes
to the adaptive resilience of the person’s uniquely-endowed Human Capability,
its innate temperament, and its baseline homeostasis
as variously prevented, mitigated, and ameliorated lifelong
by the joyful caring relationships originating from within
the person’s Family, its Family Convoy, and their Home’s close neighborhood;
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D. Matured by the person’s episodic encounters with disruptive processes
involving diversely traumatic, baseline homeostatic changes that begin before birth,
occur as interacting combinations and patterns, and
cause variably irreversible and maleficent changes to the adaptive resilience
of the person’s uniquely-endowed Human Capability, its innate temperament, and
its baseline homeostasis as variously prevented, mitigated, and ameliorated lifelong
by the courageous caring relationships originating from within the person’s Family,
its Family Convoy, and their Home’s close neighborhood; AND
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E. Sustained by the caring relationships originating from their Family,
its Family Traditions, its Family Convoy, their Personal Survival Plan, and
the Survival Commons of the person’s community until the continuing resilience
of the person’s uniquely endowed-Human Capability is no longer sufficient to maintain
the person’s survival as a result of their lifelong encounter with disruptive processes.
Against all odds from the daily encounter with diverse disruptive processes, a person’s survival occurs from a cluster of complex ecological and cultural, social interactions involving the following:
*) the person’s family home’s close neighborhood and their family convoy that encompasses their close biological relatives, close neighbors, spiritual community, and various professional persons, especially representing Primary Healthcare, employers, attorneys, and accountants.
*) the person’s Personal Survival Plan including its provisions for Restful SLEEP, Good FOOD, Dedicated EXERCISE, and Mentored COURAGE;
*) the Survival Commons of the person’s community; AND
*) the Common Good of the person’s nation, especially its promotion of each community’s Social Cohesion and Human Dignity.
What then, might bind all of this together? The best strategy might begin by discerning the responsibilities within each Family and its Family Convoy. Among many possibilities, it may be useful to focus primarily on the responsibility within each Family to promote a weekly pattern of Family Mealtime gatherings and to establish a Personal Survival Plan for each member of their Family. — 3 —-
For the immediate reform of our nation’s healthcare, promoting an annually revised Personal Survival Plan for each resident person, community by community has an additional benefit. The annual commitment from each person’s individually focused Personal Survival Plan would contribute to the precision of our National goals for improving our nation’s Population HEALTH. By improving the resiliency of each person’s Stable HEALTH, the value of health care would then become more efficient and effective. The monthly utilization of hospital days by a community’s resident persons may be the easiest means to identify the trends from year to year to assess their community’s changes in the level of their Stable HEALTH.
– – – – – – – PERSONAL SURVIVAL PLAN – – – – – – – –
CONCEPTUAL FORMAT – beginning in 2024
It is possible that a brief set of fundamental concepts could be defined to focus a community’s Knowledge about the basic needs of each person’s Stable HEALTH. By augmenting a community’s shared KNOWLEDGE base with an annually revised educational campaign involving a broad range of municipal life sectors, a multi-year strategy could promote a community’s needs with a focus on each residing person’s Personal Survival Plan. The annual revisions could then be used by all the sectors contributing to the social interactions occurring within a community’s municipal life for adjusting their own participation in the needs of their community’s Population HEALTH.
Eventually, community surveys could be structured to gauge the effectiveness of the fundamental concepts and the annual revisions for the campaign. Most importantly, the intent of the community education plan could support a Family originated focus on the importance of a Personal Survival Plan for each person.
A. Restful SLEEP
— Definition “…the natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored” cited from the same MERRIAM-WEBSTER Dictionary referenced above. With a contemporary context, SLEEP may be understood as the biologic defragger for maintaining the brain’s memory functions.
— Annual Theme –
— — — Primary: Bedtime schedule
— — — Secondary: “Getting to sleep”
B. Good FOOD
— Definition – “…the husbandry of plants and animals that are processed in a safe manner to assure that their consumption by each person will supply the ingredients necessary for the person’s Stable HEALTH. Good FOOD represents a central component of a community’s Survival Commons. This connection would assure that its Regional Food System is affordable, sustainable, and functions with a high level of social cohesion among its public and private institutions. (See www.goodfoodla.org ). This category should also include the social context of food consumption.
— Annual Theme –
— — — Primary: Selecting fruit and vegetables
— — — Secondary: Schedule for Family Mealtimes
C. Dedicated EXERCISE
— Definition – Activity requiring a special effort to sustain or improve a person’s HEALTH resilience requires a need for commitment. This commitment includes physical and Cultural-Social cognitive exercise as well as their regularly intentional occurrence . The benefits of Dedicated EXERCISE improve the stability of a person’s HEALTH, especially when combined with Restful SLEEP and Good FOOD. Like Good Food, exercise that is not associated with social and cultural goals instead of just HEALTH may not be as beneficial.
— Annual Theme
— — — Primary: Walk daily
— — — Secondary: Enjoy music, especially its performance, and read for 1/2 hour daily
D. Mentored COURAGE
— Definition – This is a very large category. It could include the following themes: Mentorship – Spouse, Extended Family, counselor, friendships, professional; Family Traditions – family identity, spiritual community, celebration rituals, vacations; micro-social networks – extended Family transitions, home-life transitions, neighborhood connectedness; Vocational – educational spectrum, career development plan, employer transitions, accountability transitions, income expectations, health and disability insurance, retirement living; Avocational ( Hobbies ) – vacations, home repair, creative projects, volunteer commitments, music appreciation, games, spectator events.
— Annual Theme –
— — — Primary: choice of Primary Physician
— — — Secondary: Career Achievement Plan
PERSONAL SURVIVAL PLAN at age ___ ___ today
Name ___________________________________________________
Today’s Date mo__ __ day__ __ yr 20 __ __
HOUSEHOLD PERSONS -__Single -__Shared #___ -__Nuclear #___ -__Blended #___ ___ -__Generational #___ ___
Primary Physician ______________________________________
A. Restful SLEEP
— Current Conditions
— — — Usual Bedtime
— — — Planned duration
— — — Distractions
— Plan
B. Good FOOD
— Current Conditions
— — — Regular meals
— — — No snacks
— — — Family sharing
— Plan
C. Dedicated EXERCISE
— Current Conditions
— — — Daily walk
— — — Reading
— — — Spiritual community
— Plan
D. Mentored COURAGE
— Current Conditions
— — — Family traditions
— — — Primary Healthcare
— — — Career Achievement Plan
— Plan
signature and date ___________________________________________________________________________