It’s interesting how often this topic comes up with clients. And, here on the blog too. 

 

It seems that there are so many reasons not to be happy these days. Not only in the papers or news. Just watch your favourite soap opera. Or listen to the conversations going on around you. 

 

Added to this, there’s our very English affliction. The belief that it’s perfectly acceptable to be miserable now in the expectation that when X happens in the future – whatever X is – then we’ll suddenly be happy. Whether it be the latest must have gadget, a new house, losing weight or the love of your life. 

Milk is such an integral part of most people’s diets, it almost feels like heresy to ask whether it really is a good thing for us. And, interestingly, we have exactly that response from some patients when we ask this question. 

 

However that’s exactly what we’re going to do this week. So, get ready for a different take on our obsession with all things dairy. 

 

Let’s go back to the beginning and ask a couple of really easy questions. 

Have you noticed that people are always in search of a quick fix to any problem they may have in life? 

 

Whether it be a physical ailment, state of mind or that one thing which would make their life “perfect”, their requirements are the same. A “magic pill” – or technique – which will transform their lives in the blink of an eye. And preferably without too much effort on their behalf. 

 

Nowhere is this more obvious than in the personal development world. Now if you’re one of those people that the mere mention of “personal development” gets your hackles up, just bear with us. We’re not advocating navel gazing or the “peace and love man” approach, but a much more down to earth approach to life. 

Scarcely a day seems to go past without some reference to the latest health concern in the press. Diabetes. Obesity. Cholesterol. High blood pressure. ADHD. Sadly these are just a few examples. The list is a long one and getting longer by the day. 

 

Whichever problem is under the spotlight, the process seems to be the same. Experts are tasked with pinpointing THE cause.  

 

Treatments and medications are specifically developed for it. Lobby and patient groups are set up to bring it to people’s attention. 

And in all this minutiae, the bigger picture is missed. The common links running through so many of our modern health problems. 

We’ve always loved bizarre facts and snippets of information, particularly if they fly in the face of accepted wisdom. Even better if they get the old grey cells working as well. 

 

Some relate to the world around us. Others are health related. But our favourite are those about how our minds work. Or, in some cases, don’t work (!). 

 

And, even more so, people’s reactions to these new insights. Into what goes on between their ears. Well, not always between their ears, but that’s definitely a subject for another day! 

 

What fascinates us is that people tend to assume they know exactly what’s going on in their heads. And that they are fully in control of it. Oh, and it’s the same for everyone. 

As traditional as the Christmas festivities, breaking of new year’s resolutions (!) and January blues; is the upswing in coughs and colds as soon as everyone gets back to their normal routine. 

 

Every January, around this time, we hear people making the same comments over and over again. About all the bugs doing the rounds. How generous people are in passing them on. And how bugs are “lurking out there” – wherever “there” is – just waiting to get them. 

 

As traditional as the December madness – eat, drink and be merry – are the New Year resolutions. Usually made during those heady days between Christmas and New Year, each year we set ourselves long lists of things we’re definitely NOT going to do this year. Drink. Smoke. Eat junk food. Drink coffee. Vegetate on the sofa. And so the list goes on. 

 

Have you ever stopped to wonder why these annual good intentions are always about what we’re NOT going to do? About the things we’re going to deny ourselves. 

 

What a way to start a new year. Is it any wonder that the beginning of January feels so miserable? 

 

Or that few New Year resolutions last any longer than 12th night? It’s already gone by the way, in case you’d missed it… 

 

Surely there must be a better way to start a bright shiny new year. 

Whether you love or hate Christmas (!), this time of year is traditionally stressful, as everyone puts on their rose tinted spectacles in an attempt to create the “perfect Christmas.” 

 

Add to this the heady mix of unrealistic expectations – fuelled by all the hype in the media for the last few months – relatives you only see once a year and overindulgence. Sadly the results are often far too predictable. 

 

If we’ve been here many times before, why do we allow the same scenes to continue to be replayed year after year? 

There’s no doubt that the switching on of the first light bulb by Thomas Edison — in 1879, we’re reliably informed (!) —completely transformed our world forever. Our love affair with all things electrical quickly followed. 

 

In the last twenty years or so wireless technology has come to the forefront, with an estimated 50 million mobile phones in the UK and wi fi now available in most public places. 

 

Alongside this has come an increasing number of reports of the risks posed by modern technology. Many of these have taken the form of lurid stories in the press — particularly the tabloids — but there has also been a growing body of research which is hard to ignore. 

Last week we cast a new light – no pun intended (!) – on the biannual clock change we all take for granted. Jumping forward in the spring. Falling back in the autumn. How this may effect more than the amount of daylight we have to enjoy each day, but may also have implications for our ongoing health as well. Not to mention the economic effects of these changes for big business too... 

 

Many people have likened these clock changes to ongoing – and low grade – jet lag. Rather than feeling the effects for a few days – as our bodies adjust to a new time zone – we’re permanently just a little out of synch with our natural rhythms. 

 

But is this the only way we’ve lost touch with our natural rhythms or it is it just the tip of the iceberg? We’d say the latter is the case.