- What types of behaviors, in your opinion, are considered to be unhealthy?
- What are some of the direct consequences for people in terms of their health conditions if they engage and continue to be engaged in those unhealthy behaviors?
- Lastly, share some of the ideas for successfully making behavior changes for others so that they stop those unhealthy behaviors and change them into healthy ones?
ANSWER THE ABOVE DISCUSSION AND THEN REPLY TO MY CLASSMATE’S RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE QUESTIONS AND EXPLAIN WHY YOU AGREE? (A MINIMUM OF 125 WORDS EACH DISCUSSION)
CLASSMATE’S POST
Some behaviors that I consider to be unhealthy are: a sedentary life style, over eating, not eating enough of the right foods, skipping exercise, smoking, indulging too much with alcohol or other drugs, negative self- talk, biting nails, being inconsistent with preventive health measures, or taking care of chronic health conditions, being unable to have a strong work life balance, or lacking resiliency. When I think of these things I think of myself at different times in my life. I am diabetic. I am great at making life style changes and then I get so busy with life that I forget to take my medication or I miss a day of exercise and I have a hard time sometimes getting back on track. I have also had times in my life where I go, go, go and then other times where after work all I want to do is binge watch my favorite shows on Netflix. For me my unhealthy habits have led to a place in my life where I have to pay close attention to the foods I am choosing to eat and take medication to maintain a healthy blood sugar. Down the road this will more than likely lead to some other chronic health conditions.
I think people are motivated by lots of different things and in order to successfully change unhealthy behaviors to healthy behaviors we need to understand what motivates people and allow room for failure, starting again, and growth. Whatever programs that are offered need to be flexible. For myself I have noticed that if I am not consistent then I am not successful. It is really easy for me to put everyone around me first and not do a great job of taking care of myself.
Somethings that have worked for me in the past are: planning active family or friend meetings such as meeting friends to go for a hike instead of out to eat to spend time together. Attending programs like weight watchers for accountability to myself. Using an app to track my eating, reminders to take medications, or a calendar application like google calendar to remind myself of appointments and when to schedule yearly physicals or routine follow up appointments. Taking educational classes like the diabetic nutrition class offered at our local hospital that teaches how to easily count carbs.
