Best Health – April-May 2020
English | 79 pages | pdf | 44.33 MB
Welcome Best Health magazine April-May 2020 issue
WOW, 2020 HAS BEEN A CHALLENGING YEAR — and it’s only a third over! I don’t know about you, but I’m stumbling around feeling a little shell-shocked and longing for a return to the good old days.
We began planning this issue long before COVID-19 was even coined. But, interestingly enough, our theme “Body Strong” and many of the stories that support it are relevant even during this pandemic. When it comes to wellness that is often the way. In good times and bad — especially in bad — we need to pay attention to our health and to work at being strong.
This issue of Best Health pdf magazine throws the spotlight on the many ways that contribute to your strength, even if you are still struggling with this new normal.
We have advice on how to grapple with negativity, quell your anxiety and even how to work out with an app if you can’t get to your gym.
But before you get into all that great stuff, I want to share the story of how I learned the correct definition of “body strong,” which goes back many decades. It was early winter and my kid brother, Max, had just been born. One night after dinner, my parents were at the kitchen sink cleaning up, when my mom turned toward my dad, soapy plate in hand, and said, “There’s something wrong with the baby.”
My parents were speaking freely about that day’s doctor’s appointment because they thought they were alone. My older brother, Steve, and I were supposed to be in our rooms, busy with homework – except that I wasn’t. I had purposely snuck back downstairs to eavesdrop and ended up hearing way more than I should have.
Over the years, Max endured countless trips to Toronto for SickKids appointments and surgery to repair and rehabilitate the damage caused by a birth injury that had resulted in right-sided paralysis. Throughout it all, our family carried on, and Max was given the same childhood opportunities as me and Steve. “You want to play hockey?” Mom would inquire of a six-year-old Max. “Cool, let’s make it happen.” And then she would start researching ways to modify hockey equipment so Max could join his peers on the ice.
My mom never got the chance to see Max grow into adulthood, so I stepped in. I sent him off to university with care packages, vetted his girlfriends and talked him through the challenges of early adulthood. Not nearly as magnificently as Mom would have done, but Max appreciated the effort, thanking me often for being his surrogate mom.
But the truth is, I should be thanking him. Truly, it was my kid brother who showed me what it means to be “body strong.” He started with a body that was anything but, and he tapped into the power of positive thinking to build a successful and exciting life. While I can always find excuses to avoid trying something new, Max is still the first one to sign up for any adventure.
He lives in the present and works at being the best version of himself. I’m sure some of that drive comes from the family mantra I first heard Mom utter that long-ago night over the dirty dishes: “From here on in,” she said to my Dad, “we’ll celebrate the positive and work on the rest. Let’s face it, we’ve got everything we need to make it happen.”
Truer words were never spoken.
Beth Thompson
Editor-in-Chief
Follow me on INSTAGRAM @bestbeth2
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