I Write About My Health Because...

#HAWMC:
Spend 15 minutes writing, without stopping, on the topic, "I write about my health because..."

I write about my health because it keeps me aware; sometimes by writing, thoughts come across my screen before I've even actualized them in my brain.  Like God or the Universe or some other master power put these thoughts in my brain, and the only way to discover them was to just start writing and see where I end up.

I write about my health because my putting my journey down on paper, not only do I have a memoir of my experiences and an outlet for my stress, but a way to share that with others who might learn something -- anything -- good, or bad -- from my experiences. 

I write about my health because it makes it REAL - before I wrote about my health, I was, frankly, unhealthy.  As if the words weren't on paper, the reality didn't exist.  I could live a blissfully ignorant life, avoiding mirrors and new pants and making blissfully easy unhealthy choices and never acknowledge the consequences of my actions -- namely, my ever-expanding waist. 

I write about my health because even though I STILL make many choices that result in an ever-expanding waist, I am accountable, not only to myself but to an audience.  And frankly, the latter is more powerful.

I write about my health because it helps me recognize patterns in my behavior, my stress, and even my menstrual cycle -- the triggers and stressors that lead to certain behaviors, or the choices (both bad and good) that affect the way I feel the next day.

I write about my health because it has introduced me to a whole community of writers that I can learn from.

I write about my health because I'm PROUD of what this blog and the others before have helped me to accomplish -- when I trained for the marathon, the biggest reward was getting to write about it, getting to use my words to inspire change and empowerment in thousands of strangers, which in turn inspired me to keep going going going.

I write about my health because it sets a tone for my day -- gives me a plan, a goal, and something to be accountable towards.

I write about my health because in this life, this world, this society, it is the one thing that truly matters.  I can write about jobs and friends, cars and houses, weddings and funerals, babies and grandparents and all of that is important, but at the end of the day, if you don't have your own health, you have nothing.

Off and running,
~Jessica