Friday, March 2, 2012

THE RACE: Use The Buddy System for Training, Health, and All Things Difficult

The day before I turned 40 my I went to see my gynecologist for a yearly exam...What an awesome 40th birthday present that was.  Anyway, one of the gifts he gave me was an order for a mammogram...Yahooey, I'm officially old and qualify for yearly mammograms.  It's a gift I would have loved to return for say, a boob job or a butt lift...oh well...

I'm not one of those people who hates going to the doctor. I actually quite like going (minus all the poking and prodding and cold silver gadgets that go in all kinds of orifices).  That's probably because I love hearing how healthy I am!  If I was sick, it'd probably be a different story.  I've never known anyone battling cancer or some other illness who liked going to the doctor, which is understandable.  So I'm talking more about going to the doctor for preventative, routine matters.

Basically, no one has ever had to go convince me to go the doctor.  I know my body well enough, I know when I need to go, when I'm sick enough or not, and when an injury requires medical attention or not.  I simply love knowing that I'm healthy and, if I'm not, what I need to do to fix it.  So although I haven't scheduled my mammogram yet, I will -soon (it just keeps slipping my mind)...

Lots of people are not that way though.  Some people - like one woman who shall remain nameless, but let's just say her name rhymes with "other" - simply refuse to go to the doctor.  I think it's driven mostly by fear - fear of the "what if" something is wrong with me, fear of needles, fear of hospitals...whatever.  People are funny about doctors.

But, in my view, I'm sorry...suck it up and go!  Especially if you have a family.  Once you popped out those kids who will depend on you for the rest of your life to be there as his/her parent, you lost your right to be selfish and blissfully ignorant about your health...so go to the doctor...Anyway, I digress...

If you're one of those people who has trouble making the call to the doctor's office, then why don't you do the same thing we usually do when we're trying to do anything difficult:  Get a buddy.

When you set out to train for your first race, lose weight, or quit a bad habit, one of the first pieces of advice that people give you is to get a training buddy, a workout partner, a sponsor...Someone to be there by your side while you're going through a difficult journey.

Buddies hold you accountable.  You're much less likely to bail on that 5 a.m. run if you know you have to meet your training buddy than if you were going by yourself.  You know that if you're going to have to call your weight loss buddy if you eat that piece of cake, that it's going to be a pride-swallowing call to make.  If you take that drink or smoke that cigarette, your sponsor is going to come knocking your door down.  Having a buddy makes you realize that someone, besides yourself, is counting on you.

Buddies also make whatever you're doing more fun.  It's way better to set out on a 5-hour bike ride with a buddy.  More fun to sit together and make fun of all the skinny bitches eating chocolate cake while the two of you eat rice cakes.

Just like a training buddy or a weight loss buddy, having a health buddy to go with you to that dreaded doctor's office also can make you more accountable and maybe, just maybe, make it a little more fun (just a little..ok, maybe not "fun," but tolerable)....

March is colon cancer awareness month.  If there are two words that make people want to run from the doctor's office, they're "colon cancer."  My uncle had colon cancer and after a long battle over several years, the cancer finally won.  It's a particularly ugly cancer and one people don't really like to talk about.  But this month, if you're of the age where you need to have a colonoscopy, find a buddy.  Chances are one of your friends also needs to have the same uncomfortable procedure done, so why not go through it together (well, not literally together, but you know what I mean).  That way you're both drinking the same disgusting stuff the night before, having the same procedure done the next day, and then holding each other's hands when you get the results back.  Find a colonoscopy buddy...

Find a mammogram buddy for that matter too. Hell, why don't you just dub one of your friends or family members as your Health Buddy.  You can schedule annual exams together (which will help you remember when you need to make your appointments), go to appointments together, and then go for lunch or drinks or a run after it's over.  You'll be more likely to go to all those awful appointments if you know that someone else is counting on you to go...And you may have some funny stories afterwards to talk about with each other...It'll be your little "thing" between just the two of you...

So partner up!  Whatever task, obligation, appointment, or training that you're dreading, you don't have to go it alone...Find a buddy!  You won't be the only one to benefit from the deal.  And if you have something difficult you're trying to tackle and can't find a buddy, shoot me an email...I'll be the best damn buddy you ever had!

Is there something you've been dreading doing - like starting to work out, making a doctor's appointment, or trying to lose weight - where having a buddy would be helpful? 

2 comments:

Jen said...

My friend C has long been my go-to buddy for all sorts of stuff. She went with me to my first mammogram (in my mid-thirties) when a lump was detected. We knew they wouldn't let a man back in the staging room, or anyone else - so she just scheduled her own damn mammogram at the same time! She's also my go-to exercise partner. When I just need a break from going it alone, I give her a call. The buddy system works.

Life Through Endurance said...

That's awesome, Jen!! What a great story about how supportive a buddy can be! Thanks for sharing.