Last week a couple of my amazing patients came into my office, on different days, but with the same thoughts, how do we stay well and vibrant as we are aging? Do we just accept and give in to "old age" or do we fight it, which is right? What does it look like to age well? How should you feel about it or does it matter? Why does it seem so daunting of a task? Honestly, I thought a lot about it all week, as I have my parents and my father-in-law that I am observing as they make the trek into the next part of their life.

In one of my offices I have a plaque on the wall that says, "What you do everyday makes more of a difference than what you do every once in a while." In my profession, as a physical therapist, I find this to be especially true. My patients who make a commitment to their health actually see changes happen. Suddenly things that seemed unattainable with their body, now seem possible. A patient who couldn't walk up a flight of stairs, now walks 4 miles a day, a volleyball player who couldn't set from a shoulder injury, now has powerful control and a cross country runner with an ankle strain made it to the state finals, all because they decided that they could have a better life if they made a commitment to their rehabilitation in physical therapy.

I know physical challenges happen to all of us. We all have had difficult injuries that have set us back whether due to accidents, life choices or genetics. Many of these things are beyond our control and we have had to live with these life circumstances and adapt our lifestyles. These things can be painful and difficult and we can give up or decide to choose to live again in a new way.

Recently someone dear to me gave me a new book. I love books. I have lots of them. This one is called "Cultivating Compassion." I was intrigued, the tag line said, "Simple everyday practices for discovering peace of mind and resilience." Interesting I thought, sometimes a change of perspective is needed in this busy, face paced world, we all live in. The giver made me a challenge, as the book so clearly has a driving force, 66 days of self-reflection and practice. New skills, new ideas, new techniques to help make a new perspective. I said, "I'm in." She smiled, she knew I would do it. It's simple really, self-reflection. It's just slowly down enough to note your heart about whatever is going on, but sometimes we just get flying along and forget to ask ourselves what's the real reason behind all the things we're are doing.

I want to challenge you with your health as we are rolling towards the Holiday season. Last year my husband and I did some form of exercise everyday for 30 minutes till Thanksgiving and then something happened and the first thing to go was our exercise regime. So much for all our dedication and hard work all year. How is it possible that we did so well all year and then we fell apart and the first thing we tossed out was our health? That being said, I want you to start asking yourself some questions about what you really want your health to look like in the next few months. Do you want to stay on high blood pressure medicine and a diuretic? Do you want to have your diabetes going out of control because you refuse to be responsible? Do you want to be 30 pounds overweight with sore feet and knees just because you have no commitment to make a different life?

There is no right answer when it comes to your health. Only you can decide what you are willing to do. Distinctly it is documented in research, that what you do in this decade of your life directly affects the next decade. What will your next decade of life look like with the choices you are making now? Will you commit or will you just give in, only you can decide.

•••

Sheree DiBiase, PT, is the owner of Lake City Physical Therapy and she and her staff are dedicated to helping you "stay fit and age well." Please make a commitment to your health. Call our Coeur d'Alene office (208) 667-1988, Spokane Valley (509) 891-2623 and in our new Hayden office (208) 762-2100.