Life Story “Picking up the signs sent by your body”

Adam is a 21 years-old living with his older brother. A former IT student, he decided to not continue his studies and entered the workforce. He is currently working as a full-time supermarket cashier, but doesn’t know for how long as he is replacing an employee on sick-leave. At lunch, he often eats at the fast-food restaurant next to his job. After his day at work, he goes directly home and engages in his favourite past-time, playing video-games. Adam has always been a video-games enthusiast, and he now uses it to distract himself and keep contact with his friends from high school. He doesn’t go out much, only to go to work and occasionally to meet his friends at the pub. He doesn’t exercise and spends most of his time home in his room, which frustrates his brother, who often blames him for never cleaning and not spending time with him.

His lifestyle is mostly sedentary and solitary. This affects his motivation: he struggles to find the will to leave the house, even when it is to meet friends. In the morning, he always has a tough time waking up to go to work.

His mood is also being affected, as he is rarely smiling, is easily annoyed and struggles with his self esteem. Indeed, he has lost weight since starting his new job and he suffers from a complex about his strength. He is convinced that his physical appearance is the reason he is still single and he also fears going to the gym as he expects people to mock him for his lack of physical abilities.

Moreover, he has started experiencing shortness of breath and tiredness after doing basic activities like climbing the stairs or trying to catch the bus, which has not helped with his self esteem and interferes with his daily activities.

He constantly feels exhausted, regardless of how long he sleeps at night, but decides not to address that as he doesn’t feel like going to the doctor. He knows that his lifestyle is not the healthiest, but he really doesn’t have the energy to change anything.

One day, as Adam is cleaning one of the aisles of the supermarket he works in, his vision starts to blur and his heart starts to race. Panicked, he only has time to call for his coworker before he passes out. It takes a few minutes for him to regain consciousness, and when he does, his boss is already on the phone with the emergency services. His brother met him in the emergency room, and after being examined, his doctor diagnosed him with Type 2 diabetes. The doctor explains to him that this disease can be a result of genetics but also of a sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy eating habits. He also warns him about the dangerous consequences of this disease and explains that he will now need medications. Serious changes must also be made to Adam’s current habits.

Adam decides to follow the doctor’s instructions, as his fainting has really scared him and he doesn’t want to ever feel that way again. 

He starts by cutting down his screen time. He realises that video-games weren’t making him as happy as they used to before, and that he now prefers meeting with his friends outside. 

To try to incorporate exercise in his daily routine, he started to walk and bike for his day to day travels. It turns out that one of his neighbours, friends with his brother, works in the same zone and bikes to work every morning, and they start travelling together.  He still has trouble with his breathing but has started to improve. 

In order to eat healthier meals, his brother has begun cooking more and more often, making sure Adam has a healthy home-cooked meal to eat at lunch. By doing so, he reduced his consumption of processed food. 

Adam also started scheduling his day more regularly, making sure his sleep is consistent. He hopes that this and the medication he started taking will help with his exhaustion.

Today, Adam feels stronger and healthier. He has more energy than ever before and his shortness of breath doesn’t bother him as much as it used to. Learning about his diseases allowed him to realise that most of the things bothering him in his day to day life could be easily improved by taking the right medication and adopting the right lifestyle. Thanks to this, he started gaining some weight again and this has helped him improve his self confidence and overall mental health. He is thinking about starting some more intense exercising by going to the gym. 

At work, Adam now feels more motivated and takes new initiatives which helps him feel more useful. His contract ends in a few weeks but Adam has found a new job in IT reparations. 

His brother supports him a lot, but in order to gain some independence, Adam learned to cook healthy meals for himself, relying on the help of one of his coworkers. 

He started playing and enjoying video-games again, but makes sure to not let it occupy all his time like it used to before. 

Adam still takes his medication and visits the doctor regularly for check-ups, but has not fainted or experienced blurred vision since that day at the supermarket.

Being healthy is not only not being hurt or sick. It also means feeling great physically and mentally. You shouldn’t ignore the signs your body is giving you, like tiredness, unjustified weight changes, or mood swings. You shouldn’t wait for your health to worsen to start improving your lifestyle. 

You should also try to include exercise in your weekly activities as it reduces the risks of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), like type 2 diabetes, which are directly linked to higher mortality rates and overall decreased quality of life.

1. Which parts of the story feel familiar to you?
2. What warning signs might you currently be ignoring in your own life?
3. What beliefs about being a man might make it harder for you to seek help?
4. What small step could you take this week to better take care of your health?