After over 30 years as a practicing physician I have come to the conclusion that most suffering, symptoms, and disease are self imposed.  It may be our naive ignorance or arrogance.  It may be our culture, family, personal history or our inheritance from our species.  Yet when I have talked to other holistic health physicians, priests, ministers, elders, rabbi’s etc, there is the common denominator in peoples lives and suffering.

That common denominator is the individual.  The individual can choose.  A good friend who is a priest and very mystical individual shared with me years ago “you know, even though in theory free will is present in every individual, I see very little exercise of that gift in peoples lives.”

The first step is in recognizing your life has a need to change.  The next step is to be willing to change. The third step is to identify your familiar vices (unhealthy habits that you enjoy!) and make a concentrated effort to discontinue and release them.  Then to identify the appropriate virtue (positive, health habit that you have avoided) and make a concentrated effort to embrace this and live it!  Do this with no attachment to the result, an agenda or a timeline.  Success will follow.

Here’s a short list of vices and the opposite end of the gradient-the virtues.

Remember vices are east at the beginning, leading to slavery and disease.

Virtues are uncomfortable to begin but lead to internal freedom with time and practice.

PRIDE <——————————————————————–> HUMILITY

ENVY<———————————————————————->KINDNESS

GLUTTONY<—————————————————————->TEMPERANCE

LUST<————————————————————————>CHASTITY

ANGER<———————————————————————->PATIENCE

GREED<———————————————————————–>GENEROSITY

SLOTH<———————————————————————–>FORTITUDE

In Health & Service,

Dr. Roland F. Phillips Jr., BA, BS, D.C.